Betrayed by Blondness: Jiřina Štěpničková 1930 - 1945


Blondness seems to be always already connected with female stardom mostly in terms of glamour,
sexuality and wealth. But not much attention has been paid to stars articulating different set of
values attached to fair hair found in artistic, national and religious discourses. In my case study
focusing on Czech star Jiřina Štěpničková I aim to take a closer look on her star image in the
period through the 1930s up to early-to-mid 1940s. I argue that while blondness heavily contributed
to her status of a national icon it also resulted in a complex set of negotiations between her star
qualities and the national rural characters she performed. On one hand, Štěpničková was labeled as
"Czech Madonna", perceived as perfect candidate for heroines defined by faithfulness,
self-sacrifice and chastity. On the other hand she was questioned as being too beautiful and
elaborately styled for the parts she was cast in. In analyzing formal elements of the image
together with reconstruction of the promotional and critical discourse I hope to enrich our
understanding of stardom in relation to blondness. Scholars are therefore invited to look out for
other patterns associated with blond hair in different time frames, media landscapes and
geographical contexts.