Betrayed by blondness: Jiřina Štěpničková between authenticity and excess – 1930–1945

Abstract

The blondness of female stars is invariably associated with glamour, sexuality and wealth. But not much attention has been paid to stars articulating different sets of values attached to fair hair found in artistic, national and religious discourses. This article focuses on the Czech star Jiřina Štěpničková and her star image from the 1930s to the mid-1940s. I argue that, while blondness heavily contributed to her status as a national icon and dedicated performer, it also resulted in a complex set of negotiations between her star qualities and the national rural characters she performed. On the one hand, Štěpničková was labelled the ‘Czech Madonna’, the perfect embodiment of heroines defined by loyalty, self-sacrifice and chastity. On the other, she was questioned as too beautiful and elaborately styled for the parts she was cast in. Analysing formal elements of her image and reconstructing the promotional and critical discourses surrounding her allows me to present Štěpničková under three categories – as a celebrated actress, as an ideal woman and as an ‘inauthentic’ star – for which her blondness played a key role.