Turns out, working together was the couples therapy Darnell and Marley needed, and after the filming of Forever Amber, the couple reconciled and even decided to become parents. On April 10, 1965, Linda Darnell died from burns she received in a house fire at the age of 41. She soon realized, though, that the ease and protection enjoyed under contract was gone, and she came to resent 20th Century-Fox and Zanuck: Suppose you'd been earning $4,000 to $5,000 a week for years. [32] She had been staying at the home of her former secretary and the secretary's daughter and had just received notice from her agent of three possible movie contracts. Linda Darnell was born on October 16, 1923 and died on April 10, 1965. January 19, 2022, 6:17 pm, by She was visiting her former secretary when she got that call, and unfortunately, the fire and her untimely death meant she never got to fulfill the promise of that future. But if Zanuck was a toxic figure in Darnells life, her mother Pearl still had him beat. She had lost track of Darnell in the confusion of the moment and insisted the firefighters rescue Linda before she would leave the window ledge. If you want to get an update whenever we post new videos on the FactsVerse channel, like and subscribe below. Remaining calm, Darnell told Jeanne to get Patty out first through a window on the second floor. She never had to plod her way through the so-called awkward phase of her teen years because, well, she wasneverawkward. Do you question the accuracy of a fact you just read? Truly, like mother, like daughter. [1]:107 In mid 1948, she became romantically involved with Joseph L. Mankiewicz, the director of A Letter to Three Wives, and in July 1948 she filed for divorce. [1]:51, After appearing in several small films, Darnell was cast in her first big-budget film in May 1940, appearing again opposite Tyrone Power in Brigham Young (1940), which was shot on location in mid 1940 and was regarded as the most expensive film 20th Century Fox had yet produced. Darnell, on the other hand, had other ideas. Facts Verse Portraying a "seductive peasant girl who takes three men to their ruin before she herself is murdered,"[1]:82 it was a type of role she had never before played. [1]:77 Marley was a heavy drinker and introduced Darnell to alcohol in 1944, which eventually led to an addiction and weight problems. Linda Darnell: Hollywood's Fallen Angel: Directed by Hillary Atkin. The women urged the young girl to jump from the second-floor window. You know that sooner or later the studio's going to let you go. Firefighters found her on the living room floor with burns covering 80 percent of her body. Matters changed when she was named one of the four most beautiful women in Hollywood along with Hedy Lamarr, Ingrid Bergman, and Gene Tierney in a 1944 edition of Look. Factinate is a fact website that is dedicated to finding and sharing fun facts about science, history, animals, films, people, and much more. Even worse, the films reception was very disappointing, which left Darnell crushed. Not simply from a professional standpoint, but just to get up in the morning and look at herself in the mirror. [1]:73 In April 1943, she was put on suspension, which meant being replaced in the Technicolor musical film The Gang's All Here (1943). Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? However, many audience members didnt realize that. She initially started modeling to earn money for the household[3] and performed mostly in beauty contests. Mankiewicz. [12] Variety said: "Miss Darnell displays a wealth of youthful charm and personality that confirms studio efforts to build her to a draw personality. [4] She did not have a lot in common with her peers and usually spent her time at home as a teen, working under the guidance of her mother. Although she had to give up that role and work with Otto Preminger, she was delighted to play the title role and thought she was "the luckiest girl in Hollywood. By the mid-1960s, she had started appearing as a nightclub singer. She reached the door but the doorknob was already too hot for her to touch. This news initially excited Darnell because it permitted her to focus on her film career in Europe. Her mother had big plans for Linda Darnell, however. She started modeling at the age of 13 and performed in the theaters at the age of 16. It gives you a false sense of security. According to her siblings, Darnell enjoyed the limelight and shared her mother's dream. [1]:53 Her first love was Jaime Jorba, an Hispanic youth whom she met while still in high school. In pictures you're built up by everyone. "[1]:26 One elocution teacher recalled: "[Darnell] didn't stand out particularly, except that she was so sweet and considerate. In fact, Darnells marriages all ended up mirroring her parents relationship. Although Darnell was already a veteran stage actor by the age of 13, her mother Pearl always wanted more. She took him to court and made a scene, asking for a divorce from him because he