Classic Beauties: Mistresses (5)

Let’s start with England’s James II:

Arabella Churchill

…and

Dorothy Sedley

…then on to France’s Napoleon Bonaparte:

Maria Walewska

…and his nephew, Napoleon III:

Harriet Howard

Rachel Félix

Virginie Castiglione

Back across the Channel, we have England’s William IV:

Dorothea Jordan

And finally, across the Atlantic, the mistress of yet another William:

Monica Lewinsky

Classic Beauty: Stephanie Beacham

Although she was made famous to American audiences in Dynasty, Stephanie Beacham had already had quite a career beforehand.  But who cares?  Today, she’s in her sizzling seventies, and looks as good as she always did.  Proof? you say?  In more-or-less chronological order, then:

As we all remember her in Dynasty — with the big hair:

And nowadays…


(click to embiggen — and note the freckled cleavage!!!!)

Beautiful back then, stunning now.

Classic Beauty: Polly Ann Young

Actor David Niven once described the Young sisters (Polly Ann, Elizabeth and Loretta) thus: “Each one was prettier than the others”, and who am I to argue with his judgment?  So as we looked at Loretta last week, let’s look at the oldest of the three (the fourth, Georgiana, was a half-sister, but we’ll get to her later).

Say hello to Polly Ann Young:

 

I think Niven was right… and we’ll look at Elizabeth next week.

Classic Beauty: Lisa Gaye

Part of a showbiz family (see below), Lisa Gaye was lovely (and a devout Christian).  Certainly, the movie studios thought so, as she was signed to a four-year contract when she was only 17.  But judge for yourselves:

And not just a pretty — okay, gorgeous — face, either.

In Technicolor:

Never as well known as her sister (Debra Paget), you can certainly say hers was a handsome showbiz family.  Seen here with Debra and brother Frank :

Lovely formal clothing, not a tattoo in sight… how I miss those days.