In his memoir I’D HATE MYSELF IN THE MORNING, screenwriter Ring Lardner jr mentions a conversation he had with movie producer Martin Ransohoff about a biopic of Jean Harlow (that was never made?) in which a woman was being cast to play Harlow despite her physical drawbacks:
" ‘And guess who they’re casting as Harlow?’ he exclaimed, naming a popular actress of the sixties whom he described, with evident disgust, as '‘the titless wonder’."
This conversation took place in the summer of 1964, so my question is: which actress was widely enough known at that point as small-breasted? My first thought was “Twiggy” but I think she first became famous a few years later. Jane Fonda, maybe? Seems a bit early for Jane as well. Your guess?
The movie Harlow was released in 1965 with Carol Baker as Jean Harlow.
I wouldn’t describe Baker as “titless” but there’s no accounting for taste. Some of the other actresses reportedly considered for the lead were Jayne Mansfield and Stella Stevens. Compared to them, I suppose you could consider Carol Baker to be relatively flat-chested.
As for a famous actress of the early 60s who would be considered flat-chested, I think most people would agree on Audrey Hepburn.
Two biopics about Jean Harlow, both titled Harlow, were released in 1965. The big-studio one starred Carroll Baker (35B-24-35), the low-budget one starred Carol Lynley.