allegedly cheated on her with a Polish actress and even fathered an illegitimate child. The Tragic Death of Linda Darnell, the Girl With the Perfect Face, The Tragic Story of the Berberovs, a Soviet Family Who Raised Lions as Their Pets at Home in the 1970s, 35 Fabulous Photos Show What Brides Looked Like in the 1960s, 30 Cool Pics That Capture Naughty Ladies of the 1950s, Mihailo Tolotos, the Greek Orthodox Monk Who Lived 82 Years Without Ever Seeing a Woman, Candid Snaps of a Group of Women Spent Time Together in a Pub in Bermondsey, on a Day Trip to Margate, ca. After the films opening, she received critical praise for her performance. Liebmann attempted to save the marriage by adopting a baby named Alfreda, but the marriage ended nevertheless on grounds of incompatibility, and Liebmann kept the girl. Darnell was watching Star Dust (1940) on television, on the night of the fire. [1]:29 Arriving in California alongside Mary Healy and Dorris Bowdon in February 1938, Darnell initially was rejected by film studios and was sent home because she was declared "too young. She took this to the extreme, ignoring her other children in favor of developing Lindas career in acting. Darnell's gorgeous features were both a blessing and a curse. "[1]:65 Months passed by without any work, and in August 1941 she was cast in a supporting role in the musical Rise and Shine (1941). I tried to get my ex-wife served with divorce papers. She was 41 years old. Were always looking for your input! Instead, her ashes were kept in the office of a Chicago cemetary for the next decade. Linda Darnell (born Monetta Eloyse Darnell; October 16, 1923 April 10, 1965) was an American actress. 1950s, Joan Crawfords Tips for a Great Party: Everyone Welcome, Except Hippies With Unwashed Feet, Conversational Pits of the 1960s and 1970s. She takes to the burn unit at Chicagos Cook County Hospital, suffering from burns to 80 percent of her body. Flippo asked Parton about what the most outrageous thing shed [] More, Robert Urich was known throughout the world as a tough guy. Linda was 41 years old at the time of death. She felt respected in this new environment, and the studio she worked with treated her as a reputable actress and not as a child, something she had grown used to experiencing with 20th Century Fox. Darnell didnt particularly want to be a big star but she followed her mothers urging and made it happen. She returned to 20th Century-Fox in August 1955, by which time the studio had entered the television field. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. Vote your favorites, and dont forget to share. Linda Darnell On April 10, 1965, Hollywood actress Linda Darnell died in a house fire. [1]:140 After a while, she grew dissatisfied with this loveless marriage and detested her husband for allowing her to lash out at him as well as cheapening her by buying her lavish presents. In April 1943, Darnell eloped with Peverell Marley, one of her cameramen, and nobodyleast of all her creepy Fox boss Zanuckwas happy about the marriage. Darnell died on April 10, 1965, from burns she received in a house fire in Glenview, Illinois, early the day before. Repulsive as this was, Zanucks move paid off, and the film became an instant success, catapulting Darnell to brand new heights. Although Catherine's successor Queen Anne Boleyn suffered an infamously dark fate, Aragon's own life was somehow even more tragic. Indeed, she started to completely ignore her other children in order to focus on Darnells career. After this, her career began to slow down. [1]:58 Darnell was very negative about the Hollywood social scene, finding it "nauseating". Darnell made her screen debut in the 1939 drama 'Hotel for Women'. On top of the big age gap, Marley also introduced Darnell to bad habits that changed her for the worse. [1]:146, Darnell was married to pilot Merle Roy Robertson from 1957 to 1963. She sorely underestimated her mothers thirst for vengeance. The next seven years arent going to be the same.. 3. His theory was that she was so severely burned because rather than try to jump from the second-story window like her friends daughter had done, she tried to get out the front door. Before traveling to Italy for a two-picture deal with Giuseppe Amato, Darnell was rushed into the production of Blackbeard the Pirate (1952), whichmuch to Darnell's distressgot far behind schedule. She was the middle child of four siblings. Despite suffering from the "terrifying" director Otto Preminger, Darnell completed the film and was praised by reviewers so widely that there was even talk of an Oscar nomination. After going to rehab, she started to recover a little, but Robertson still had to suffer the brunt of her instability. Darnell was born in Dallas, Texas, as one of four children (excluding her mother's two children from an earlier marriage) to postal clerk Calvin Roy Darnell and the former Margaret "Pearl" Brown. Hey Friend, Before You Go.. But there was just one problem. [11] The film was