Anita Loos Rediscovered: Film Treatments and Fiction by Anita Loos, Creator of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

Anita Loos (1888-1981) was one of Hollywood’s most respected and prolific screenwriters, as well as an acclaimed novelist and playwright. This unique collection of previously unpublished film treatments, short stories, and one-act plays spans fifty years of her creative writing and showcases the breadth and depth of her talent. Beginning in 1912 with the stories she submitted from her San Diego home (some made into films by D. W. Griffith), through her collaboration with Colette on the play Gigi, Anita Loos wrote almost every day for the screen, stage, books, or magazines. Film scripts include San Francisco, The Women, and Red-Headed Woman. The list of stars for whom she created unforgettable roles includes Mary Pickford, Jean Harlow, Clark Gable, Audrey Hepburn, and Carol Channing.

This collection has been selected by Anita’s niece and close friend, the best-selling author Mary Anita Loos, together with the acclaimed film historian Cari Beauchamp. Their essays are laced throughout the volume, introducing each section and giving previously untold insights and behind-the-scenes stories about Anita--her life, her friendships, and her times.

Anita Loos (1888-1981) was a prolific actress, novelist, playwright, and screenwriter. Author of the international bestseller Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, adapted into the classic film starring Marilyn Monroe, she was the first woman to work as a staff screenwriter in Hollywood.

Cari Beauchamp (1949-2023) was author and editor of many books on early Hollywood, including the classic Without Lying Down: Frances Marion and the Powerful Women of Early Hollywood. Emmy-nominated for her documentary film work, she was twice named an Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Scholar.

Mary Anita Loos (1910-2004) was an actress, screenwriter, and novelist, and the niece of Anita Loos. She wrote or cowrote screenplays for many Hollywood films of the 1940s and 1950s, including for the film Gentlemen Marry Brunettes, based on her aunt’s novel of the same name.