Venom Queen / Raquel Welch

 

RAQUEL WELCH

Raquel Welch, born Jo Raquel Tejada on September 5, 1940, in Chicago, Illinois, became an emblem of American cinematic glamour in the 1960s and 1970s. Raised in San Diego, she won local beauty titles before pursuing acting in Los Angeles, where she signed with 20th Century Fox circa 1964. Her career-defining moment came in 1966 with One Million Years B.C., a film where her image in a fur bikini became a global cultural phenomenon. Though she had minimal dialogue, her striking beauty and powerful screen presence transformed her into a Hollywood icon, setting a new standard for femininity and international sex appeal during a period of shifting societal norms in the post–studio era.

The Rolling Stones outside St. George’s Church in Hanover Square, London, 17th January 1964. Clockwise from bottom left: Mick Jagger, Charlie Watts, Bill Wyman, Keith Richards and Brian Jones (1942 – 1969).

Inside the Terry O’Neill Retrospective
at Fotografiska New York

By Mekala Rajagopal

Photographed by Terry O'Neill

June 6, 2023

It’s never been easier to feel close to your favorite star—all it takes is a few clicks to find a selfie on their Instagram. But before social media, and even the days of peak paparazzi, Terry O’Neill defined the concept of the celebrity story in photographs you can find at Stars, a new exhibition celebrating a half-century of the photographer’s legacy at Fotografiska New York. “I remember my parents talking about stars in the mid-seventies,” says Fotografiska chair Yoram Roth. “They may as well have been talking about Bible characters. These were people who were so unknown to them that every snippet of information was passed around like scripture. To see a photo in a glossy magazine weekly or monthly made you feel like you had access to something that we now take for granted.” Just before the show’s opening, Roth made time to walk us through some of O’Neill’s most iconic images of Faye Dunaway, Mick Jagger, Elizabeth Taylor, and David Bowie.

Beautiful Women / Raquel Welch / The Icon

Raquel Welch

THE ICON

I consider Raquel Welch to be a blueprint of sorts for the modern, actress. Her visage captivated audiences and her popularity netted her exposure in films, tv + print.

As a bonus, the movie that made her famous, One Million Years B.C.

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