Snapshots from the golden age of Hollywood glamour: Amazing collection of photos from 1960s and 70s is discovered after 40 years hidden in company files
- John Wayne, Liz Taylor, Greta Garbo and Alfred Hitchcock are some of the big names who feature in the collection
- Some of the pictures may never have been used before - meaning these could be the only surviving copies today
- Photo taken by renowned photographer Terry O'Neill shows Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot 'larking around'
- Images are a mixture of film stills and PR shots as well as candid shots accumulated between 1965 and 1975
A treasure trove of photographs showing Hollywood greats at work and play has emerged for sale after being lost in a company's cabinets for 40 years.
One picture taken by renowned British photographer Terry O'Neill shows Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot 'larking around' on the set of their 1968 film Shalako.
Although some of the pictures would have been widely distributed to the press at the time, some may never have been used and many have been lost over the years, meaning these could be the only surviving copies.
The collection belonged to a South African film distribution company, Kinekor, and were rediscovered when the business was taken over.
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Britt Ekland taken by Peter Sellers at their home in 1965 (left) and Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot on the set of Shalako, 1968, taken by fashion photographer Terry O'Neill (right)
Actor Cary Grant heads out to a restaurant (left) while model Twiggy is seen with her boyfriend and manager Justin de Villeneuve in 1966
Elizabeth Taylor on the set of Boom! from 1968 - she is one of a number of big stars featured in the photos shot between 1965-1975
The images are a mixture of film stills and PR shots as well as candid shots accumulated between 1965 and 1975.
One picture taken by renowned British photographer Terry O'Neill shows Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot 'larking around' on the set of their 1968 film Shalako.
In it the Scottish Bond actor is holding the glamorous blonde bombshell in a headlock.
Peter Sellers is captured in fun spirits at home with his wife Britt Eckland and their children, while another shows Steve McQueen on a mini motorbike that is a far cry from the manly machines he was normally known for.
A picture of director Roman Polanski with his new bride Sharon Tate taken in London, 1968, is a rather poignant one. Just 18 months later, while eight-and-a-half months pregnant with their child, she and four friends were brutally murdered at her home by the Manson family - a gang led by notorious criminal Charles Manson.
The collection also includes photos of her father when he was trying to track down her killers.
The 4,500 prints and transparencies are now being sold by Special Auction Services in Newbury, Berkshire. They have been divided into 66 lots which are expected to fetch £7,000.
Film still of Orson Welles in F For Fake taken in Paris in 1971 on the Gare De' Austerlitz (left). Alfred Hitchcock for his 1969 film Topaz (right)
Peter Sellers with his wife Britt Ekland and their family having fun at their home - the picture was taken by photographer Terry O'Neill, 1965
Studio portrait from MGM of John Wayne and Liz Taylor - the 4,500 prints have been divided into 66 lots which are expected to fetch £7,000 at Special Auction Services in Newbury, Berkshire on February 25
Film still of Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby, 1968, there are images including from MGM, Paramount, United Artists in the new collection
David McCallum, Janet Leigh and Robert Vaughn on the set of The Spy in the Green Hat, 1966 - the photos' seller has not been identified
Hugo Marsh, from the auctioneers, said the British seller, who has not been identified, hadn't been looking for the collection but acquired it through a business deal when Kinekor was taken over.
Mr Marsh said: 'This is a huge collection of film stills and pictures capturing Hollywood personalities.
'It took a long time to go through them but it was an absolute joy - it was almost like archaeology.
'They're taken over a ten-year period and it's a real slice in time that gives an insight into the industry then.
'It's a real treasure trove of that period of film. A lot of people think of the 20s and 30s as the golden age of film but the 60s and 70s produced some great movies.
'You've got images from films that have come from the Hollywood studios directly - MGM, Paramount, United Artists.
'They are very interesting in themselves because there are some cult films and really good titles there, like Chinatown and Catch 22.
'Then you've got lots of shots of very famous actors and directors - both pictures taken for PR purposes with their involvement and paparazzi shots that they clearly didn't have a say in.
'For example, there's pictures of Greta Garbo, who was very reclusive, doing yoga on her balcony. But then there's close up pictures taken by Cecil Beaton where you can see a real twinkle and he's obviously been able to catch her off-guard.
'You've got great ones of people like Michael Caine and Robert Redford taken early on in their careers.
Steve McQueen on set of Le Mans, 1971 - here he is riding a bike not quite befitting the actor who starred in films like The Great Escape
A treasure trove of photographs showing Hollywood greats at work and play has emerged for sale after being lost in a company's cabinets for 40 years, pictured left are Henry and Jane Fonda; right is a rare snap of reclusive Greta Garbo taken by society photographer Cecil Beaton
Britt Ekland taken by fashion photographer Terry O'Neill on board her yacht, 1965; and Sharon Tate and Roman Polanski in 1968 shortly after they married in London
'There's one of Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot which is wonderful. It catches them on set but not filming, just larking around. Who else could put Brigitte Bardot in a headlock and get away with it?
'And a great shot of Steve McQueen, one of the manliest film stars, on a set but he's on the least masculine bike you could possibly imagine.
'A lot of the images come from the Camera Press Agency, a respected British company who used jobbing photographers. The agency would hold on to the negative and send out the prints as required around the world.
'An awful lot have been destroyed but this cache of images has survived.
'Even images that were widely distributed at the time might not have been picked up and used.
'There's certainly pictures I have never seen before and some of them may be very rare and unusual.
'It's difficult to know how much they will make, they may go for far more than we've estimated.
'But there is a big difference between prints produced for exhibition and working prints. The vast majority of these that aren't for movies are all marked up on the back with printing instructions.'
The collection will be sold on February 25.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3452690/Snapshots-golden-age-Hollywood-glamour-Amazing-collection-photos-1960s-70s-discovered-40-years-hidden-company-files.html#ixzz40YIBeaw3
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