15 New cards from G.D.I.: Hollywood stars of the early 1950s

For our monthly post on the Geoffrey Donaldson Institute postcard collection, we selected 15 cards from a little black album called 'Cine Stars'. Bart Vermeer donated the album to the GDI in 2020, but the original owner was Henri Pauwels in Leuven or Louvain, Belgium. His album was published by the Chocolate Factory Kwatta and had the MGM lion on its cover. In an introduction, 'Kwattina, the Kwatta mascot' writes: "You are familiar with the lion that adorns the cover of this album. He has been roaring on screen for years. You know that he announces the best current films, the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films, which feature the best stars. They are the stars, your stars, whose photos you will collect in this lovely album". How ironic that Henri mainly collected cards of stars from other Hollywood studios. He was particularly fond of Doris Day. Most of the postcards were probably made in Belgium.


Vintage postcard, no. 193. Photo: 20th Century Fox.

By 1953, Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962) was one of the most marketable Hollywood stars, with leading roles in three films: the Film Noir Niagara, which focused on her sex appeal, and the comedies Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire, which established her star image as a "dumb blonde". Although she played a significant role in shaping her public image throughout her career, she was disappointed by being typecast and underpaid by the studio. She was briefly suspended in early 1954 for refusing a film project, but returned to star in one of the biggest box office successes of her career, The Seven Year Itch (1955).


Vintage postcard, no. 352. Photo: Warner Bros. Doris Day in It's a Great Feeling (David Butler, 1949).

Legendary actress and singer Doris Day (1922-2019), with her blonde hair and blue eyes, performed with several big bands before going solo in 1947. In the 1950s, she starred in a series of popular film musicals, including Calamity Jane (1953) and The Pajama Game (1957). 'Que Será, Será!' became her theme song. With Rock Hudson, she starred in the box office hit Pillow Talk (1959). On TV, she appeared in the sitcom The Doris Day Show (1968-1973).


Vintage postcard, no. 352. Photo: Warner Bros. Doris Day in It's a Great Feeling (David Butler, 1949).


Vintage postcard, no. 352. Photo: Warner Bros.


Vintage postcard, no. 160. Photo: M.G.M. Tony Curtis and Mona Freeman in Flesh and Fury (Joseph Pevney, 1952).

American film actor Tony Curtis (1925-2010) played a variety of roles, from light comedy, such as the musician on the run from gangsters in Some Like It Hot (Billy Wilder, 1959), to serious dramatic roles, such as an escaped convict in The Defiant Ones (Stanley Kramer, 1958), which earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor. From 1949, he appeared in more than 100 films and made frequent television appearances.

American actress Mona Freeman (1926-2014) was the perennially young bobbysoxer of post-war Paramount. She played teen roles long after she had outgrown them, and this later stifled her adult career, although she became a competent actress.


Vintage postcard, no. 120. Photo: M.G.M. Tony Curtis and Mona Freeman in Flesh and Fury (Joseph Pevney, 1952).


Vintage postcard, no. 551. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Lena Horne (1917-2010) was an American singer, dancer, actress, and human rights activist. She is known as one of the most popular African American entertainers of the twentieth century. She starred in the film musicals Cabin in the Sky (1943) and Stormy Weather (1943).


Dutch postcard, no. 1080. Photo: Warner Bros. Doris Day and Kirk Douglas in Young Man With A Horn (Michael Curtiz, 1950).

Cleft-chinned and steely-eyed American superstar Kirk Douglas (1916-2020) made his film debut in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946) with Barbara Stanwyck. Douglas soon developed into a leading box-office star throughout the 1950s, known for serious dramas, including Westerns and War films. Our favourites are the two classics he made with Stanley Kubrick, Paths of Glory (1957) and Spartacus (1960). During his long career, he appeared in more than 90 films.


Vintage card, no. 951. Photo: Metro Goldwyn Mayer. Mario Lanza and Kathryn Grayson in The Toast of New Orleans (Norman Taurog, 1950). Collection: Geoffrey Donaldson Institute.

Mario Lanza (1921–1959) was an American tenor, actor and Hollywood film star of the late 1940s and the 1950s. His masterpiece was The Great Caruso (Richard Thorpe, 1951), the top-grossing film in the world in 1951. Lanza's voice was so dazzling that an awestruck Arturo Toscanini called it the "voice of the century".

