Carole Landis’ Bloody Mary

I haven’t done a Bloody Mary in a long while–I feel like I’ve made every recipe there is.

This recipe was passed along to me by Jenny over at Silver Screen Suppers.

I must admit that I had never heard of Carole Landis.. But perhaps it is not surprising–she never became a marquee name. She made 49 films but none of them were of note.

She was best known for her figure (her nicknames included the Ping Girl and The Chest). She had a “bad reputation” due to multiple failed marriages and a very long list of lovers. My favorite tidbit is that Carole accepted a role in a Broadway musical and among the cast was Jacqueline Susann. 

Yes, that Jacqueline Susann. She claims that they were lovers. Carole later became the inspiration for the character Jennifer North in the novel Valley of the Dolls.

Sadly, Carole is most remembered for for overdosing on Seconal after her lover, Rex Harrison, refused to leave his wife for her.  She was only 29.

It is rumored that there was foul play and Harrision was involved in her suicide and cover up.

Let’s get to the cocktail!

Landis contributed two recipes to The Stork Club Bar Book (1946) by Lucius Beebe.

From the book:

Carole Landis, for example, swears by a vodka Martini which, if pursued over any length of time, she promises will make the customer scream next morning for a Bloody Mary.

You can visit Silver Screen Suppers to see Landis’ martini.  Here is her Bloody Mary.

• 3 oz vodka
• 6 oz tomato juice
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• juice of 1/2 lemon

shake these together with ice or Waring mixer and serve cold.

Because of the simplicity of this recipe–no hot sauce, no black pepper, no Worcestershire–I was skeptical.

The vodka/lemon/tomato ratio was good–much better than the watery versions I made.

And the inclusion of the bitters? Again, I was skeptical, but this was really good–surprisingly so.

I added a bit more than just 2 dashes.

Angostura bitters taste nothing like Worcestershire, but it take on similar properties when added to the drink. The bitters give this version just as much as flavor as the recipes that have just a smidge of Worcestershire.

It probably also helps that this one has a hearty 3 oz of vodka.

4/5 on the tomato scale