A treat indeed.

This was a pleasant surprise the other day, when I met my IMDB pal Jerry for our usual afternoon of drinks, chat, and swopping dvds. He gave me this rare 1959 booklet (in Portugueuse!) on Belinda Lee, one of our favourites here, as per my other blogs on her. 

Belinda died in a horrific car accident in 1961, aged 25, but was then established as a peplum favourite with movies like MESSALINA, APHRODITE, as well as English films for the Rank Organisation like DANGEROUS EXILE and MIRACLE IN SOHO and NOR THE MOON BY NIGHT. I liked those as a kid. 

Before her untimely end the very attractive Lee was turning into a good actress, playing opposite Marcello Mastroianni (GHOSTS OF ROME), and was one of the girls in the French new wave LE DRAGUEURS and in the 1960 Italian drama THE LONG NIGHT OF '43, all reviewed at Lee label.

We had similar style magazines in England titled Fan's Star Library, pocket sized and about 64 pages, published in 1958. I got them every month when I was about 12, titles on Grace Kelly, Marilyn, Elvis in the army, James Dean, Ava Gardner, Doris Day, Debbie Reynolds, and on pop stars like Pat Boone, Frankie Vaughan, even Perry Como! Thankfully I still have my Dirk Bogarde and Sophia Loren ones - collector's items now; and of course I got to meet Dirk and Sophia when I grew up !