In the Hollywood firmament, a starlet is a heavenly body twinkling only fleetingly on the screen but readily visible in publicity stills. Once in a while an ambitious starlet rebels against this fate. Three years ago Barbara Bates did just that. A wartime pin-up favorite while on the Universal lot, Barbara moved over to Warners', where she got her first speaking parts; her dramatic aspirations thus encouraged, she balked at posing for any more leg-art pictures.
Last week, still thinking about the case of Barbara, Universal-International struck a blow for art (hip, thigh &...