Many remember Vivien Leigh as the ravishing actress once married to British actor Laurence Olivier but Orson Welles, one of Vivien's peers in the industry knew her real worth. When Leigh won an Oscar for her role Blanche DuBois in the uber popular 'A Streetcar Named Desire', Welles sent Leigh a telegram saying: Of course they gave it to you they had to love and kisses from Orson
Welles' telegram is now preserved as part of V&A's archives -the museum that covers the life of Vivien Leigh and her work. V&A covers anything from the actress' teen years up to her death in 1967. The archives, reports say, includes scripts that Leigh annotated herself, scrap books, diaries, and even photographs that she took while on tour. There are also thousands of letters according to sources and it includes those from Graham Greene, the Queen Mother, and Winston Churchill. Keith Lodwick of V&A said, "We want to rescue Vivien Leigh from the shadow of Laurence Olivier. She was undoubtedly one of the most beautiful women of the 20th century, and in some ways that was her handicap. I think this archive will rewrite the biographies. It gives remarkable insights into her character, her intelligence, the breadth of the her interests, and just how hard she worked, just how carefully she prepared for her stage and film roles."
Olivier and Leigh were married from the year 1940 to 1960 and Olivier, being the greatest actors of the time always overshadowed his beautiful wife. Whenever they were apart however, Leigh would always write to her husband. In one of the letters she wrote: "My dear sweetheart, my love is with you every second - and I know tonight will be a great triumph for you my darling boy. Your proud and adoring Vivien."
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