Who Am I? January 2024

I was born to parents of Austrian-Jewish descent in the city called the ‘gateway to the west.’ Mom was an amateur soprano singer and dad was a tailor’s cutter that worked in the garment industry.

Our family was not well off. When I developed an interest in acting I dropped out of high school. I worked at Woolworth’s and while there I organized a strike for better working conditions. I later worked as a chorine and took other odd jobs to support my acting lessons. My early experiences set in motion the pattern I was to follow the rest of my life.

I honed my acting craft. Over the years I took lessons at the New Theatre School, the Actor’s Studio and at other venues. I was active in Democratic politics, the civil rights movement and  the feminist movement. In the post WWII years I did a tour for UJA. Critics said I had a loud and boisterous opinion on almost every topic which I often voiced in later years on TV talk shows. In the late 1950’s I came to Fort Lee N.J.’s North Jersey Playhouse for a role on stage. Were any of you in the audience?

My first motion picture roles were usually “B” films where I often played bleached-blonde tawdry waitresses or else a zaftig working girl that comes to a bad end. For a time I shared my digs with another blonde who tragically flamed out much too early.

I caught a break and my Hollywood career finally took off when I was awarded what was the typical 7- year contract. It was awhile, however, before I began to be considered for more serious roles. Along the way I had flings with people named Clark, Burt, Sean, Marlon and William and co-starred with marquee names like Alan Ladd, James Stewart, Robert Mitchum and James Mason. My 5 decade acting career took place on stage, in film, and on TV. I am also a published author.

I can boast of having a star on the Hollywood Walk of fame and 2 Academy awards for Best Supporting Actor. That’s a voluptuous shot of me in my early days in the photo below.

(1a)Who Am I? (1b) How did I choose my stage name? (2a)What 2 films earned me my Oscars (2b) Where does my first Oscar now reside? (3)Who was my ill-fated blonde roommate? (4)Two of my marriages were to actors of Italian heritage. What were their names? (5)I made 5 films with one actor. What was his name? (6a) What film led to my 7-year contract? (6b)I dyed my hair brown for my first real serious role. What film was that for? Here’s a hint – my character became submerged in the chilly waters of Lake Tahoe. (7)Who performed my last marriage ceremony? Whom did I marry?