Brigitte Bardot comes to Hollywood

The elusive Brigitte Bardot has been seen in Hollywood. Well, not exactly. "BB Forever," an exhibition of photographs celebrating the life of the French actress and cultural obsession, is on display at the Hotel Sofitel.

The seldom-seen blond beauty, who retired from acting in 1973, gave her blessing for the show, a collaboration between the hotel chain and French journalist and author Henry-Jean Servat, who is also the curator.

"I could not have done it without her permission," said Servat, who has known Bardot for 25 years. He wrote "Bardot: La Légende" in 2009 and produced an exhibition a few years ago at Musée des Années 30 Espace Landowski in the Paris suburb of Boulogne-Billancourt.

PHOTOS: Brigitte Bardot exhibition

Bardot rose to fame during the '50s around the same time as that other blond goddess, Marilyn Monroe. A majority of the never before published photos are drawn from the archives of Paris-Match magazine.

On view are 30 images spanning her life and career: her early days as an aspiring ballerina, marriages to director Roger Vadim and German millionaire playboy Gunter Sachs, and the height of her fame as star of Vadim's controversial film "And God Created Woman" and Louis Malle's "A Very Private Affair."

Bardot lives quietly at her home La Madrague in Saint-Tropez, France, devoting her time to her animal rights organization, the Brigitte Bardot Foundation for the Welfare and Protection of Animals.

The show runs through March 31 before heading to Sofitel properties in Chicago, Washington, D.C. and New York.

Admission is free and open to the public. Hotel Sofitel, 8555 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles. (310) 278-5444.

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-- Liesl Bradner

Photo:  Brigitte Bardot and Roger Vadim in St. Tropez. Credit: Copyright Paris Match / Michou Simon .