Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018 – Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018

07:00 PM – 08:30 PM
US/Central

Skype interview with writer-director Alexandra Dean follows the screening

The MFAH hosts the opening night of the inaugural Bechdel Film Festival, organized by 14 Pews, with the premiere of an acclaimed documentary celebrating an extraordinary woman: Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story. The festival continues February 16-17 - visit www.14pews.org for details.

What does the most beautiful actress of the 1930s and 1940s have in common with the inventor whose concepts were the basis of cell phone and Bluetooth technology? They are both Hedy Lamarr (1914–2000), the glamorous Austrian movie star whose ravishing visage was the inspiration for Snow White and Catwoman. Less well-known are her accomplishments as a technological trailblazer who perfected a radio system to throw Nazi torpedoes off course during World War II. Fillmmaker Alexandra Dean weaves a riveting story of a woman who was a feminist before the term was coined.

Lamarr’s film career is traced in reflections from her children; close friends including late TCM host Robert Osborne; and the voice of Lamarr herself, thanks to an extended interview recorded late in her life. From a scandalous nude scene in the 1933 film Ecstasy, to a glittering Hollywood life, to groundbreaking but uncredited inventions, to the later years when she became a recluse, Bombshell pays tribute to Lamarr as the strong and inspiring person she was. Fun fact: her fifth marriage was to a Houston oilman!

• Read about the film in Vanity Fair.

About the filmmaker: Alexandra Dean is an Emmy Award-winning journalist and producer. She produced news-magazine documentaries for PBS before becoming a series and documentary producer at Bloomberg television, producing the series Innovators, Adventures and Pursuits. She also writes about invention for Businessweek magazine. Today, she is a founding partner at Reframed Pictures.

Festival Ticket Prices 
General admission $10. MFAH members, seniors (65+), and students with ID receive $2 discount.