{"id":43766,"date":"2025-12-30T14:40:22","date_gmt":"2025-12-30T14:40:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/the-life-and-career-of-the-1950s-screen-icon-in-pictures\/"},"modified":"2025-12-30T14:40:22","modified_gmt":"2025-12-30T14:40:22","slug":"the-life-and-career-of-the-1950s-screen-icon-in-pictures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/the-life-and-career-of-the-1950s-screen-icon-in-pictures\/","title":{"rendered":"The life and career of the 1950s screen icon in pictures"},"content":{"rendered":"


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French actress Brigitte Bardot, who has died aged 91, arguably redefined cinematic allure, captivating the world as a 1950s screen icon. <\/p>\n

From her breakout appearance in And God Created Woman to her provocative roles in The Truth, Contempt, and Viva Maria! she pioneered a fresh image of female sexuality and liberation on screen, before dedicating her life to animal rights. <\/p>\n

Bardot’s life was one of glamour, controversy, and conviction.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Born in Paris in 1934, Bardot trained as a ballerina before her striking beauty caught the eye of filmmakers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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At 18, she married director Roger Vadim, who cast her in And God Created Woman, a provocative film that launched her to international stardom.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"QUINIO\/Gamma-RaphoQUINIO\/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
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Bardot’s sensual, carefree persona in this French New Wave classic redefined femininity and made her a Cannes sensation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Through the late 1950s and 1960s, Bardot became a global phenomenon with roles in The Truth, earning critical acclaim for her dramatic depth, and Contempt, a Jean-Luc Godard masterpiece, and Viva Maria!, showcasing her comedic flair alongside Jeanne Moreau. <\/p>\n

Her tousled hair and bold eyeliner set fashion trends worldwide, while her performances cemented Bardot as a cinematic trailblazer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"ScreenProd\/Photononstop\/AlamyScreenProd\/Photononstop\/Alamy<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Sami Frey and Brigitte Bardot in The Truth, 1960<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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\"CollectionCollection Sunset Boulevard\/Corbis via Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Michel Piccoli and Brigitte Bardot on the set of Le Mepris, (Contempt) 1963<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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\"Keystone-France\/Gamma-KeystoneKeystone-France\/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Bardot during a press conference for Contempt in Rome, Italy<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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Jeanne Moreau and Brigitte Bardot on the set of the Louis Malle film, Viva Maria!<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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Beyond her most iconic roles, Bardot showcased her versatility in films like Love on a Pillow, where she portrayed a complex, emotionally-torn character, and Two Weeks in September, a romantic drama that highlighted her ability to convey vulnerability.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Her 1962 film Love on a Pillow was directed by Roger Vadim<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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Bardot during the filming of Two Weeks in September in East Lothian, Scotland in September 1966<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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In The Bear and the Doll , she brought playful charm to a comedic role, proving her range across genres. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Bardot in a scene in Michel Deville’s 1970 film, The Bear and the Doll<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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\"Gamma-RaphoGamma-Rapho via Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
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These films, though less celebrated, underscored her ability to captivate audiences in diverse narratives.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Gamma-RaphoGamma-Rapho via Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
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In 1973, at the height of her fame, Bardot retired from acting at 39 to champion animal rights. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Founding the Brigitte Bardot Foundation, she campaigned against seal hunting and animal testing, channelling her passion into advocacy. <\/p>\n

Her bold shift from screen siren to activist surprised many but reflected her commitment to living authentically.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Settling in Saint-Tropez, Bardot embraced a quieter life, far from the spotlight. <\/p>\n

She remained a symbol of 1960s glamour and a pioneer for animal rights.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"ARNAL\/Gamma-RaphoARNAL\/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
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Bardot’s reputation was damaged in her later years, when she made homophobic slurs and was fined multiple times for inciting racial hatred. <\/p>\n

It was a scar on the memory of an icon, who – in her prime – put the bikini, female desire, and French cinema on the map.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sam Levin\/Kobal\/Shutterstock French actress Brigitte Bardot, who has died aged 91, arguably redefined cinematic allure, captivating the world as a 1950s screen icon. From her breakout appearance in And God Created Woman to her provocative roles in The Truth, Contempt, and Viva Maria! she pioneered a fresh image of female sexuality and liberation on screen, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":43767,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[65],"tags":[6023,4699,10174,283,135,9347],"class_list":["post-43766","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-in-pictures","tag-1950s","tag-career","tag-icon","tag-life","tag-pictures","tag-screen"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43766","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43766"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43766\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43768,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43766\/revisions\/43768"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43767"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43766"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43766"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43766"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}