I recently had a patron come in looking to find out who the actress is on the cover of the 9th edition of the Time Out Film Guide.  He had informed me that from what he knew, there was no photo credits given in this particular issue regarding the cover photo.

I posted the cover to my Facebook profile via the item’s link in WorldCat.  Now there were plenty of guesses, especially thanks to a woman with whom I used to work in the Reference Department at the University of Georgia. She also posted the cover photo in question to her Facebook profile. Guesses included Ava Gardner, Greer Garson, Ingrid Bergman, Greta Garbo, and Marlene Dietrich.  But I needed to know for sure….not just guesses.

Another one of my former UGA colleagues, who happens to be the Director of the Media Archives & Peabody Awards Collection, saw my post.  She “commented” on my link that the cover photo is of Ava Gardner.   When I asked if she was 100% sure, she informed me that she had consulted with an archivist at the Wisconsin Center for Film & Theatre Research, where they have “tons of stills of classic Hollywood stars,”  and I got my confirmation the cover photo is of Ava Gardner from 1946.  

What a fun experience.  In a matter of hours, I got a confirmed answer, as well as a VERY happy patron.