The Painting

The trivia section says that Man Ray 'painted the paintings'. I am not sure this is quite right. Albert Lewin asked his friend Man Ray to produce the portrait, but evidently the result wasn't acceptable - it looked like this: http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S0OqAblM-DM/TkViOFFiSwI/AAAAAAAAD90/Av4d6jJN 88w/s1600/Ava+Gardner+%2527Pandora%2527+and+Man+Ray%252C+1950+%255B2%2 55D.jpg

Man Ray did take the photograph used for the miniature of Van der Zee's wife - http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Db4ysrRpK8A/TkVgqVIIgwI/AAAAAAAAD9s/AmX5pZDf 6K8/s1600/Pandora.jpg - as well as a similar striking photograph which was not used in the film - http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PonvegiMpvU/TkVbWz2QZ4I/AAAAAAAAD9o/4OMm03gk _Is/s1600/Man+Ray+%257E+Ava+Gardner+%2527Pandora%2527%252C+1950+%255B2 %255D.jpg

The painting in the film - http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0WtHZ5y5vWE/TkXiZP_b5eI/AAAAAAAAD-c/1uP5PDG2 5CE/s1600/Ferdinand+Bellan+%255B1%255D.jpg - is the work of Ferdinand Bellan, who worked as a set designer (though apparently not as such on PATFD). The script requires the painting to demonstrate "the most fantastic coincidence imaginable" of being a portrait of Pandora (ie Ava Gardner). But the painting which we see merely bears some resemblance to her, so in terms of the film it's not very satisfactory. Real-life Dutchman Bert Pfeiffer should have got the gig! http://www.smithsonianmag.com/multimedia/photos/?c=y&articleID=121 959729



"I beseech ye in the bowels of Christ, think that ye may be mistaken."