Who Was Clara Bow: Biography, Career, Why Tayor Swift Name Her Album After Bow
Who Was Clara Bow: Biography, Career, Why Tayor Swift Named Her Album After Bow

The 11th studio album by Swift, "The Tortured Poets Department," has the potential to bring in a slew of Grammys for the singer. Although none of the album's sixteen tracks have been released to the public just yet, the last song, "Clara Bow," is causing quite a stir among Swift fans and others who aren't as familiar with the Swift sisters.

What a lovely name, "Clara Bow." Especially among the Swifties' more senior kin, it might be familiar. This is due to the fact that Bow was the first authentic "It Girl" in addition to being a real-life cinema actress who existed from 1905 to 1965. Author David Stenn of "Clara Bow: Runnin' Wild"(2000) informed TODAY that at her height, she was one of the first Hollywood sex symbols and celebrities, and that she received an average of 35,000 letters every month. Just who was this woman? For additional information, see the article.

Who was Clara Bow?

Prospect Heights, Brooklyn was the site of Bow's birth in 1905. Bow sought a career in movies in her late teens after enduring a challenging childhood, which included a mother who allegedly battled with her mental health and was subsequently institutionalized.

A little part in the 1922 film Beyond the Rainbow was her reward for entering a magazine's beauty contest when she was sixteen years old. Despite rumors that her parts were removed, she went on to star in Mantrap (1926), It (1927), and Wings (1927), all of which were popular during the silent film era of the 1920s (1927).

Clara Bow's career

Who Was Clara Bow: Biography, Career, Why Tayor Swift Name Her Album After Bow

Bow began her career in her home state of New York, where she won a beauty pageant in 1921 at the tender age of sixteen and had a small role in a film as her reward.

Bow made the most of her opportunities to be on set and gain experience. She arrived early, remained late, and watched the lights and cameras. Bow was successful in the early film industry because she was professional and kind.

Following her 1923 arrival to Hollywood, Bow landed a string of roles as energetic sidekicks in films like "Dancing Mothers" (1926) thanks to her scene-stealing skills. The film "It," which came out in 1927, featured the actress in the leading role of a department shop worker who attempts to win over her boss.

With her signature pout, seductive eyes, and flaming red hair, Bow had become famous, and Variety went on to call her Hollywood's "hottest jazz baby."

As a result of her breakout performance in the aforementioned 1927 film It, Bow became known as "The It Girl." As Bow's star rose in the film industry, rumours about her love connections and childhood in the tabloids spread like wildfire.

Bow stood out from her fellow performers due to her "brazen" personality, as pointed out by The Guardian.

Bow was reportedly not well-liked by her other female film colony actors when her colleague Lina Basquette commented on her, as reported by the publication. It was ridiculous that her social presence was frowned upon; after all, Marion Davies and Mary Pickford had a lot to conceal. The difference is that Clara wasn't one of them; they disguised it.

Hollywood soon took its toll on Bow, according to Elaine Shepherd, who made a 2012 documentary about Bow for BBC4. Shepherd states that Bow retired from acting in 1933.

Shepherd revealed to the BBC that the studios were using her to the point that she needed "hundreds of primitive pills" to wake up and go asleep. As a young lady, she had to cope with executives who wanted to take advantage of her to the fullest extent, as well as the worst lies published about her in gossip publications.

"She simply thought it was extremely stressful," Shepherd added. The rumor that Hollywood fired her is false, though. She made a couple of talkies for a pretty penny when sound came in, and she could have had a much bigger career if she had gotten more backing from the start.

45,000 letters from fans every month

Offscreen, her personal life became juicy rumor due to a series of high-profile relationships.

According to Photoplay, Clara "plays the irresponsible younger generation - on and off the screen" in 1926, and she kissed her partner "so hard that his jaw was'sore for two days.'"

The press's treatment of Bow was tense at best. The tales, however, never stopped. They varied from studio-sponsored puff pieces in major trade magazines to poorly researched articles on abortion and orgies published by small-time journals competing in the fierce Los Angeles media landscape.

The media made it seem like Bow had a history of "nervous breakdowns," was romantically unlucky, and was just too outspoken. Regardless, she was adored by her countless fans.

She was getting 45,000 letters a month from fans by 1929. Sales of the reddish-dye henna also increased that year as her devoted followers sought to imitate her style. While filming, she was known to play cards, make crude comments, and shower her hairdressers with gifts—including an emerald-encrusted watch.

A hundred years before to Swift's "Eras Tour," Bow's version of American femininity—confident, daring, and seductive—had genuine influence.

"Millions of followers wore their hair like Clara’s and pouted like Clara, and danced and smoked and laughed and necked like Clara," producer Budd Schulberg said in his 1981 memoir.

On her latest album, The Tortured Poets Department, Taylor Swift discusses how Clara Bow served as an inspiration.

How did Clara Bow inspire Taylor Swift’s new album, The Tortured Poets Department?

Who Was Clara Bow: Biography, Career, Why Tayor Swift Name Her Album After Bow

Similar to Swift's Red single "The Lucky One," which describes an earlier superstar and the scrutiny they endured, the new track from The Tortured Poets Department suggests a narrative.

