BORN: February 19, 1911
DIED: November 23, 1979
AGED: 68 Yrs from major stroke, had heart issues
REAL NAME: Estelle Merle O'Brien
NICKNAME: Queenie
MARRIAGES: 4 times-Alexander Korda, Robert Wolders (later he was with Audrey Hepburn)
AFFAIRS: David Niven, Turhan Bey, etc...
Her dad was British and her mom was from Ceylon which Merle tried to hide from the world. She did not want to be known as a half-caste. She would introduce her mom as her maid to keep her secrets. Known for her beauty and exotic looks there are rumours she worked as a high class call girl before she found fame. She also was a very bad car accident and almost died in the 1930's. When married to Mr. Korda she worked, with him, in intelligence during WW2. She was born with a congenital heart defect which plagued later in life.
FILMS: Private Life of Henry the VIII, The Dark Angel,These Three, Wuthering Heights, A Song To Remember
BORN: March 1, 1910
DIED: July 29, 1983
AGED: 83 Yrs. from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
MARRIED: twice-1st wife died at friend's home. They were playing a game and the lights were off and she fell down a flight of stairs. she was only 28-poor thing and Mr. Niven was devastated.
AFFAIRS: Merle Oberon, Rita Hayworth, Ann Todd, Evelyn Keyes(who wasn't with her)
FAMOUS ROOMMATE: Errol Flynn
Witty and entertaining. Very likeable fellow, great story teller. He was the first british ex-pat star to enlist in WW 2 and was distinguished in the service. He wrote 2 great entertaining "autobiographies"-The Moon's a Balloon", and "Bring On The Empty Horses". The disease that eventually took his life robbed him from his ability to speak. Rich Little was used to dub him in his last movie.
OSCAR: Separate Tables
FILMS: Raffles, Wuthering Heights, Enchantment, Around The World in 80 Days, Guns of Navarone, The Pink Panther, Murder by Death
BORN: May 15, 1909
DIED: July 27, 1984
AGED: 75 yrs from a heart attack
MARRIED: Twice
Under-rated actor, romantic lead but also could play a charming evil nasty pants. Known to be arrogant, Opinionated, intelligent. Known for his distinctive voice. A complicated hero. He was a conscientious objector during WW2 which I think was a brave thing to do. One of my personal fav's
FILMS: Seventh Veil, The Wicked Lady, A Star is Born, Five Fingers, The Man Between, Pandora and the Flying Dutchman, Journey to the Centre of the earth, North by Northwest, Lolita, Georgy Girl, The Verdict
BORN: November 5, 1913
DIED: July 7, 1967
AGED: 53 yrs from tuberculosis
MARRIED: twice, 2nd to Laurence Olivier
LIVED WITH: John Merivale
AFFAIRS: Laurence Olivier when in her 1st marriage), Peter Finch
Extremely beautiful, intelligent actress, very cultured-knew her wines! Her greatest love was with Laurence Olivier and they starred in movies and the theatre. She suffered from severe bi-polar disorder and underwent electric shock therapy and was in and out of mental institutions throughout her life. She and Olivier owned Notley Abbey and would give dinner parties and when she was in her "manic" phase, she would not let anyone leave and sleeping was optional. David Niven spoke of her in his book but never named her out of respect.
OSCARS: Gone with the Wind, Streetcar Named Desire
FILMS: Waterloo Bridge, That Hamilton Woman, Anna Karenina, Ship of Fools
BORN: August 23, 1912
DIED: February 2, 1996
AGED: 83 ys from sepsis, coronary disease. Suffered major stroke year earlier
MARRIED: 3 times-Betsy Blair, Jeanne Coyne(he was widowed). last one was only 36 yrs old and he was 77. Men say: Alright!!! Women say: Eeeewwwwww, really??
Amazing dancer, right beside Fred Astaire (like apples and oranges). Loved the athletic style of dance and would incorporate ballet as well. Loved camera techniques-dances with Jerry the Mouse from Tom and Jerry (you tube it). Demanding taskmaster, temperamental. Loved to direct too-"Hello Dolly" with Barbra Streisand. tried to preserve the wonderful art of the musical to new people through the That's Entertainment films.
FILMS: For Me and My Gal, Covergirl, Anchors Aweigh, On the Town, An American in Paris, Singing In The Rain, Invitation to the Dance, and, yes, Xanadu (should we laugh or cry)
BORN: August 25, 1916
DIED: December 12, 2008
AGED: 92 yrs-old age
REAL NAME: Charles Van Dell Johnson
MARRIED: Once-Ouch!!!
BEST FRIEND: Keenan Wynn whose wife Van married
AFFAIRS: Keenan Wynn...maybe-rumours
FAMOUS PARTNER: June Allyson
Freckle-faced boy next door. Almost died in a bad car accident and almost lost his dream part but Spencer Tracy saved the day. The rumour mill is that Van was gay and had an affair with Keenan Wynn who was also his best friend. To quell the rumours Keenan divorced his wife and 4 hrs later she married Van. Unfortunately it did not end well. The marriage ended on a bad note and she got a lot of his money. Oh my oh my...
FILMS: A Guy Named Joe, 30 Seconds Over Tokyo, In The Good Ole Summertime, Two Girls and a Sailor, The Caine Mutiny,
BORN: June 14, 1909
DIED: April 14, 1995
AGED: 85 yrs from oral cancer
Married: Twice
"Silver and Gold, Silver and Gold...." Mr. Snowman himself from Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer. I have his Christmas album with these songs on it. Great Folk Singer who sang "Blue-Tailed Fly". Was brought to the House Un-American Activity trials and he spoke which did cause a rift between him and Pete Seeger-terrible, terrible, times. Under-rated actor who worked in Film, Theatre and TV. A rotund sweet man.
OSCAR: The Big Country
FILMS: East of Eden, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Brass Bottle
