Joan Crawford is a famous American actress. She is included in the list of fifty greatest legends of the cinema screen according to the Institute of Cinematography.
The real name of the celebrity is Lucille Fay Lesure. The exact date of birth of the great actress is unknown. There is information about the period between 1904 and 1908.
Childhood time
Born in the small town of San Antonio, the girl became the third child besides daughter Daisy and son Gal. My father was a laundry worker.
The mother was engaged in raising the children. When Lucille was just a baby, she moved to Lawton, where she got married. The new husband was the manager of the city theater.
For a long time, the future celebrity did not know that Henry was not her biological father. The baby's childhood was spent among bohemians. The girl often attended rehearsals.
The future celebrity was taught to dance. Once the future star severely injured her leg while trying to escape from a piano lesson. I had to forget about dreams of becoming a ballerina.
After three operations, the girl could not attend school for a very long time. To all the misfortunes, the stepfather was accused of embezzlement. He was acquitted, but the family had to leave the city.
In Kansas City, the couple started running a small hotel, and Lucille was sent to a boarding school. Due to money problems, the family broke up. Anna went to work in the laundry.
She asked the boarding school management to take payment for teaching her daughter to work as a girl. As a result, the student cleaned the school premises and helped the cooks.
The path to the cinema world
After boarding, the future star entered the Romingham Academy. To pay for her studies, the student worked as a servant. Lucille only came home on weekends.
In 1922 she transferred to Stephens College. But even there she had to work out her studies. Soon the student returned home and began to work.
In 1923, in Kansas City, a girl won an amateur pop singing competition. The future star went to perform in Chicago clubs.
The creative nature changed her last name to Crawford and began working in travel revues. Producer Schubert saw the performer in Detroit.
He invited the girl he liked to his production of Broadway "Innocent Eyes" in 1924. Almost immediately Lucille got a role in the film project "Beauties".
When signing a contract with Metro-Goldwyn Pictures, the aspiring star chose a new pseudonym, becoming Joan Crawford. Very quickly, the actress won the favor of critics.
She entered the list of the most promising aspiring performers in 1926. The best debut works include Browning's paintings "The Unknown" and "Tramp, Tramp, Tramp".
Success and recognition
After the lead role in Our Dancing Daughters, everyone understood: a new bright star appeared in Hollywood. But the time for silent films was drawing to a close.
The careers of many actors who could not refuse to play with facial expressions and gestures collapsed. It turned out that Joan has an expressive and strong voice.
He perfectly complemented her image on the screen. The first sound picture with the participation of the future celebrity was in 1929 "Impatient".
The actress not only successfully played the role, but also performed several songs. At the same time, the famous performer married Douglas Fairbanks Jr., a famous actor who became one of the heroes of World War II.
In the marriage, two children were born, daughters of Cindy and Ketty. At first, family life seemed happy. However, four years later, the husband found out about his wife's romance with Clark Gable. This was the reason for the breakup.
Awards
In the thirties, Joan's career developed successfully. She became one of the leading actresses of the MGM studio. Among her works are "Love on the Run", "Stolen Jewels", "Saydee McKee", "Grand Hotel", "Only Without Ladies".
The image of the star became the prototype for the Evil Queen in the Disney cartoon about Snow White. Back in the thirties, a conflict began between Bette Davis and Joan.
The reason was a young man who both liked him. The situation worsened with the transfer of Crawford to Warner Bros. Davis considered the studio her own fiefdom.
At the beginning of World War II, Carol Lombard was killed on a trip to raise funds for soldiers. Instead of her, Joan agreed to star in Everybody Kisses the Bride. She transferred the entire fee to the Red Cross. The celebrity fired the agent who tried to keep some of the money.
In 1943, after refusing to renew her contract with MGM, Crawford moved to Warner Bros. In 1945, for the lead role in Mildred Pierce, Joan was awarded the coveted Oscar. Success made the performer an inhabitant of the Olympic film heights. Twice more she was nominated for the highest award.
Completion of a career
By the early fifties, the actress, who played fifty characters, began to appear less often. The reason was age and new young stars, with whom it became difficult to compete.
During this period, Joan successfully married the chairman of the board of directors of PepsiCo Alfred Steele. After her husband passed away, three years later, Crawford took over the press service of his firm.
In 1962, in the film project What Happened to Baby Jane? Joan and her adversary Davis brilliantly sang conflicting sisters. For a long time, the entire film crew remembered the gross insults released by the performers of the main roles to each other and their fights.
Again, the rivals met on the set of "Hush … Hush, dear Charlotte." Bette's behavior turned out to be so tough that Crawford gave up her job a week later.
The film "Trog" in 1970 became the final one in the career of the famous performer. In 1974, the actress saw pictures in the newspaper after her performance. She was horrified by them and decided not to appear in public.
Joan gave up television activities. The actress passed away in 1977. After her, the daughters got quite a lot of money. The adopted daughter considered herself deprived.
She blamed Crawford for all the sins in her own memories. The book quickly became a bestseller, although the author's objectivity was questionable. As a result, the work was filmed. The main character was performed by Faye Dunaway.
