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Vera-Ellen

 
Actor: Vera-Ellen
Home > Library > Entertainment & Arts > Actors
  • Born: Feb 16, 1921 in Cincinnati, Ohio
  • Died: Aug 30, 1981 in Los Angeles, California
  • Occupation: Actor
  • Active: '40s-'50s
  • Major Genres: Musical, Comedy
  • Career Highlights: White Christmas, Happy Go Lovely, Wonder Man
  • First Major Screen Credit: Wonder Man (1945)

Biography

Vivacious, long-stemmed blonde musical star Vera-Ellen was dancing professionally before she was a teenager. After service as a Radio City Music Hall Rockette and a Manhattan nightclub dancer, she graduated to the Broadway stage. She made her film debut in the 1945 Danny Kaye vehicle Wonder Man, then went on to team with such male stars as Gene Kelly (in 1949's On the Town), Fred Astaire (in 1952's Belle of New York), and Bing Crosby (1954's White Christmas). In a moment of weakness, Vera-Ellen agreed to co-star in the Marx Brothers' valedictory film Love Happy (1949), where she was "rewarded" with some of her worst-ever costumes and camera angles. After her final screen appearance in the British Let's Be Happy (1957), Vera-Ellen retired from movies, making a handful of TV appearances before marrying wealthy businessman Victor Rothschild in 1954. Following her divorce in 1966 and the subsequent death of her infant daughter, Vera-Ellen went into seclusion in her Los Angeles home, dropping completely from the public's consciousness until her death from cancer in 1981. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
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Wikipedia: Vera-Ellen
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Vera-Ellen

Vera-Ellen in Happy Go Lovely (1951)
Born Vera Ellen Westmeier Rohe
February 16, 1921(1921-02-16)
Norwood, Ohio, U.S.
Died August 30, 1981 (aged 60)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation Actress, dancer
Years active 1937–1957
Spouse(s) Robert Hightower (1941–1946)
Victor Rothschild (1954–1966)

Vera-Ellen (February 16, 1921 – August 30, 1981) was an American actress and dancer, principally celebrated for her filmed dance partnerships with Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor.

Contents

Early life

She was born Vera Ellen Westmeier Rohe in Norwood, Ohio, a suburb of Cincinnati, to Martin Rohe and Alma Catherine Westmeier, both descended from German immigrants.[1] She began dancing at the age of 9 and quickly became very proficient. At 16, she was a winner on the Major Bowes Amateur Hour, and embarked upon a professional career.

Career

Betty Garrett, Ann Miller and Vera-Ellen in On the Town (1949)

In 1939, Vera-Ellen made her Broadway theatre debut in the Jerome Kern/Oscar Hammerstein musical Very Warm for May at the age of 18. She became one of the youngest Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall, although she was not tall. This led to roles on Broadway in Panama Hattie, By Jupiter, and A Connecticut Yankee, where she was spotted by Samuel Goldwyn, who cast her opposite Danny Kaye and Virginia Mayo in the film Wonder Man (1945).

She danced with Gene Kelly in Words and Music (1948) and On the Town (1949), and appeared in the last Marx Brothers film Love Happy (1949). She received top billing alongside Fred Astaire in Three Little Words (1950) and The Belle of New York (1952). She co-starred with Bing Crosby in White Christmas (1954) and Donald O'Connor in Call Me Madam (1953) and in Let's Be Happy (1957).

During the 1950s, she was reputed to have the "smallest waist in Hollywood",[2] and is believed to have suffered from anorexia nervosa.[1] All of her costumes in White Christmas, down to her robe and sleepwear, were designed to cover her neck, which was aged beyond her years due to her eating disorder. She retired from the screen in 1957.

Personal life

Vera-Ellen was married twice. Her first husband was fellow dancer Robert Hightower (from 1941 to 1946).[3] Her second husband, from 1954 to 1966, was millionaire Victor Rothschild. Both marriages ended in divorce. While married to Rothschild, she gave birth to a daughter, Victoria Ellen Rothschild, who died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome in 1963.

Following the death of her child, Vera-Ellen withdrew from public life. She died of cancer in Los Angeles, California.

Filmography

References

  1. ^ a b Soren, David (2003). Vera-Ellen - The Magic and the Mystery. Luminary Press. ISBN 978-1887664486. 
  2. ^ Vera-Ellen at the Internet Movie Database
  3. ^ cf. Soren, p.71-72: "The stable happy marriage with Bob Hightower lasted from their wedding day on February 4, 1941 (some sources say February 1942 or March 17, 1943) to their official separation in 1946...Photos of...Vera Ellen hit the newspapers on November 28, 1946 when a default divorce was granted in Los Angeles"

Further reading

  • Oderman, Stuart, Talking to the Piano Player 2. BearManor Media, 2009. ISBN #1-59393-320-7.

External links

Search Wikimedia Commons Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Vera-Ellen
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This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

 

Copyrights:

Actor. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Vera-Ellen".  Read more

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