Written By: Ben Cosgrove
Access is a big word in media–as in access to stars and celebrities.In its prime, LIFE magazine almost alone among the popular culture publications of its day enjoyed the sort of access to A-list stars (as well as to lesser lights) that today’s tabloids only dream about.
Here, a fond look back at some of the 20th century’s biggest, brightest entertainers, in the friendly confines of their own homes.
Marilyn Monroe at her Hollywood home in 1953.
Alfred Elsenstaedt; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Steve McQueen and his first wife, TV actress Neile Adams, dress for a warm day at their Hollywood home in 1963.
John Dominis; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Jayne Mansfield combed her hair while bathing in the pink carpeted bathroom of her home, known as “The Pink Palace,” in Los Angeles, 1960.
Allan Grant; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
The Jacksons (clockwise left to right: Jackie, Marlon, Tito, Jermaine, and Michael) join parents Joe and Katherine in their backyard in Encino, California in 1970.
John Olson; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Vivien Leigh at home with her Oscar for Gone With the Wind, 1940.
Peter Stackpole; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Paul Newman cooked eggs for Anthony Perkins in Newman’s kitchen in 1958 in Hollywood.
Leonard McComb; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman, whose marriage would last 50 years (until his death in 2008), shared a laugh as they dressed in their Hollywood home in 1959.
Gordon Parks; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Sophia Loren picked flowers at the Italian villa she shared with producer Carlo Ponti in 1964.
Alfred Elsenstaedt; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Bette Davis and her Pekingese, Popeye the Magnificent, at home in Beverly Hills in 1939.
Alfred Elsenstaedt; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Actress Maureen O’Hara relaxed at home in Los Angeles in 1946.
Peter Stackpole; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Liberace danced on top of the keys of his piano-shaped pool in California in 1954.
Loomis Dean; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Oscar-winning actress Claudette Colbert posed in a two-piece evening dress in front of the fireplace in her home in Los Angeles’ posh Holmby Hills neighborhood in 1939.
Alfred Elsenstaedt; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Ricky Nelson sat on the diving board of his family’s pool in Hollywood in 1958.
Hank Walker; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Greer Garson sits her living room at home in Los Angeles’ exclusive Bel Air neighborhood, picking out records to play in April 1943, a month after her Best Actress Oscar victory for Mrs. Miniver.
Peter Stackpole; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Sisters and frequent rivals Joan Fontaine and Olivia de Havilland shared a family moment as they looked out over Beverly Hills from Fontaine’s home in 1942.
Bob Landry; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
Carole Lombard drank a cup of coffee and talked on the telephone at her Hollywood home in October 1939.
Alfred Elsenstaedt; Life Pictures/Shutterstock
