The manipulation of photography by Hollywood studios to make “gods” out of film stars will be the subject of a new exhibition.

Almost 70 vintage photographs, including portraits of Clark Gable, Marlene Dietrich, Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Crawford and Vivien Leigh, will go on show at the National Portrait Gallery.

The studio portraits, which will be shown alongside film stills, come from the collection of John Kobal, who died in 1991.

Between the 1920s and 1960s photographers were employed by powerful Hollywood studios to shoot their stars’ portraits.

The studios would distribute the images to fans and public-ations across the world, creating an image of their stars before the advent of the paparazzi.

Kobal, a collector and author, spent years seeking out the anonymous photographers behind the widely-seen portraits.

The exhibition will look at those photographers including Davis Boulton, a Briton working for the Hollywood studios, and Ruth Harriet Louise, the only woman who ran a studio photo gallery.

Glamour of the Gods: Hollywood Portraits will run from July 7 to October 23 at the National Portrait Gallery.