30 of Ava Gardner's Most Sophisticated Style Moments
The American starlet known for her undeniable beauty and tumultuous love life is a fashion icon still worth emulating.
Ava Gardner, the dark-haired beauty known for her bold and sometimes brash demeanor, was born to a poor farming family in Grabtown, North Carolina, in 1922. She was the youngest of seven children, and during a visit to see her older sister, Beatrice, and her husband in New York City, Gardner was photographed by her brother-in-law, Larry Tarr. After displaying one of the 18-year-old's youthful portraits in his Fifth Avenue window, Gardner was discovered by a Hollywood talent scout working for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Gardner started her career after moving to Los Angeles, taking on mostly small roles that leaned more on her looks than her acting skills. After many lessons in poise and speech, she eventually started landing larger roles, and Gardner went on to act in more than 60 films, as well as television spots, throughout her career. Gardner, who was somewhat embarrassed by her lack of education, worked hard to have her legacy linked to more than her physical appearance. And while she is remembered for her roles in Mogambo, for which she earned an Oscar nomination for Best Actress, and The Night of the Iguana, which secured her a Golden Globe nomination, the alluring starlet is most certainly remembered for the many romantic encounters and marriages she left in her wake.
Three marriages—to Hollywood actor Mickey Rooney, the composer and big band leader Artie Shaw (who helped Gardner educate herself during their marriage with exposure to culture and by providing her reading lists), and singer-actor Frank Sinatra, with whom she had very public and dramatic fights and reconciliations—and many rumored love affairs (with the likes of Fidel Castro, Robert Mitchum, Spanish bullfighters, Howard Hughes, and John F. Kennedy, just to name a few) were the strokes of paint on the canvas of what her friend Arlene Dahl referred to as her "barefoot gypsy" life. Instances of wild behavior—like the evening she and Sinatra met at a Palm Springs party and drove to the small town of Indio, where they drunkenly shot out streetlights and store windows until they were picked up by the police—were also the coloring of her unpredictable journey.
And while Gardner lived a larger-than-life existence that is the stuff of movie scripts, she was always rooted in her rural upbringing and was said to be "rich and warm and human" by her co-star Deborah Kerr. An avid reader who kept her books alphabetized, Gardner hated having her beauty remarked upon, despite it being the reason she had her film career in the first place. And while that may have been the case, Gardner knew how to stop a room full of people in its tracks with her dark hair and eyes, titillating persona, and arresting sense of style.
1940
Gardner—looking flawless even in mid-jump—was discovered when an agent spotted a photograph of hers displayed in her brother-in-law's New York City studio.
1940
Gardner, who moved to Los Angeles to pursue her film career at age 18, was signed by Metro-Goldman-Meyer in 1941 as their newest starlet but had to undergo many speech and acting lessons, as she had no acting experience. Luckily she knew how to strike a pose!
1942
Gardner and her first husband, Hollywood actor Mickey Rooney, met during a studio visit to MGM. Rooney, a notorious flirt, pursued the young and beautiful Gardner relentlessly, until MGM granted them permission to wed in 1941.
1942
Gardner and then-husband Rooney (they were married in 1942 in Santa Barbara) pose during a holiday visit to New York City. The North Carolina–born actress looks decidedly stylish in a floral patterned dress and youthful updo.
1943
Gardner, out at a dinner with Rooney, looks the part of fresh Hollywood starlet, thanks to a knit dress, oversize bejeweled studs, half-updo, and bold lip.
1946
This was the year of Gardner's big break as far as impactful roles: She co-starred in The Killers along with Burt Lancaster and was finally recognized for her acting ability, rather than her looks. Here, on set, she relaxes in a knit sweater and chic black skirt.
1950
Here, Gardner's stunning beauty is on full display: perfectly coifed hair, a raspberry lip, a pink evening gown, gloves, and diamond jewels all glittering together.
1950
Here, a studio portrait of the American actress showcases her timeless appeal and style. Women of today, take note: A diamond jewelry suite, a netted bodice, and a little black dress are always en vogue.
1950
At ease, Gardner strikes a casual pose in a knit top, pressed shorts, and flat summer sandals. The actress bought a stucco cottage set on a cliff in Nichols Canyon, which she decorated as a sunny escape for herself between marriages.
1950
A full skirt, wide belt, neck scarf, and button-down with an upturned collar are a classic uniform of the decade known for its ladylike dress.
1951
Gardner, who met crooner Frank Sinatra in 1949 at a charity baseball game, married him in 1951 once he was granted a divorce from his wife, Nancy Sinatra. Here, at their wedding at the home of Lester Sachs in Germantown, Pennsylvania, Gardner wore a beige and white dress with chiffon sleeves and a classic string of pearls.
1951
At the premiere of her film Show Boat with her third husband and the love of her life, Gardner stuns in a strapless embroidered evening gown and diamond jewelry.
1951
Sinatra and Gardner arrive at an event looking the part of a dapper couple. Gardner wears a dramatic black evening gown and completes the look with diamond jewels and a fur coat.
1952
Gardner, arriving for a movie premiere during the same year she was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, is greeted by Sinatra at the Idlewild airport while wearing a classic trench, silk neck scarf, and cat-eye sunglasses.
1952
The former tobacco farmer's daughter was known for her love of pastimes that reminded her of her rural childhood. A simple yet still chic outfit accompanies an afternoon bike ride.
1953
Gardner wears a prim suit set and feathered Juliette-style hat to the front row at White City Stadium to watch a boxing match between Randolph Turpin and Charles Homez with then-husband Sinatra.
1953
Gardner poses jauntily with an umbrella in Africa while filming director John Ford's Mogambo and wears a sweater with rolled sleeves, full skirt, and—always the lady—a pair of heels.
1953
Here, on the set of Mogambo in which she co-starred with Clark Gable and Grace Kelly, Gardner wears a safari-style button-down and carries a felt hat.
1954
Gardner and Humphrey Bogart act a scene in The Barefoot Contessa, which was directed by Joseph Mankiewicz and turned out to be one of her most iconic roles.
Rachael Burrow is the Style Director at VERANDA, covering the latest design and market trends, from jewelry to fashion, tabletop to furnishings, and everything in between.
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