Actors - Barbara Stanwyck

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	Actors - Barbara Stanwyck

Barbara Stanwyck (July 16, 1907 – January 20, 1990) was an American film and television actress.

Personal Life

Born Ruby Katherine Stevens in New York City to Byron Stevens (the son of English immigrants) and Catherine McGee (whose parents were Irish). Her mother died when she was four, not long before her father abandoned the family. She was raised by an elder sister but began working at age 13, and was a Broadway chorine in 1922 at the age of 15.

Her first husband was established actor Frank Fay, and they were married from 1928 – 1936. On December 5, 1932 they adopted a son, Dion, from whom Stanwyck was later estranged. Fay's successful career on Broadway did not translate to the big screen, whereas Stanwyck achieved Hollywood stardom fairly rapidly. Also, Fay reportedly did not shy away from physical confrontations with his young wife, especially when he was inebriated. Some film historians claim that the Fay-Stanwyck marriage was the basis for A Star is Born. Stanwyck eventually became estranged from her son Dion for reasons that are still not known.

Some books have said that the younger actor Robert Taylor was less in love with Stanwyck than she was with him, but since they were already living together, their marriage was arranged with the help of the studio in view of the times, which was common in Hollywood's golden age. Taylor was rumored to have had several affairs during the marriage, including one with Ava Gardner. Stanwyck was rumored to have attempted suicide when she learned of Taylor's fling with Lana Turner. She ultimately filed for divorce in 1950 when a starlet made her romance with Taylor public. She never remarried, collecting alimony of 15 percent from Taylor's salary until the day he died. According to one book, she tried to collect back alimony even after Taylor's death from his second wife, Ursula, even while Ursula was struggling with financial problems. However, Stanwyck's house once burned down and she was devastated that many of Taylor's old letters and photos were lost.

Her younger brother, Byron Stevens, became an actor in Hollywood, probably with his sister's connections, but he never found real fame.

Career

A friend introduced her to Willard Mack in 1926 who was casting his play The Noose
. Asked to audition, she was cast on the spot. Willard thought a great deal of Ruby and believed that to change her image she needed a first class name, one that would stand out. He happened to notice a playbill for a play then running called "Barbara Frietchie" in which an actress named Joan Stanwyck appeared. He used this to come up with "Barbara Stanwyck" as Ruby's new stage name. She was an instant hit and he even re-wrote the script to give her a bigger part.

Stanwyck starred in almost a hundred films during her career and received four nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress: Stella Dallas
(1937), Ball of Fire
(1941), Double Indemnity
(1944), and Sorry, Wrong Number
(1948). In her best films (such as The Lady Eve
she often mixed a worldly toughness (a husky voice, an earthy sense of humor) with heartbreaking vulnerability.

She received an Academy Honorary Award "for superlative creativity and unique contribution to the art of screen acting" in 1982. In her later years, she also starred in television, notably in the 1960s Western series, The Big Valley. Her last starring role was in 1985, on the TV series The Colbys alongside Charlton Heston and Stephanie Beacham.

She and Taylor enjoyed their time together outdoors during the early years of their marriage, and were the proud owners of many acres of prime West Los Angeles property. Their large ranch and home in the Mandeville Canyon section of Brentwood, Los Angeles, California is still to this day referred to by locals as the old "Robert Taylor ranch". After her divorce from Taylor, Stanwyck had several discreet romances including one which was revealed many years later by actor Robert Wagner, 23 years her junior.

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Actors - Barbara Stanwyck

Personal Life

Career

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