American actress Kathryn Grayson (1922-2010) was a pretty, petite brunette with a heart-shaped face. During the 1940s and early 1950s, she starred in several MGM musicals with Gene Kelly and Mario Lanza. Her best-known musicals are Show Boat (1950) and Kiss Me Kate (1953).


Dutch postcard, no. 252. Photo: Warner Bros. Doris Day and Gordon MacRae in On Moonlight Bay (Roy Del Ruth, 1951).

With his handsome boy-next-door looks, deep baritone, and glorious smile, Gordon MacRae (1920-1986) was successful as a singer and musical actor. He was best known for five films with Doris Day and his roles in the film versions of two Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals, Oklahoma! (1955) and Carousel (1956).


Dutch postcard by DRC, no. F 99. Photo: Warner Bros. Doris Day and Gordon MacRae in On Moonlight Bay (Roy Del Ruth, 1951).


Vintage postcard, no. 565.


Vintage postcard, no. 1151. Photo: Warner Bros. Doris Day and Gene Nelson in Lullaby of Broadway (David Butler, 1951).

American actor and dancer Gene Nelson (1920-1996) is best known for his role as cowboy Will Parker in Oklahoma! (1955), where he would twirl the lasso to the tune of 'Kansas City'. After graduating from high school, Nelson joined the Sonja Henie Ice Show and toured for 3 years before joining the Army in World War II. After he was discharged, he appeared on screen with Debbie Reynolds in The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady (1950), Doris Day in Tea for Two (1950) and Virginia Mayo in She's Working Her Way Through College (1952). After his dancing days ended, he turned to directing TV and films.


Dutch postcard, no. 1051. Photo: Warner Bros.


Vintage postcard, no. 76. Photo: Sam Lévin.

In the early 1950s, cute and pretty French actress Françoise Arnoul (1931-2021) was presented as the new French sex symbol. Soon she was overshadowed by the spectacular Brigitte Bardot, but Arnoul had enough talent and range to forge a decent film career for herself.

All postcards in this post are from the collection of the Geoffrey Donaldson Institute.

La Collectionneuse: Valentine's Day 2026

As is customary at EFSP, we celebrate Valentine's Day with a special gallery of film couples. We hope you'll like this selection.


French postcard by A.N., Paris, no. 322. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn. John Gilbert and Eleanor Boardman in Bardelys the Magnificent (King Vidor, 1926).


Italian postcard by G. Vettori, Bologna, no. 623. Billie Dove and Douglas Fairbanks in The Black Pirate (Albert Parker, 1926).


French postcard by A.N., Paris, no. 330. Photo: Autrey / Fox Film. Dolores Del Rio and Edmund Lowe in What Price Glory (Raoul Walsh, 1926).


German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 4087/1, 1929-1930. Photo: Defina / First National. Colleen Moore and Gary Cooper in Lilac Time (George Fitzmaurice, Frank Lloyd, 1928).


French postcard by Cinémagazine-Edition, Paris, no. 654. Joan Crawford and Nils Asther in Dream of Love (Fred Niblo, 1928).


Italian postcard by G.B. Falci Editore, Milano, no. 886. Photo: Cines Pittaluga, Roma. Dria Paola and Elio Steiner in La canzone dell’amore / The Song of Love (Gennaro Righelli, 1930).


British postcard in the Film Partners series, no. PC62. Anita Page and Phillips Holmes in Night Court (W.S. Van Dyke, 1932).


Spanish postcard in the series 1037. Sylvia Sidney and Spencer Tracy in Fury (Fritz Lang, 1936). Caption: “Your smile is my destiny”.


Spanish postcard by Infonal, no. O.M.323. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Lana Turner and Lew Ayres in These Glamour Girls (S. Sylvan Simon, 1939).


Postcard from the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia). Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney in Babes in Arms (Busby Berkeley, 1939). Photo: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.


Spanish postcard. Olivia De Havilland and George Brent in In This Our Life (John Huston, Raoul Walsh, 1942).


Spanish postcard. Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant in Notorious (Alfred Hitchcock, 1946).


Spanish postcard. Myrna Loy and Don Ameche in So Goes My Love (Frank Ryan, 1946).


Spanish postcard, no. 2330. Patricia Neal and John Wayne in Operation Pacific (George Waggner, 1951).


French or Belgian postcard. Linda Darnell and Stephen McNally in The Lady Pays Off (Douglas Sirk, 1951).