hailed as one of the "most original entertainment idea[s] in years" and boosted Darnell's popularity, who was nicknamed "Hollywood's loveliest and most exciting star". [1]:104, The following year, Darnell portrayed Daphne de Carter in the Preston Sturges' comedy Unfaithfully Yours (1948), also starring Rex Harrison, and was then rushed into production as one of the three wives in the comedy/drama A Letter to Three Wives (1949). When 20th Century-Fox offered her a part, Darnell wanted to accept, but RKO was unwilling to release her. Some of the more sensational reports at the time claimed that on the night of the fire, Darnell had been intoxicated and was despondent over the way her career had ended up. Born 1947 and died 1970. Zanuck, who knew how popular the on-screen couple had become, added extra romantic scenes between them to entice viewers (and, most probably, himself). Upon returning to New York, she was under the misunderstanding that she would portray the title role in Mankiewicz's The Barefoot Contessa (1954), believing that the role could carry her to dramatic heights. The rest of the decade saw her taking on a range of characters that displayed her talent beyond mere good looks while also not straying too far from the seductress persona that she'd cultivated. In an interview during production of Hotel for Women, which lasted until June, Darnell admitted that movie making was not what she expected: "I'm learning what really hard work is. Her first film outside 20th Century-Fox was The Lady Pays Off for Universal-International (1951) after Douglas Sirk requested her for the lead role. She's devil mostlyat times angelicand perfectly fascinating to interpret. On January 25, 1949, Darnell went to court to sue her former business manager, Cy Tanner, for fraud. "[1]:81 Darnell was reduced to second leads and was overlooked for big-budget productions. Obviously, this caused issues between her and 20th Century Fox, and the studio decided to punish her by giving her exactly what she didnt want: They loaned her out to a different studio for a supporting role in a B movie. Not, only that, but her coveted figure started gaining weight. [1]:8485 Neighbors and acquaintances recalled the drastic change she underwent in this period, becoming hardened and hot- She longed for the leading role in the controversial film Pinky (1949), but Zanuck feared that her character would be compared to Amber by the audience, and A Letter to Three Wives co-star Jeanne Crain was cast instead. Darnell expects to be in an Academy Award for her role in A Letter to Three Wives but it did not happen. What would she have looked like? Lola wondered. It wasnt until Mothers ashes were in the ground that I saw her death was real.. In fact, he himself entertained multiple women whenever he could. He was also expertly manipulative, casting her in good roles whenever she proved pleasant and agreeable. Linda Darnell is one of the most recognizable faces on the silver screen in the forties. She fell into a spiraling depression and had to go to therapy in 1949. Linda C Darnell was born on November 17, 1947. The early 1950s saw Darnell appear in less and less noteworthy films, but in 1952, another great shift shed been anticipating finally happened: Her contract with 20th Century Fox ended. We want our readers to trust us. However, she soon learned that venturing out on her own wasnt going to be as easy as shed thought. "Actress Linda Darnell Granted Divorce From 'Rude' Husband", "Perfect Beauty Made This Girl, 16, A Star in Her Second Movie", "The Big Idea Behind MY DARLING CLEMENTINE", "KRAMER IS SEEKING BRANDO FOR MOVIE; Producer Would Have Actor Star in 'Frenzy' -- Brooklyn Girl Signs for U.-I. [1]:84 The film became a great success, and with Darnell's triumph assured, she was allowed to abandon her upcoming film, Don Juan Quilligan (1945), which would have been another low point in her career. In a titillating autobiography written when he was 71, Douglas admitted that he'd not only cheated on his first wife, Diana Dill with whom he had two sons, including mega-star Michael Douglas but he also messed around on his current wife, Anne Bydens, who gave him another two sons. ", Although originally wanting to become an actress on the stage, Darnell was featured in a Gateway to Hollywood talent search and initially landed a contract at RKO Pictures. Darnell was born in Dallas, Texas, as one of five children of a postal clerk. While sleeping upstairs and awakened by smoke, she tried to exit through the downstairs door but was trapped. They started putting her in more substantial roles, leading to the movie Forever Amber in 1947. She works long hours during the filming of the movie and heavy dieting that leads to exhaustion and serious illness. Please submit feedback to contribute@factinate.com. [1]:22 The same year, she was hired as one of the hostesses at the Texas Centennial Exposition. Following a five-minute hearing, Darnell was granted a divorce and custody of Charlotte, while Marley was to pay $75 a month for child support.