68°F
weather icon Cloudy

Bow brought ‘It’ to area after retiring

One of film industry’s first ever nude scenes is linked to Boulder City — in a roundabout way. Actress Clara Bow lived less than an hour from Boulder City, and 7 miles outside of Searchlight with her husband Rex Bell, who was the 21st lieutenant governor of Nevada and a western movie star.

As Hoover Dam was being built, Bow and Bell were creating the Walking Box Ranch. Bow originally named it the “K” ranch, but many Hollywood insiders dubbed it “the sanitarium” in reference to Bow’s issues with depression. Today, Bow’s 160-acre ranch is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.

Bow’s most infamous role was in the movie “Hula” in which she strips down to her birthday suit. Bow’s nude scene was hugely controversial, with many other actresses refused to include her in their social circles.

Bow, Hollywood’s first “It” girl, was associated with sex and scandal after her appearance in “Hula.” An industry publication, Cinema Journal, published an article titled “Making ‘It’ in Hollywood: Clara Bow, Fandom, and Consumer Culture.” The article alluded to Marilyn Monroe borrowing a page from Bow’s book on branding and social scandal. Monroe once said she was inspired by Bow’s ability to turn heads, and the cartoon character Betty Boop is based off of Bow’s signature flapper look.

The Coast Reporter had a weekly section dedicated to Bow’s scandals, printing everything from her mental meltdowns to alleged sex sprees in Mexico. Derangedlacrimes.com has an interesting piece on how the publisher of The Coast Reporter, along with Bow’s secretary Daisy De Voe, put together a 60-page article called ”Clara’s Secret Love-Life as told by Daisy.” The piece was the result of a failed extortion attempt, which led to one of Hollywood’s most notable celebrity trials. Bow eventually won the legal battle against the rag and De Voe, but the damage to her reputation was done.

At Sherman’s House of Antiques in Boulder City, I bought a copy of filmmaker Kenneth Anger’s book “Hollywood Babylon,” which depicts many of Bow’s sex scandals (myth and fact) and even more outrageous personal behavior.

In 1933, Bow retired from acting and headed to Nevada to start a new life as a wife and a mother. When Bow moved to Nevada, Hollywood’s party scene followed.

Carole Lombard and other Hollywood bigwigs would visit her at her ranch. Bow would even make her way to Boulder City as the city progressed in development. Bow visited industry friends staying at the Boulder Dam Hotel, and rumor has it she and Lombard once sneaked into a free matinee at the Boulder City theater.

Bow shot guns, smoked, drank and hosted poker nights at her ranch. She also played blackjack at the Railroad Pass casino, which sits on the border of Boulder City. The casino turned 85 Monday. It later was discovered the government was keeping a file on Bow and her problematic appetite for gambling.

Bow’s time around Boulder City and Searchlight ended in 1944. The actress and Bell went on to live separate lives when Bow’s medical problems became too much to deal with, but they remained married until Bell’s death in 1962. Shortly before his death, Bell had a cameo as a cowboy in John Huston’s film “The Misfits,” which was shot in Nevada with Marilyn Monroe.

Bow went on to move to Hartford, Connecticut, to focus on treatment for depression, which turned into a questionable diagnosis of schizophrenia. Ironically, the doctors missed her atherosclerosis, a disease of the heart that can start in early adolescence. The atherosclerosis was discovered during her autopsy.

Bow eventually moved from Connecticut to California, where she died in 1965 at age 60 from a heart attack.

Silver Bullet Entertainment has acquired the movie rights to David Stenn’s biography “Clara Bow: Runnin’ Wild,” and production is scheduled to start in 2017. The BLM has since purchased the Walking Box Ranch. Tours are available upon request. A link to the tours, as well as the mentioned books, are available on my website, TanyaVece.com.

Tanya Vece is an entertainment and music writer who resides and volunteers in Boulder City. You can follow her adventures on Instagram @hollywoodwriter.

MOST READ
THE LATEST
A graduation gift to remember

Over the last couple of weeks, I twice drove over the Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Bridge, aka the Hoover Dam bypass.

Democracy dies in … Oh, shut up

OK, so, fair warning. I may be a little “spicier” than normal. It’s been a challenging couple of weeks and I’m in a worse mood than usual.

Real ID will help combat terrorism

Most veterans in Nevada are aware that when they obtain a driver’s license or renew their old one, they can ask the DMV to add the word “veteran” on the license. While that won’t give them a get-out-of-jail-free card, it might evoke some sympathy from an officer if a veteran is pulled over for a minor infraction. (No guarantee, but it has happened to me.)

Centenarian Sara, a Boulder City treasure

At 100 years of age, Sara Denton is certainly one of Boulder City’s oldest residents. And if you’ve met her, you’ll likely agree that she’s one of its most cheerful residents as well. Sara loves to laugh and has always lived life with gusto and adventure.

Know what wheels kids can (and can’t) operate

Motorized devices are growing in popularity, especially with teens, but many parents don’t know the legalities or the dangers.

Teamwork resonates in City Hall

Every year, college basketball fans get excited for their team to play in the “Big Dance.” March Madness (women’s and men’s NCAA basketball) is down to the final four teams this weekend. It’s estimated that 34 million brackets were completed this year.

My bighorn buddies

Having grown up in Boulder City, I was always aware of its unofficial mascots …the bighorn sheep.

Can’t we all just disagree?

Once you asked me, “What do you think?”

What if they gave a war and nobody was home?

The subjects in most of the articles and columns I write tend to include positive stories about American veterans and veterans’ organizations. And in fact the pieces are about veterans, not active-duty military.

Gratitude for government

I moved to Boulder City in 1981. Boulder City is blessed to have been a government town. Can we recall the blessings we have received from government?