Dirk Bogarde in The Blue Lamp (Rank Film, 1950), Blackmailed

Description

Dirk Bogarde in The Blue Lamp (Rank Film, 1950), Blackmailed (Rank Film, 1951), (The Wind Cannot Read (Rank Film, 1958), The Doctor's Dilemma (MGM, 1958, UK), The Servant (Springbok, 1963), King and Country (Warner-Pathé, 1964), Key Set Photographs (300+), and 4" x 5" Color Transparencies (255+). Vintage glossy 8" x 10" (6) and (9) borderless 7.5" x 9.5" (9) studio release photographs of Dirk Bogarde, Jack Warner, and Peggy Evans in The Blue Lamp, 8" x 10" (10+) key set photographs of Bogarde, Mai Zetterling, and Fay Compton in Blackmailed, glossy 8" x 10" (6) key set photographs of Bogarde and John Mills in The Gentle Gunman (Rank Film, 1952), glossy borderless 7.5" x 9.25" (4) key set photographs and 4" x 5" color transparencies of Bogarde and Yôko Tani in The Wind Cannot Read by George Courtney Ward, glossy 8" x 10" (15+) studio release photographs of Bogarde and Leslie Caron in The Doctor's Dilemma, 8" x 10" (6) and 4" x 5" (1) color transparencies of Bogarde in Damn the Defiant (Columbia, 1962), glossy 8" x 10" master key set (tipped to black card stock pages in black book-binding screw post album) photographs of Bogarde and Sarah Miles, Wendy Craig, and James Fox in The Servant (dir. Joseph Losey) (170+) by Robert Penn, with Tom Courtenay in King and Country (70+), glossy borderless 7.5" x 9.25 (8) and 8" x 10" (1) key set photographs of Doctor in Distress (Rank Film, 1963), Darling (Rank Film, 1965), The Mind Benders (Anglo-Amalgamated, 1963), and Agent 8 ¾ (Rank Film, 1964), with photographer credit and key set number, Rank Film stamp, typewritten paper caption, and paper caption on the verso. Fine/Very Fine, with light glue residue and smudging. Comes with a COA from Heritage Auctions.

More Information: Directed by Ralph Thomas and adapted from Richard Mason's novel, The Wind Cannot Read is a World War II drama set in British India, following an RAF officer (Bogarde) who falls in love with his Japanese language instructor (Tani) while training for intelligence work. The film became one of Bogardee's most memorable romantic roles, notable for its cross-cultural storyline and its lush Technicolor cinematography. Ward, one of Rank's most prolific still photographers, produced both black-and-white key set images and vivid in-camera color transparencies, which are unique originals from which all later publicity materials were derived.

Penn, one of Britain's foremost still photographers, created the defining images for Losey's groundbreaking collaboration with playwright Harold Pinter, whose screenplay adapted Robin Maugham's novella. A dark exploration of class, dependency, and sexual manipulation, The Servant became one of the most acclaimed British films of the 1960s and a turning point in Bogardee's career, shifting his image from matinée idol to daring character actor. As a master key set, this album represents the studio's definitive reference set—one of only one or two prepared, assembled for press and exhibition. Penn's photographs not only record Losey's claustrophobic mise-en-scène but also capture the intensity of performances that made The Servant a landmark of British art cinema.


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