From harbor scenes and colonial buildings to emerging high-rises and the energy of a young, expanding population, the photos preserve a vivid record of Hong Kong as it evolved into a modern metropolis. They offer a fascinating and nostalgic glimpse of daily life in the territory more than sixty years ago.

The images show the actress on set and in character, highlighting her natural beauty, emotional depth, and strong screen presence. Shot during a key period of her career, these photos offer a rare and intimate glimpse of Cardinale at work on one of her most acclaimed early roles.

During the 1920s, Jean Arthur (October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991) was in the early, formative stages of her career. Long before becoming one of the most recognizable screwball comedy stars of the 1930s, she spent most of the decade working as a hard-working studio contract player in silent films.

Born Gladys Georgianna Greene, she adopted the stage name Jean Arthur (combining two of her heroes, Jeanne d’Arc and King Arthur) and made her feature debut in John Ford’s silent film Cameo Kirby (1923). For the first few years, she worked primarily in low-budget, fast-paced Action Pictures B-Westerns, churning out over 20 low-budget films, such as Fast and Fearless (1924) and The Fighting Smile (1925), earning around $25 per movie. She was famously stating of this period: “First I played ingénues and western heroines; then I played western heroines and ingénues. That diet of roles became as monotonous as a diet of spinach.”

Arthur also appeared in uncredited small roles in major productions, including a brief appearance as a receptionist in Buster Keaton’s classic comedy Seven Chances (1925). Her profile began to rise in 1927 with films like Horse Shoes and The Poor Nut. She landed a contract with Paramount Pictures after starring opposite Richard Dix in Warming Up (1928), which was marketed as Paramount’s first feature with synchronized sound effects and music. In 1929, she was selected as one of the 13 WAMPAS Baby Stars, an annual list highlighting Hollywood’s most promising young actresses.

The arrival of sound films in the late 1920s transformed her career trajectory. Unlike many silent stars whose careers suffered with the advent of audio, Arthur’s naturally raspy, husky, and expressive voice became her greatest asset. Towards the end of the decade, she appeared in sound features like The Canary Murder Case (1929) and The Mysterious Dr. Fu Manchu (1929).

Despite appearing in dozens of films throughout the 1920s, Arthur was largely dissatisfied with the generic roles she was assigned. This led her to temporarily leave Hollywood for Broadway in the early 1930s to refine her craft before returning to achieve full superstardom.