Mary Astor (1906 - 1987)

         Mary Astor

Mary Astor was born Lucile de Vasconcellos Langhanke, in Illinois in May, 1906, the daughter of ambitious German immigrants. At the instigation of her parents she took acting lessons and entered beauty contests as a child, which brought her to the attention of Hollywood talent scouts, and she was signed up at age fourteen. So her 44 year movie career began as a teenager in the silent movies of the early 1920s.

In 1924 she played opposite John Barrymore in the movie 'Beau Brummel' and also had an affair with him. It was the turning point of her career and she became a major star. When the Talkies came, because of her strong speaking voice, she was able to easily make the transition and continued at the top with films such as 'Red Dust' in 1932, 'Man of Iron' in 1935, and 'The Prisoner of Zenda' in 1937.

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She is best remembered for her role as the duplicitous Brigid O'Shaughnessy in 'The Maltese Falcon' in 1941. In her career-defining turn, Astor was cast against type as a femme fatale: with her upswept hair and classy mendacity, she is almost matronly beside the sexpots who would dominate film noir.

Astor came to 'The Maltese Falcon' as a Best Supporting Actress Oscar winner for her portrayal of Sandra Kovak in 'The Great Lie' in 1941. Three years after Brigid, she became the matriarch in 'Meet Me in St. Louis' in 1944, which led to Marmee March in 'Little Women' in 1949.

From the 1950's on, she worked mostly in TV - giving her Norma Desmond in a 1956 'Robert Montgomery Presents version of 'Sunset Boulevard'. Her last screen role was a minor grotesque in 'Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte' in 1964.

Her offscreen live was as lively and up and down as her career; married four times, she was dogged by scandal. She suffered a breakdown following the tragic death of her first husband, director Kenneth Hawks, in a plane crash in 1930. In 1934, Astor was sued by her parents for support and the feud was thrust into the public eye. Her court battles continued through the mid-1930's when her divorce from her second husband, Dr Franklin Thorpe, made the headlines with a custody battle over their daughter and accusations of adultery. Her ensuing alcoholism led her to a stint in rehab, after which she converted to Roman Cathlicism and wrote five novels and a best-selling autobiography, 'My Story'.

Mary Astor lived her final years in the Motion Picture Country Home in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, where she died of a heart attack on September 25, 1987 at the age of 81.