Postcards and text: Marlene Pilaete.

Lilly Jacobsson

Lilly Jacobsson (1893-1979), aka Lilly Jacobson, was a Swedish actress who starred in Swedish and Danish silent films by Eric Malmberg, Mauritz Stiller and Holger-Madsen. She was the star of the popular Danish film Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (1917).


Swedish postcard by Förlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm. Photo: Nordisk Films Kompagni, Copenhagen. Collection: Geoffrey Donaldson Institute.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 3007. Photo: Nordisk Film.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2147. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson as Marya, the Martian leader's daughter, in Himmelskibet / Das Himmelschiff (Holger-Madsen, 1918).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 3009. Photo: Nordisk Film.


German postcard by Ross Verlag, Berlin, no. 644/6. Photo: Art-Film / Asta Nielsen-Film. Asta Nielsen as Hamlet and Lilly Jacobsson as Ophelia in Hamlet (Svend Gade, Heinz Schall, 1921).

The Lusitania and the Titanic

Lilly Jacobsson (also written as Jacobson) was born in Göteborg, Sweden, in 1893. She made her film debut at AB Svenska Biografteatern in 1911 and collaborated with various Swedish filmmakers until 1914. First, she played in films by Eric Malmberg, with him often in the male lead. Her first film was Opiumhålan / The Opium Den (Eric Malmberg, 1911). It was shot in various Swedish cities such as her native town Göteborg, but also in Paris, Monte Carlo and aboard the SS Lusitania, going to New York.

Her next film, Bränningar eller Stulen lycka / Burnings or Stolen Luck (Eric Malmberg, 1912) repeated the pick of locations, again including a transatlantic trip with the Lusitania. The third film of Jacobsson and Malberg, Det gröna halsbandet / The Green Necklace (Eric Malmberg, 1912) was completely filmed in Göteborg.

Jacobsson then played the female lead in a film by Georg af Klercker: Musikens makt / The Power of Music (1912), again partly shot in Göteborg. Next came the farce Kolingens galoscher / Kolingen’s Boots (Eric Malmberg, 1912), in which Jacobsson played a millionaire's daughter.

It was then time for another transatlantic trip, resulting in Samhällets dom / The Judgment of Society (1912), aboard the Lusitania to New York. The trip also resulted in a short documentary Med Lusitania till Amerika / Med 2.300 Passagerare ofver Atlanten. Samhällets dom was released in February 1912, two months before the sinking of the SS Titanic.

The documentary was released one week after the naval disaster. Malmberg and Jacobsson then exploited their ocean trip for Tva svenska emigranters äfventyr i Amerika / The Adventures of Two Swedish Emigrants in America (1912), which also included shots made in New York and at Niagara Falls.


Swedish postcard by Förlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm, no. 1006. Photo: Nordisk Films Kompagni, Copenhagen. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (Robert Dinesen, Svend Gade, 1917). Collection: Geoffrey Donaldson Institute.


Swedish postcard by Förlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm, no. 1007. Photo: Nordisk Films Kompagni, Copenhagen. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (Robert Dinesen, Svend Gade, 1917). Collection: Geoffrey Donaldson Institute.


Swedish postcard by Förlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm, no. 1008. Photo: Nordisk Films Kompagni, Copenhagen. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (Robert Dinesen/ Svend Gade, 1917). Collection: Geoffrey Donaldson Institute.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K 2028. Photo: Union-Film / Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobson (Lilly Jacobsson) in Testamentets Hemmelighed / The Secret of the Testament (Holger-Madsen, 1918). The German film title was Das trennende Band.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K 2029. Photo: Union-Film / Nordisk Film. Hugo Bruun (also Hugo Brunn) and Lilly Jacobson (Lilly Jacobsson) in Testamentets Hemmelighed / The Secret of the Testament (Holger-Madsen, 1918).

Tell from the war dogs school

Back in Sweden, Lilly Jacobsson played the female lead as the daughter opposite Anna Norrie as the mother, in Mauritz Stiller’s debut as a film director: Mor och dotter/Mother and Daughter (1912). Next came Stiller’s När larmklockan ljuder/When the Alarm Bell Rings (Mauritz Stiller, 1913). The film was partly shot in and around the Swedish town of Sollefteå. Officers and soldiers of the local regiment, Kungl Västernorrlands, collaborated as extras, while the Airedale terrier Tell from the war dogs school also had a part in the film.

