Dorothy Wilding — Evelyn Laye

London: [Hollywood Studio?], [Ca. 1930s]. Original B&W photograph. 5.5 x 3.5 inches. Very Good+. Printed on verso: "Picturegoer" Series, 85, Long Acre, London; No. T1b. Made in Great Britain. Scarce. Evelyn Laye, CBE (10 July 1900 - 17 February 1996) was an English actress who was active on the London light opera stage, and later in New York and Hollywood. Her first husband, actor Sonnie Hale, left her for Jessie Matthews, earning much public sympathy for Laye. Her second husband was actor Frank Lawton, with whom she often appeared in stage productions. Dorothy Frances Edith Wilding (10 January 1893 - 9 February 1976) was an English professional portrait photographer from Gloucester, who established successful studios in both London and New York. She is known for her portraits of the British Royal Family, some of which were used to illustrate postage stamps, and in particular for her studies of actors and celebrities which fused glamour with modernist elegance. The historian Val Williams noted Wilding's combination of business savvy and deep understanding of aesthetic impact: 'nobody knew better than Dorothy Wilding the power of the photograph to create or destroy the desired image.'. .