PITT PHOTO EXHIBIT OFFERS GLIMPSE OF "THE GOLDEN AGE OF HOLLYWOOD"

PITTSBURGH , July 28 -- Portraits of more than 100 film stars from the 1930s, 40s and 50s are on display at the University of Pittsburgh's Special Collections Reading Room at 363 Hillman Library through Sept. 30. The free exhibit is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. and Tuesday evenings until 8 p.m.

Believed to be the only one of its kind in Southwestern Pennsylvania, the Pitt collection includes black-and-white photos of Bette Davis, Cary Grant, Audrey Hepburn, Clara Bow, Grace Kelly, Barbara Stanwyck, Ava Gardner, Jean Harlow, Spencer Tracy, Katherine Hepburn, Orson Welles, Gene Kelly, Henry Fonda, John Wayne, Lana Turner, Jane Russell, Marilyn Monroe and many others.

It represents a small part of Pitt's vast Curtis Theatre Collection, which contains more than 20,000 photos of stars of the stage and screen. "The Golden Age of Hollywood Exhibit is a salute to the era and its stars, who are still icons of glamour to this day," said Cheryl Padula, curator of the Curtis Theatre Collection. "The Golden Age saw the development of film genres that would grow to become imbedded in our culture, such as horror and gangster films, musicals, and film noir."

The photos, most of them publicity stills sent to newspapers or wire services, were donated to Pitt by the newspapers or from individuals. They were matted and framed for this exhibit, but are usually stored in a climate-controlled room in acid-free folders. For more information call 412-648-8190.

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