Rare 1936 Simone Simon Type I Historic Keybook Photograph by Gene Kornman
 20th Century-Fox

An exceptional original Type I vintage keybook photograph of Simone Simon, photographed by legendary Hollywood portrait master Gene Kornman for 20th Century-Fox circa 1936.

This is an original 1936 20th Century-Fox keybook publicity photograph of Simone Simon, photographed by studio photographer Gene Kornman while promoting her first Hollywood film, Girls’ Dormitory.

Simon is pictured modeling a navy-blue, backless bathing suit decorated with white palm motifs and tied at the neck with a halter strap. She poses partly concealed behind an elaborate geometric screen, creating a striking Art Deco composition.

The lower border identifies her as “SIMONE SIMON … 20th CENTURY-FOX PLAYER” and carries the studio negative number F207-129. The reverse retains the original purple 20th Century-Fox / Photo by Gene Kornman credit stamp, a typed studio caption and the related negative numbers F207-129, 130, 131, 141 and 142. A faint circular archive stamp is also visible but no longer fully legible.

The two holes at the top identify this as a studio keybook photograph, originally filed in Fox’s internal photographic reference archive. The matching negative number, studio caption, photographer credit and direct connection to Simon’s 1936 Hollywood debut give this rare Type I photograph exceptional provenance.

Why the keybook markings matter

Studio keybooks served as internal photographic reference archives. Prints were punched, numbered and organized so publicity departments could locate specific negatives for newspapers, magazines and promotional campaigns. The matched punch holes, negative number, studio caption and Gene Kornman credit strongly support this photograph’s status as an authentic 20th Century-Fox keybook print from 1936, rather than a later reproduction.

The combination of a precisely identifiable negative number, original caption, photographer attribution and direct connection to Simone Simon’s Hollywood debut gives this photograph particularly strong historical provenance.

Simone Simon in Girl's Dormitory (20th Century-Fox, 1936). Fine/Very Fine. Portrait Gallery  (8 X 10") Photography by Gene Kornman 
Starring Herbert Marshall, Ruth Chatterton, Simone Simon, Constance Collier, J. Edward Bromberg, Dixie Dunbar, John Qualen, Shirley Deane, and Tyrone Power. Directed by Irving Cummings. Vintage gelatin silver glossy borderless 10.5" X 13.5" portrait galleryThe reverse bears the important original studio credit stamp:

“CREDIT TO 20th CENTURY-FOX WILL BE APPRECIATED – PHOTO BY GENE KORNMAN”

This period studio stamp provides exceptional provenance and directly attributes the photograph to both Gene Kornman and 20th Century-Fox. Simone Simon signed with the studio in 1936, and surviving Gene Kornman portraits from her early Hollywood period are highly desirable among collectors of vintage celebrity photography, classic cinema and photographic art.

Best remembered for her haunting performance as Irena Dubrovna in the Val Lewton horror masterpiece Cat People (1942), Simon possessed an enigmatic beauty perfectly suited to Gene Kornman's sophisticated lighting. Here, she appears delicate, mysterious and almost sculptural—an extraordinary marriage of subject and photographer.

A rare opportunity to acquire an original studio portrait created by one of the most influential photographers in Hollywood history. Gene Kornman’s photographs are represented in major museum collections and remain celebrated for transforming movie stars into enduring visual icons.

Condition: Presents beautifully with expected signs of age and handling consistent with an original period photograph. Please examine the supplied front-and-back images for the complete condition and provenance.

Guaranteed original and authentic. No reproductions are offered by Conway’s Vintage Treasures.

*NOTE: We just acquired an extraordinary collection of about a dozen Rare TYPE I photographs of this early 20th Century  elusive movie star.   Photographs are all by George Hurrell and Gene Kornman. Be sure to check out the others 

More on Simone Simon unique Appeal:
Adding to the photograph’s appeal is Simone Simon’s famously elusive and enigmatic nature. Unlike many Hollywood stars who carefully cultivated constant publicity, Simon often appeared guarded, unpredictable and difficult for the studio system to fully control. Her complicated relationship with Hollywood, and what some have interpreted as moments of career self-sabotage, only deepened the mystery surrounding her. That rarity of access makes an intimate, studio-authorized Gene Kornman portrait such as this especially compelling: it preserves a carefully illuminated glimpse of a star who never allowed audiences to feel they completely knew her. For collectors today, Simon’s mystery is not incidental to her legacy, it is one of the qualities that makes her memorabilia so fascinating.