For this week's Film Actress Friday I have chosen an actress who inspires me, Barbara Stanwyck. As ambitious as it may be, my aspiration would be to as fluent in my acting as Barbara was in hers.
-Barbara Stanwyck was born in 1907 as Ruby Stevens (good name Barbara!) in Brooklyn
-She was a Ziegfeld Girl in 1922 and 1923
-For the next couple of years she found work as a chorus girl and dance instructor for gays and lesbians
-She was in her first play "The Noose" in 1926, she got rave reviews and it was just prior to this that she changed her name
-In 1927 she got her first part in film as a fan dancer in the silent film "Broadway Nights"
-Her first sound film was in 1928's "The Locked Door"
-In 1930 Frank Capra chose her for the film "Ladies of Leisure"
-Of Barbara, Frank Capra said "destined to be beloved by all directors, actors, crews and extras. In a Hollywood popularity contest she would win first prize hands down."
-She was known for being accessible and kind
-She was considered for the role of Scarlett O'Hara
-She starred in more than 80 films
-She was nominated for 4 Academy Awards in; "Stella Dallas" (1937), "Ball of Fire" (1941), "Double Indemnity" (1944, which is my favorite film in general), "Sorry, Wrong Number" (1948). In 1982 she was given an honorary award for "superlative creativity and unique contribution to the art of screen acting"
-She moved to T.V. in the early 60s'
-She was nominated for 5 Emmy's and won 3, she also was nominated for 5 Golden Globe's and won 2
-She was married twice Frank Fay (1928-1935) and Robert Taylor (1939-1951)
-In her later years she did charity work
-She died in 1990 of heart failure, emphysema, and lung disease at the age of 82
-In addition to the awards I mentioned already, she won Screen Actors Guild's Lifetime Achievement Award in 1967, and an American Film Institute Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987
-She is ranked the 11th greatest female star of all time by the American Film Institute
"I'm a tough old broad from Brooklyn. I intend to go on acting until I`m ninety and they won`t need to paste my face with make-up."-- Barbara Stanwyck