"You look like Clara Bow / In this light, remarkable / All your life, did you know / You'd be picked like a rose?" are the opening lyrics sung by Swift. It must be thrilling to be rescued from obscurity, she thinks, and she might "die" if it were to happen to her.

She keeps bringing up Stevie Nicks from 1975 and how the audience went "wild at her fingertips," before stating that she might "die" if she "made it" big in Los Angeles.

Swift adds a twist in the bridge by pointing out that celebrity and fortune aren't everything they seem. "Beauty is a beast that roars down on all fours / Demanding more," she sings. "Only when your girlish glow flickers just so / Do they let you know? / It's hell on earth to be heavenly / Them's the breaks, they don't come gently."

What have we known so far about Taylor Swift's new album?

Taylor Swift's eleventh studio album is titled The Tortured Poets Department. There are sixteen tracks in the album's standard edition, the first of which is "Fortnight," a duet with Post Malone that serves as the album's first single, and "Florida!!!," a duet with Florence and the Machine. Swift is known for its exclamation points.

There are physical and digital versions of The Tortured Poets Department. How do you typically like listening to music? It should be an easy choice. Please select a format.

Four distinct versions

Another decision will then be presented to you. Not only is there the regular edition with 16 songs, but there are also three special versions with additional songs. Two of the three are currently sold out, but you never know when they might be available again.

Each option is presented here:

Standard digital album ordering is the most cost-effective method to acquire The Tortured Poets Department. There are sixteen standard tracks and no extras included with the $12 price tag.

Editions include the bonus track "The Manuscript" by Swift: If you choose for the basic version, you won't have access to this music. Desire that? To obtain the album, you must purchase it on cassette, CD, or vinyl. You can still preorder any of those editions and have them delivered on April 19. Album prices range from $13 for CD, $29 for cassette, and $35 for vinyl.

The Albatross version: Two further albums were released, each with 16 tracks plus bonus songs, however one of them omitted The Manuscript. Up to 11 a.m. PT on Feb. 26, a presale version with the bonus track "The Albatross" was accessible. Therefore, you may have lost all hope if you have already passed that deadline.

In addition to The Manuscript and The Albatross, there were several extra tracks available in the Bolter version. Swift reportedly unveiled a new limited version of the album featuring an additional track titled "The Bolter" on February 16th, according to Entertainment Weekly. Similar to The Albatross edition, it seems to have been discontinued and had a short reservation period.

What has Clara Bow's family said about Taylor Swift's new song?

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Nicole Sisneros and Brittany Grace Bell, two of Bow's great-grandchildren—the granddaughters of Bow's son Rex Bell Jr.—mentioned how the song sent "chills" down their spines upon initial listen. According to Sisneros, the song "poetically draws parallels between Clara Bow and Taylor."

"All your life, did you know / You'd be picked like a rose?" is a line from the song that it is referring to. "The men of Hollywood who capitalized on her fame and talent picked Clara like a rose," Bell says. I think it captures the essence of her experience as Hollywood's "it" girl.

Before the song was released, Sisneros and Bell thought about how Bow and Swift were similar, how they were both "pioneers in their field." In addition, Bell believes that Swift's great-grandmother would have been quite protective of her. In her book Clara Bow: Runnin' Wild, Marilyn Monroe was quoted as saying, "I never met her, but if I had met her, I would have tried very hard to help her, assemble as a heavy load to carry." This comment was used by Bell as an example of Bow's view of Monroe. You'd be just as exhausted, hurt, and confused, wouldn't you?

As an aside, Bell made the following comment on Swift: "I think Clara Bow would feel the same kinship and protectiveness over someone who's of the same level of fame as her in dealing with the media and how heavy the crown is to carry."

Unknown facts about Clara Bow

1. Clara Bow was born and raised in Brooklyn

On July 29, 1905, in the Prospect Heights area of Brooklyn, in a tenement apartment above a Baptist church at 697 Bergen Street, Clara Gordon Bow came into this world. Because of their poverty, Bow's parents, Robert and Sarah, traveled about Brooklyn quite a bit when Bow was a kid. Although her career was not doomed by her accent, she did experience some discomfort with the shift to talkies due to her heavy Brooklyn accent.

2. She didn't make it into her debut film

After winning the "Fame and Fortune" magazine contest, Bow landed her first film part as the lead's younger sister in Beyond the Rainbow. Bow took two of her schoolmates to witness the film's premiere, but she later found out that her character was one of many that had been axed.

3. Her mother attempted to assassinate Bow

It is an understatement to suggest that Sarah Bow was furious that her daughter had participated in that film contest. Sarah passed out and threatened Clara with eternal damnation after learning that she had joined a movie contest. The worst part, though, was that Sarah attempted to kill Clara while filming Beyond the Rainbow. When Clara awoke one night, her mother stood over her, brandishing a butcher knife and threatening to kill her. It will be superior. The next morning, Sarah had no recollection of what had happened because she had collapsed. A while later, brandishing the butcher knife once more, she pursued Clara around their flat. Sarah was committed to a mental institution, while Clara battled chronic sleeplessness for the rest of her life.

4. Aside from "It Girl," Clara Bow had other nicknames as well

Studio chief and producer B.P. Schulberg insensitively called Bow "Crisis-A-Day Clara" in reference to her scandalous lifestyle and mental condition.

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