16th February 2025
Culture Exhibitions Madrid Events

Photographic show looks at Hollywood stars in Madrid

A photographic exhibition at El Águila Complex puts the spotlight on some of the Hollywood stars who lived and worked in Madrid during the 1950s and 1960s.

With almost 150 images on display, visitors can get a sense of the popularity of the Spanish capital among the film-making elite with legends such as Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor, Orson Welles and Olivia de Havilland just a few of those featured.

The show is divided into two sections, On the Set and Off the Set, and feature both paparazzi-style and photojournalism shots.

MAD about Hollywood
Elizabeth Taylor and her second husband Michael Wilding in Madrid in 1953. (Photographic collection of Gerardo Contreras; Regional archive of the Comunidad de Madrid)

With the end of the studio system in 1948, there was greater freedom of movement for US producers and directors – and both the city of Madrid and the surrounding region quickly became a popular filming location.

Alexander the Great (1956) starring Richard Burton, and The Pride and The Passion (1957) with Cary Grant, Frank Sinatra and Sophia Loren were the first two major movies made in the area.

The photos in the exhibition have been sourced from a variety of collections including the Madrid Community Regional Archive, Getty Images and the personal archive of photographer Gianni Ferrari.

When: 4 December – 13 January; Tue-Sat 11am-8.30pm, Sun 11am-2pm;  (closed 24, 25, 31 December, 1, 6 January)

Where: El Águila Complex, Ramírez de Prado, 3

More info: comunidad.madrid

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