Stiller and Jacobsson worked together for a third time at Gränsfolken/Brother Against Brother (Mauritz Stiller, 1913), based on Emile Zola’s 'Le débacle' (The Debacle). The film had a huge international release. For a long time, Gränsfolken / Brother Against Brother was considered lost until a print was found in Poland in 2009.

Stiller and Jacobsson then did När svärmor regerar / When the Mother-in-Law Reigns (Mauritz Stiller, 1914). It was based on a Finnish play which Stiller had directed on stage. In their next film, För sin kärleks skull / Because of her love (Mauritz Stiller, 1914), Jacobsson had a secondary role – the female lead was for Lilly Bech (or Beck) - while the male lead was for Victor Sjöström.

Jacobsson then acted in another Af Klercker film: För fäderneslandet / For the Fatherland (Georg af Klercker, 1914), shot in Svenska Bio’s film studio in Stockholm, and in a studio in Copenhagen, while exteriors were filmed in Sollefteå.

Jacobsson returned to Stiller for Stormfågeln / Stormy Petrel (Mauritz Stiller, 1914), with Bech again in the female lead. It was shot both in Stockholm and in and around the train station of Åre. Lilly Jacobsson’s penultimate Swedish film was Strejken / Strike (Mauritz Stiller, 1915), again with Victor Sjöström in the lead, while the last one was directed by Sjöström himself: En av de många / One of the Many (Victor Sjöström, 1915), which starred Gunnar Tolnaes and Lili Bech.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2150. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson as Marya, the Martian leader's daughter, and Gunnar Tolnaes as Avanti Planetaros in Himmelskibet/400 Million Miles from Earth (Holger-Madsen, 1918). The German title was Das Himmelschiff.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2151. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson as Marya, the Martian leader's daughter, and Gunnar Tolnaes as Avanti Planetaros in Himmelskibet/400 Million Miles from Earth (Holger-Madsen, 1918).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2152. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson and Gunnar Tolnaes in Himmelskibet / 400 Million Miles from Earth (Holger Madsen, 1918).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2153. Photo: Nordisk Film. Still from Himmelskibet / 400 Million Miles from Earth (Holger Madsen, 1918).

The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife

In 1916, the Danish company Nordisk was looking for a new star. Lilly Jacobsson was chosen from hundreds of competitors and became the leading actress in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (Robert Dinesen, Svend Gade, 1917), in which she performed as Elly, who enters the harem of an Indian maharaja, played by Gunnar Tolnaes.

The film was such a success that Nordisk Film made a sequel: Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru II/The Maharaja's Favourite Wife II (August Blom, 1919).

In between, Jacobsson played in various Danish films, mostly directed by Holger-Madsen. These films included the Science fiction film Himmelskibet/400 Million Miles From Earth (Holger-Madsen, 1918) starring Gunnar Tolnaes, Folkets ven/Friend of the People (Holger-Madsen, 1918), and Mod Lyset/Towards the Light (Holger-Madsen, 1918) starring Asta Nielsen. Nielsen plays a cold, partying woman who neglects religion, but later on, repents and becomes the wife of a preacher man (Alf Blütecher) who takes care of the poor.

In 1919, Lilly Jacobsson married director Corbett Edwards in Odense (Denmark), which ended her film career. Only her former colleague, Asta Nielsen, could persuade her to play Ophelia in Asta’s famous German production of Hamlet (Svend Gade, Heinz Schall, 1921), in which Nielsen played the title role herself.

Lilly Jacobsson died in 1979 in Odense, Denmark, at the age of 86. She is interred at the Assistenskirkegården in Odense.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 1475. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (Robert Dinesen, Svend Gade, 1917)


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 1976. Photo: Nordisk Film. Gunnar Tolnaes and Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (Robert Dinesen, Svend Gade, 1917).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2992. Photo: Nordisk Film. Gunnar Tolnaes and Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru II / The Maharaja's Favourite Wife II (August Blom, 1919).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2996. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru II / The Maharaja's Favourite Wife II (August Blom, 1919).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 3008. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru II / The Maharaja's Favourite Wife II (August Blom, 1919).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 3010. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru II / The Maharaja's Favourite Wife II (August Blom, 1919).

Sources: Wikipedia (Danish and Swedish), and IMDb.