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Marion Davies

Acting 64 (deceased) years old Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA ★ 0.3
Born: January 3, 1897
Died: September 22, 1961

Biography

From Wikipedia

Marion Davies (January 3, 1897 – September 22, 1961) was an American film actress, producer, screenwriter, and philanthropist.

Davies was already building a solid reputation as a film comedienne when newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst, with whom she had begun a romantic relationship, took over management of her career. Hearst financed Davies' pictures, promoted her heavily through his newspapers and Hearst Newsreels, and pressured studios to cast her in historical dramas for which she was ill-suited. For this reason, Davies is better remembered today as Hearst's mistress and the hostess of many lavish events for the Hollywood elite. In particular, her name is linked with the 1924 scandal aboard Hearst's yacht where one of his guests, film producer Thomas Ince, became ill. Despite the legend surrounding Ince's death, likely from alcohol consumption, he did not die on the Hearst yacht. The producer died a few days later in the arms of his wife.

In the film Citizen Kane (1941), the title character's wife—an untalented singer whom he tries to promote—was widely assumed to be based on Davies. But many commentators, including Citizen Kane writer/director Orson Welles himself, have defended Davies' record as a gifted actress, to whom Hearst's patronage did more harm than good. She retired from the screen in 1937, choosing to devote herself to Hearst and charitable work.

In Hearst's declining years, Davies provided financial as well as emotional support until his death in 1951. She married for the first time eleven weeks after his death, a marriage which lasted until Davies died of stomach cancer in 1961 at the age of 64.

External Links

🎬 IMDb

Known For

Operator 13
Operator 13 Gail Loveless 1934
The Pilgrim
The Pilgrim Congregation Member (uncredited) 1923
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited) 1925
Show People
Show People Peggy Pepper 1928
That's Entertainment! III
That's Entertainment! III (archive footage) 1994

Filmography

Acting Credits (64)

Citizen Hearst
Citizen Hearst Self (archival footage) 2021
Checking Out: Grand Hotel
Checking Out: Grand Hotel (archive footage) 2004
Murders of Hollywood
Murders of Hollywood Self (archive footage) 2003
Captured on Film: The True Story of Marion Davies
Captured on Film: The True Story of Marion Davies (archive footage) 2001
The Battle Over Citizen Kane
The Battle Over Citizen Kane Self (archive footage) 1996
The Casting Couch
The Casting Couch 1995
That's Entertainment! III
That's Entertainment! III (archive footage) 1994
Hollywood: The Dream Factory
Hollywood: The Dream Factory Self (archive footage) 1972
The Big Parade of Comedy
The Big Parade of Comedy Tina in 'The Red Mill' (archive footage) 1964
Hedda Hopper's Hollywood
Hedda Hopper's Hollywood Self 1960
Ever Since Eve
Ever Since Eve Marge Winton 1937
Cain and Mabel
Cain and Mabel Mabel O'Dare 1936
Hearts Divided
Hearts Divided Betsy Patterson 1936
Behind the Scenes of Cain and Mabel
Behind the Scenes of Cain and Mabel Herself 1936
A Dream Comes True
A Dream Comes True Herself (uncredited) 1935
Pirate Party on Catalina Isle
Pirate Party on Catalina Isle Marion Davies 1935
Page Miss Glory
Page Miss Glory Loretta 1935
Operator 13
Operator 13 Gail Loveless 1934
Going Hollywood
Going Hollywood Sylvia Bruce 1933
Peg o' My Heart
Peg o' My Heart Margaret 'Peg' O'Connell 1933
Blondie of the Follies
Blondie of the Follies Blondie McClune 1932
Polly of the Circus
Polly of the Circus Polly Fisher 1932
The Christmas Party
The Christmas Party Herself 1931
Five and Ten
Five and Ten Jennifer Rarick 1931
It's a Wise Child
It's a Wise Child Joyce Stanton 1931
The Bachelor Father
The Bachelor Father Antoinette "Tony" Flagg 1931
The Florodora Girl
The Florodora Girl Daisy Dell 1930
Not So Dumb
Not So Dumb Dulcy 1930
The Hollywood Revue of 1929
The Hollywood Revue of 1929 Self 1929
Marianne
Marianne Marianne 1929
Show People
Show People Peggy Pepper 1928
The Cardboard Lover
The Cardboard Lover Sally 1928
The Patsy
The Patsy Patricia Harrington 1928
Quality Street
Quality Street Phoebe Throssel 1927
The Fair Co-Ed
The Fair Co-Ed Marion 1927
Tillie the Toiler
Tillie the Toiler Tillie Jones 1927
The Red Mill
The Red Mill Tina 1927
Beverly of Graustark
Beverly of Graustark Beverly Calhoun 1926
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited) 1925
Lights of Old Broadway
Lights of Old Broadway Fely / Anne 1925
Zander the Great
Zander the Great Mamie Smith 1925
Janice Meredith
Janice Meredith Janice Meredith 1924
The Wife of the Centaur
The Wife of the Centaur Cameo in chorus line 1924
Yolanda
Yolanda Princess Mary / Yolanda 1924
Little Old New York
Little Old New York Patricia O'Day 1923
The Pilgrim
The Pilgrim Congregation Member (uncredited) 1923
Adam and Eva
Adam and Eva Eva King 1923
Screen Snapshots, Series 3, No. 12
Screen Snapshots, Series 3, No. 12 Self 1922
When Knighthood Was in Flower
When Knighthood Was in Flower Mary Tudor 1922
The Young Diana
The Young Diana Diana May 1922
A Trip to Paramountown
A Trip to Paramountown Self 1922
Beauty's Worth
Beauty's Worth Prudence Cole 1922
The Bride's Play
The Bride's Play Enid of Cashell / Aileen Barrett 1922
Enchantment
Enchantment Ethel Hoyt 1921
Buried Treasure
Buried Treasure Pauline Vandermuellen 1921
The Restless Sex
The Restless Sex Stephanie 1920
April Folly
April Folly April Poole 1920
The Cinema Murder
The Cinema Murder Elizabeth Dalston 1919
The Dark Star
The Dark Star Rue Carew 1919
Getting Mary Married
Getting Mary Married Mary Bussard 1919
The Belle of New York
The Belle of New York Violet Gray 1919
The Burden of Proof
The Burden of Proof Elaine Brooks 1918
Cecilia of the Pink Roses
Cecilia of the Pink Roses Cecilia 1918
Runaway Romany
Runaway Romany Romany 1917

Writing Credits (2)

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