Little Underground Worlds

Mary Harron

"In some ways she is not sexy sexy. She is more like joyful. She wasn't a real sultry sex queen. Pamela Anderson is probably the closest in that sense of someone who seems kind of innocent and funny in that way."

– Mary Harron, director of The Notorious Bettie Page, on Bettie Page

The line for the SXSW Film 06 screening of The Notorious Bettie Page with Mary Harron in attendance wrapped around the block. I had written a piece on the film for the Chronicle ("The Notorious Irving Klaw," Screens, March 10, 2006) with my grandfather, Irving Klaw, who owned the photography studio that made Page famous and who is characterized in Notorious, in mind. I stood some 30 people back, my badge placed in my pocket to obscure my last name, studying the fascinating array of people, young and old, men and women. I always understood the male interest in Page, but women – especially young straight women – always puzzled me.

"[Bettie] is in her own world," Harron had told me during an interview the week before. "She just had this joy in herself, in her body, and in showing herself off. Young woman like that, and they are trying to play with their own femininity or sexuality or try dressing up or try different roles on. She is such an interesting person to try to be because Bettie seems so happy and confident."

Inside the theatre, I gave a SXSW volunteer my card. "Please give this to Ms. Harron. She'll know who I am." After sitting down, the volunteer was pointing me out to a dignified, "normal-looking" woman. Could this be the cutting-edge filmmaker who had shocked the world with I Shot Andy Warhol and American Psycho?

"They're little underground worlds ... off the mainstream of showbiz," Harron said. "Warhol, because its avant-garde art and all that sexual underworld. [W]ith the Klaws it's because they're not art art people, but this little hidden shadow world. These little hidden worlds interest me."

Images from the movie flashed across the screen. Unlike the first time I saw it, where I was more concerned about the image of my grandfather, I sat back and enjoyed the picture, especially Gretchen Mol's Oscar-caliber performance as Page.

"There were certain things that [Mol] did that I hadn't even thought of asking her to do directionwise. In that scene where she is tied up and talking to John Willie, they're talking and in-between the conversation he is taking pictures. She automatically goes into these poses of fake terror. She does it so brilliantly and naturally, and then she drops them and starts talking. She just did that. I didn't tell her to do that. There was a lot of that."

After the movie and before fielding questions from the audience, Harron announced a special guest was in the audience. I looked around, wondering who she meant. "The grandson of Irving Klaw, Rick Klaw, is here with us tonight." She had me stand up, and everyone applauded. The absurdity of the acclaim thanks to a man who photographed a woman over 50 years ago was not lost on me.