[28]. A columnist wrote about Darnell that she was, so young, so immature and so naive in her ideas. She wasnt great at differentiating friend from foe, and by the time she recognized her role in this game of exploitation, it was already far too late. How old is Linda Darnell? Here below we have compiled a list of beautiful photographs of Linda Darnell from her career. The claim tore Darnells family apart, and in 1942, unable to handle the hostilities between her parents anymore, she took her younger sister and left home, never to return again. When she filed for divorce from Marley in 1951, she accused her husband of cruelty, claiming he was "rude" and "critical" towards Darnell and her family. As the most commanding mistress in the French court, she bettered the lives of many and became a beloved figure. The Los Angeles Times states that she was visiting her friend and once-secretary Jeanne Curtis' home in Chicago and that they had stayed up late to watch a television broadcast of Darnell's own 1940 film, "Star Dust." According to the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Darnell stated that her mother "really shoved me along, spotting me in one contest after another. [3] There was no certainty, though, and she soon returned to Dallas. Her beauty and talent made her one of the top female stars at Twentieth Century-Fox. She died on April 24, 2008 at age 59. The late John Ritter plays Jack Tripper, Joyce DeWitt as Janet Wood, and Suzanne Somers as Chrissy [] More, Guy Williams is a popular television actor who rises to prominence during the late 1950s. Life even got a bit scarier when an unknown individual started blackmailing the actress, demanding that she pay them $2,000 or face bodily harm. Granted, this probably had a lot to do with the fact that she couldnt get work anywhere else: I thought in a little while Id get offers from other studios, but not many came along.. For a while, that is. . Distinguished by her brunette hair and dark brown eyes, she is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful women ever to appear on the silver screen. But who wants to be retired at twenty-nine? Linda's weakness for Black men was hardly a secret. Darnell was eager to appear on Ronald Reagan's General Electric Theater. Years later, I was using her phone when I made an utterly chilling discovery. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. Encouraged by her mother, Darnell met him, and after a few months he invited her for a screen test in Hollywood. Yes, this was all incredibly grossbut somehow, it wasnt the worst part. Wow this is another beautiful image of Linda. Before the death of Linda Darnell, she wanted her ashes to be scattered over a New Mexico ranch owned by the Hurd family but a dispute with the landowners caused problems. A year later, they signed her on.and the downward spiral began. What made Rawhide [] More, Lucy and Ricky Ricardo may have been the main characters of the hit 1950s series I Love Lucy, but the show wouldnt have been nearly as successful without their landlords, Fred and Ethel Mertz. Turner Classic Movies states that Linda Darnell spent much of her early career acting in the less serious, more escapist films of 20th Century Studios, which they specialized in at the time. In 1957, she started drinking heavily and in November 1958 sank into a depression,[29] but went into rehab, recovering for a while. "Linda Darnell, Just 16, Achieves Film Stardom In A Woman's Role" by Robbins Coons. I pleaded for something to do, but nothing happened. Zanuck. Due to her allergy to horses, she loathed making Westerns, and in addition to her complaints about her "colorless" role, she disliked her co-stars Joseph Cotten and Cornel Wilde. Darnells studio enlisted the help of the FBI to find the culprit, only to reveal a high schooler with too much time on their hands. Too frightened to make the two-story-high jump, Darnell decided to ascend the stairs and make a dash towards the door. [2] She believed that Linda was her only child with potential as an actress and ignored the rearing of her other children. Darnell gained some bad publicity thanks to her mother, but that wasnt the end of her troubles. Mankiewicz, however, was unwilling to leave his wife for Darnell, and though the affair continued for six years, she returned to her husband. Because Darnell and Marley were unable to have children, they adopted a daughter in 1948, Charlotte Mildred "Lola" Marley (born January 5, 1948), the actress's only child. Burns she received in a house fire at the time of death Darnell ( born Monetta Eloyse Darnell October!, as one of the movie Forever Amber in 1947 more tragic children in favor of developing Lindas career acting! A part, Darnell decided to ascend the stairs and make a dash the! 'S successor Queen Anne Boleyn suffered an infamously dark fate, Aragon 's own life was somehow even tragic! 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