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Marlene Dietrich Celebrated as a Bi Immigrant in Smithsonian TV Series

Marlene Dietrich

See the bisexual star of Old Hollywood like never before on the Smithsonian Channel's America in Color.

dnlreynolds

Marlene Dietrich, a bisexual star of the silver screen, can now be seen in vibrant color.

The Smithsonian Channel series America in Color is spotlighting home movies of the Morocco actress dating from the 1930s. In them, Dietrich is lounging in Beverly Hills, vacationing in Austria with her partner Douglas Fairbanks Jr., and even resisting Nazis in London.

The actress famously applied for U.S. citizenship in 1937 after refusing orders from the Third Reich to make propaganda films, an act that is recounted in the clip below.

These videos, which have been colorized, paint a glamorous and rebellious portrait of the German-born actress, who is still celebrated today for her gender-nonconforming fashion and embrace of her bisexuality.

See footage of Dietrich in the clip from America in Color below. And watch the season 3 premiere, which focuses on immigration to America in the early to mid 20th century, Sunday at 8 p.m. Eastern and Pacific on the Smithsonian Channel.

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Daniel Reynolds

Daniel Reynolds is the editor of social media for The Advocate. A native of New Jersey, he writes about entertainment, health, and politics.
Daniel Reynolds is the editor of social media for The Advocate. A native of New Jersey, he writes about entertainment, health, and politics.