Cheeky Robert Taylor

In which G.M. Norton looks at the power of the pose.

We all have that one pose that we always turn to when a camera is pointed at us. Or perhaps just those of us with narcissistic tendencies. If you were to venture to my Instagram feed, you’d find all manner of daguerreotypes that are near-identical.

I'm pleased to report that this isn't a recent phenonemon. I recently stumbled across some delightful pictorials of Hollywood film star, Robert Taylor who must have starred alongside almost every major Hollywood starlet from the 1930s to the 1950s. The list reads like a who’s who with Ava Gardner, Elizabeth Taylor, Jean Harlow, Vivien Leigh to name just a few of the glamorous leading ladies from the golden age to have acted alongside the impossibly handsome thespian.

And that’s when it struck me. Every photograph was almost exactly the same. At this point, perhaps you’re thinking, ‘That’s poppycock, Norty!’ Well, I have photographic evidence to back up my claim.

Look.

Magnificent Obsession, 1935 with Irene Dunne

Camille, 1936 with Greta Garbo

Personal Property, 1937 with Jean Harlow

The Lady of the Tropics, 1939 with Hedy Lamarr

Waterloo Bridge, 1940 with Vivien Leigh

The Bribe, 1949 with Ava Gardner

Conspirator, 1949 with Elizabeth Taylor

Ambush, 1950 with Arlene Dahl

Ivanhoe, 1952 with Elizabeth Taylor once more

While Robert Taylor's appearance may have changed, his pose did not. Marvellous stuff. I can only applaud his cheek brushing antics.

G.M. Norton
Protagonist of 'Norton of Morton'