Eleanor Parker in The Woman in White

In 1948, The Woman in White, starring Eleanor Parker alongside Alexis Smith, Sydney Greenstreet and Gig Young, was released to theaters (the movie had been filmed in 1946). The film was an adaptation of the classic 1859 Wilkie Collins mystery novel and saw Eleanor Parker take on a dual role. The Woman in White, though filmed previously, was Eleanor Parker's last film to be released before a brief hiatus that would last until her return to the screen in 1950 (in Chain Lightning). 

Eleanor Parker and Gig Young

 

Eleanor Parker and Alexis Smith hold each other

Eleanor Parker was perhaps never more beautiful than when she appeared in The Woman in White. In the film, the actress plays two roles: as family fortune heiress Laura Fairlie and also as lost soul Ann Catherick (they are revealed to be related at the end of the movie, but you could assume this anyways). Laura Fairlie is costumed in traditional high 19th century style, whereas Ann Cahterick only wears white and is seen with decidedly non-1940s flowing blonde hair. The fact that the Ann Catherick character's hair is long, flowing and meant to look not overly stylized is actually quite a revelation in cinema from this period. Two decades or so later, this type of hairstyle in film would become more commonplace, but here it works to great effect. The hairstyle compliments Eleanor Parker's face quite nicely and works as an excellent contrast to the hairdos of her other character.

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Here are some images of Eleanor Parker in The Woman in White: