Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story
Sloan Foundation Film
Release Date
2017
Film Synopsis
This documentary reveals the Hedy Lamarr hidden behind the famously beautiful Hollywood star's glamorous image: a technological trailblazer whose inventions form the basis of modern WiFi, GPS, and Bluetooth systems.
Startlet. Screen Siren. The Most Beautiful Woman in the World. All phrases used to describe 1940’s Hollywood actress Hedy Lamarr. Alexandra Dean’s illuminating documentary adds Inventor to the list. Known for her matchless beauty and electric screen persona, Lamarr’s legion of fans never knew she possessed such a beautiful mind. An Austrian Jewish émigré who acted by day and drew mechanical and electronic inventions by night, Lamarr came up with a “secret communication system” to help the Allies to beat the Nazis. Weaving in Lamarr’s own voice from archival recordings, Dean reveals how Lamarr gave her patent to the Navy, received no credit for her contributions, and wound up impoverished in her latter years. Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story is a film for lovers of history, Hollywood, and science.
-Tribeca Film Festival
Possible Topics
- The often-overlooked impact of female inventors
- Wireless technology and the digital revolution
- Transmitting--and intercepting--secret messages
- Science and technology in wartime
Past Programs
2017
Gold Coast Arts Center, Great Neck, NY
Honolulu Museum of Art, Honolulu, HI
2018
Martha's Vineyard Film Society, Tisbury, MA
Athena Cinema, Athens, OH
The Loft Cinema, Tucson, AZ
Old Greenbelt Theatre, Greenbelt, MD
FilmScene, Iowa City, IA
Coolidge Corner Theatre, Brookline, MA
Indiana University Cinema, Bloomington, IN
The Art Theater, Champaign, IL
Colonial Theatre, Phoenixville, PA
Juneau Underground Motion Picture Society, Juneau Public Libraries, and Gold Town Theater, Juneau, AK
2019
Historic Artcraft Theatre, Franklin, IN
Film Streams, Omaha, NE
Amherst Cinema, Amherst, MA
Shotgun Cinema, New Orleans, LA
Cinemapolis, Ithaca, NY