Joan Blondell is a Hollywood actress, star of the Golden Age of cinema. She was nominated for an Oscar, is the owner of a Tony and a personalized star on the Walk of Fame.
There are many templates and stereotypes in world cinema. One of them is the well-established type of "Hollywood blonde". Usually these girls get the role of ingenue forever. They rarely manage to play serious roles. Joan Blondell became such an exception.
It's time to search for a vocation
Rose Joan was born into an artistic family on August 30, 1906. From her mother, an actress, the girl got a charming appearance, her father, who played comic roles in vaudeville, endowed with a great sense of humor and a beautiful voice.
In addition to the girl, the family had a daughter and a son, Gloria and Eddie. The film debut took place when the baby was four months old. After 19-year-old Joan won the Miss Dallas pageant, she became a Miss America contestant under the pseudonym Rosebud Blondell.
At the beginning of her acting career, the girl preferred a more serious education. She attended the University of North Texas Teachers College.
The decision to become an actress came in 1917. The future performer went to New York to become a Broadway performer. The novice actor had a hard time.
She worked in the store in the mornings, sold circus tickets, cleaned the library in the evenings. She turned into a fashion model and showed fashionable clothes on the catwalk on weekends.
Career takeoff
Blondell made her Broadway debut in Penny's Arcade (The Arcade) opposite James Cagney. The duo was so successful that the performers immediately received an invitation from Hollywood.
Broadway star Al Johnson bought out the rights to the production, which ran for three weeks. It was decided to film the play with Joan's indispensable participation in the film.
An aspiring performer with brilliant prospects moved to Hollywood. Jack Warner suggested that she change her name to Inez Holmes, but did not receive consent for this.
The film was screened in 1930 under the title "The Feast of Sinners." The audience appreciated the film. James and Joan were awarded a contract by Warner Bros.
The couple starred in six films. Both have become one of the most popular film pairs in world history. In 1931, a film was released with the participation of a couple liked by the public under the intriguing title "Public Enemy".
At the same time, another successful tandem was compiled. The filmmakers filmed together Blondell and Glenda Farrell. In the new comedy "The Gold Miners of 1933", the girls performed the gold digger girlfriends.
During the Great Depression, this couple became the favorite among Americans. The song "Remember My Forgotten Man", performed in one of Joan's paintings, has turned into a real anthem of those terrible times. Many actors lost their careers at that time.
A charming blue-eyed blonde, on the other hand, built it. She starred in Nurse, Make Me a Star, Dream Factory and The Gold Miners of 1937.
Family life
In 1931, the promising performer was nominated for the WAMPAS Baby Stars award.
In the thirties, Blondell became one of the world's most popular celebrities. She did not agree to shoot, for which she was offered less than a million dollars, played more than fifty roles.
Her loyal fans included both Clark Gable and Erroll Flynn. However, Joan chose cameraman George Burns. The couple became husband and wife in 1922.
In marriage, the only child was born, the son of Norman. He subsequently became a producer and director. And he gave the famous actress three grandchildren. The family broke up in 1936.
Immediately after the divorce, Joan remarried. She became the wife of singer and artist Dick Powell. They had a daughter, Ellen. She chose the profession of a hairdresser-stylist and excelled in it. The couple broke up in 1944.
The dazzling blonde's third husband, Mike Todd, was a producer. The marriage lasted from 1947 to 1950.
The actress parted ways with Warner Brothers in 1939. She played minor characters. A difficult time came for the star in the forties.
New turn
Due to Joan's age, leading roles were offered less often. Family life did not work out. Blondell decided not to get discouraged, but to change her image. She switched to age-related serious roles, and changed cinema to television.
The result exceeded all expectations. The actress took part in the TV series "The Twilight Zone" and "Dr. Kielder", played in "Police Story" and other television projects. By 1951, the actress was nominated for an Oscar for her work in The Blue Veil.
The film in 1963 was twice awarded the highest television Emmy award in 1964”. In 1958, Joan was presented with the prestigious Tony theatrical award for the play The Tightrope Walker.
Blondell's performance in The Cincinnati Kid, Grease, Premiere, The Greatest Show on Earth from 1956 to 1979 silenced all her critics.
Even ill-wishers were forced to admit the undoubted talent of the actress.
For her work in the "Cincinnati Kid" with Norman Juyson, almost all the most famous critics named Joan the best actress and awarded the "Golden Globe".
In 1971, the performer wrote her autobiography. In 1975, the performer received a personalized star on the Walk of Fame. However, by that time, Joan was already seriously ill. She passed away in 1979 on December 25.
In the film and body portfolio of the actress, there are more than one hundred and seventy works.
