Below is a curated selection of some of the best published articles about Barbara Stanwyck. This is an essential Stanwyck list by some of the greatest columnists and film critics. Click on the titles to be re-directed to the article/interview. You will find hours of writing word enjoyment in the links provided this page. Did we miss some? Let us know.
SALUTING STANWYCK: A LIFE ON FILM
Paul Rosenfield, Los Angeles Times
One the best and very rare interviews given by Stanwyck; a must read for any serious fan.
“When I am doing a good role, I am being someone other than myself”
LADY BE GOOD: A CENTENARY SEASON OF BARBARA STANWYCK
Anthony Lane, The New Yorker Magazine
Anthony Lane’s magnificent Centenary tribute to Stanwyck.
“When I think of the glory days of American film, at its speediest and most velvety, I think of Barbara Stanwyck”
THAT OLD FEELING: RUBY IN THE ROUGH
Richard Corliss, Time Magazine
In this 2001 article, film critic Richard Corliss, helps new and old classic fans rediscover the true value of Stanwyck’s legacy, art and filmography. A legacy that has continued growing through the years.
“Forget the Actors Studio. Today’s young performers, and not just the women, should go to Barbara Stanwyck School”
THE FOUR PHASES OF EVE
Richard Corliss, Time Magazine
A follow-up article to our previous link, where Corliss brilliantly dissects the Barbara Stanwyck characters into four distinct phases.
“The best part of the women Stanwyck embodied is that almost all of them are still around, still kicking and biting — having a hell of a time, and giving one. You can join her in the edifying fun by watching some of her films”
THE INFINITE VARIETY OF THE LADY STANWYCK
Terrence Rafferty, The New York Times
New York Times on BAM’s centennial retrospective of Brooklyn’s own Barbara Stanwyck.
“There are only a few ways to be a movie star, and Brooklyn born Barbara Stanwyck, took the hardest of them all, she kept the audience guessing”
SHE WASN’T COMMON
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles times of UCLA’s centennial retrospective on Stanwyck.
“Barbara Stanwyck could crack wise, exude innocence or be lethally tough. Played back to back, her many hues shine bright”
FIVE FOR THE DAY: BARBARA STANWYCK
Odie Henderson, Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine’s five essential Stanwyck movies.
“Barbara Stanwyck needed only a look to inform you of her less than noble intentions. With a raised eyebrow, a lowered eyelid or a bit lower lip, Stanwyck filled the screen with the promise of sex, a promise even the Hays Office couldn’t censor.”
BARBARA STANWYCK: THE DAME FROM BROOKLYN
Bill Mesce, Sound on Sight
“A classy dame. A dynamite broad. A tough cookie. The language is definitely un-PC…and yet, it seems not only proper but singularly apt when talking about Barbara Stanwyck.”
BARBARA STANWYCK: PROFESSIONAL ACTRESS
Ray Hagen, Classic Images
“All the legendary Hollywood goddesses of the 1930s and ’40s had exclusive iron-clad contracts with major studios; Garbo at MGM, Davis at Warners, Crawford at MGM and then Warners, Dietrich at Paramount, Hayworth at Columbia, Grable at Fox. Barbara Stanwyck, alone among the supernovas, chose to go it alone, juggling short-term contracts with all the majors but never aligning herself exclusively with any one studio. No one studio had a vested interest in promoting her to the skies, buying the best properties for her, giving her the great roles, and creating a legend around her. She had to do that herself. That she was actually able to do so was testament to her steel-willed tenacity, her unwavering popularity with moviegoers through good movies and bad, and the sheer range of her talent”
BARBARA STANWYCK: A STAND-UP DAME
John Stark, Time Magazine
People Magazine’s 1990 article on Stanwyck after her passing in 1990.
“At Barbara Stanwyck’s request, there was no funeral or memorial service. Save your flowers. It’s hard to think of a star not wanting attention, but that was Stanwyck. Down-to-earth. Self-assured. No nonsense.”
BARBARA STANWYCK: WARRIOR WOMAN IN HOLLYWOOD’S GENDER WARS
Torey King
Scholarly essay and fascinating must read for any fan who appreciates Stany’s feisty spirit and tough as nails characters.
“Throughout her long career in films and television, Barbara Stanwyck battled on the front lines of Hollywood’s on-going gender wars by portraying a diversity of “warrior women.”