Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier Signed Photograph.

LEIGH, Vivien; Laurence Olivier.

$850.00

Item Number: 146612

Rare candid photograph of the famous Hollywood couple. Candid black and white photograph depicting Laurence Olivier holding an arm around Vivien Leigh as they smile warmly at one another. Signed in blue ink by both Leigh (left) and Olivier (right). In very good condition. The piece measures 4.5 inches by 6.5 inches.

The tragic Hollywood love story of Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier begins with their first meeting in 1935 after Olivier's performance in Romeo and Juliet, where they were introduced by a mutual friend. While both parties were married at the time, there was an undeniable connection between them, and Leigh even once told a friend, "That's the man I'm going to marry." Olivier and Leigh began an affair while acting as lovers in 'Fire Over England,' although it was not for another three years that their respective separations would be finalized and they were allowed to make their relationship public. The couple were married on August 31, 1940 in a small ceremony, and they would go on to star in several films together. Leigh's struggles with bipolar disorder often led to turbulent outbursts in between filming, however, and in 1944 her health would further deteriorate after being diagnosed with tuberculosis in her left lung. Despite their evident love for each other, two miscarriages and depressive episodes put strain on the relationship, leading to the end of their marriage in 1960. Leigh, who sensed months earlier that the marriage was over had begun seeing actor Jack Merivale, while Olivier remarried actress Joan Plowright soon after the divorce. Upon Leigh's death in 1967, Merivale contacted Olivier in order to pay his respects. His autobiography notably describes the distressing scene in which he "stood and prayed for forgiveness for all the evils that had sprung up between us."