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Marion Davies is a Actor, Scriptwriter and Producer American born on 3 january 1897 at Brooklyn (USA)

Marion Davies

Marion Davies
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Birth name Marion Cecilia Douras
Nationality USA
Birth 3 january 1897 at Brooklyn (USA)
Death 22 september 1961 (at 64 years) at Los Angeles (USA)

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 when one of his guests, film producer Thomas Ince, died.

In the film Citizen Kane (1941), the title character's second 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.

Biography

Relationship with William Randolph Hearst
Publishing mogul William Randolph Hearst and Davies lived as a couple for decades but were never married, as Hearst's wife refused to give him a divorce. At one point, he reportedly came close to marrying Davies, but decided his wife's settlement demands were too high. Hearst was extremely jealous and possessive of her, even though he was married throughout their relationship. Lita Grey, the second wife of Charlie Chaplin, wrote four decades later that Davies confided with her about the relationship with Hearst. Grey quoted Davies saying:


God, I'd give everything I have to marry that silly old man. Not for the money and security—he's given me more than I'll ever need. Not because he's such cozy company, either. Most times, when he starts jawing, he bores me stiff. And certainly not because he's so wonderful behind the barn. Why, I could find a million better lays any Wednesday. No, you know what he gives me, sugar? He gives me the feeling I'm worth something to him. A whole lot of what we have, or don't have, I don't like. He's got a wife who'll never give him a divorce. She knows about me, but it's still understood that when she decides to go to the ranch for a week or a weekend, I've got to vamoose. And he snores, and he can be petty, and has sons about as old as me. But he's kind and he's good to me, and I'd never walk out on him.

By the late 1930s, Hearst was suffering financial reversals. After selling St Donat's Castle, Davies bailed him out by writing out a check for $1 million. Hearst died on August 14, 1951.

The California State Parks staff at Hearst Castle report at the time of Hearst's death, 51% of his fortune had been bequeathed to Davies.


Patricia Lake
Since the early 1920s, there has been speculation that Davies and Hearst had a child together some time between 1920 and 1923. The child was rumored to be Patricia Lake (née Van Cleve), who was publicly identified as Davies' niece. On October 3, 1993, Lake died of complications from lung cancer in Indian Wells, California. Ten hours before her death, Lake requested that her son publicly announce that she was not Davies' niece but Davies' biological daughter, whom she had conceived with Hearst. Lake had never commented on her alleged paternity in public, even after Hearst's and Davies' deaths, but did tell her grown children and friends. Lake's claim was published in her death notice, which was published in newspapers.

Lake told her friends and family that Davies became pregnant by Hearst in the early 1920s. As the child was conceived during Hearst's extra-marital affair with Davies and out of wedlock, Hearst sent Davies to Europe to have the child in secret to avoid a public scandal. Hearst later joined Davies in Europe. Lake claimed she was born in a Catholic hospital outside of Paris between 1920 and 1923 (she was unsure of the precise date). Lake was then given to Davies' sister Rose, whose own child had died in infancy, and passed off as Rose and her husband George Van Cleve's daughter. Lake stated that Hearst paid for her schooling and both Davies and Hearst spent considerable time with her. Davies reportedly told Lake of her true parentage when she was 11 years old. Lake said Hearst confirmed that he was her father on her wedding day at age 17 where both Davies and Hearst gave her away.

Neither Davies nor Hearst ever publicly addressed the rumors during their lives. Upon news of the story, a spokesman for Hearst Castle only commented that, "It's a very old rumor and a rumor is all it ever was."


Ince scandal
In November 1924, Davies was among those aboard Hearst's luxury yacht Oneida for a weekend party that resulted in the death of film producer Thomas Ince. Rumors have endured since then that Davies had an alleged relationship with Chaplin, which led to Ince's accidental shooting by a jealous Hearst. Chaplin (among other actresses and actors) and Davies were aboard the yacht the night Ince died. There has never been any evidence to support the rumors.

Ince's autopsy showed that he suffered an attack of acute indigestion while aboard the yacht and was escorted off to San Diego by another of the guests, Dr. Daniel Carson Goodman, a Hollywood writer and producer. Ince was put on a train bound for Los Angeles, but was removed from the train at Del Mar when his condition worsened. He was given medical attention by Dr. T. A. Parker and a nurse, Jesse Howard. Ince told them that he had drunk liquor aboard Hearst's yacht. He was taken to his Hollywood home where he died the following day of a heart condition.


Marriage
Eleven weeks and one day after Hearst's death, Davies married Horace Brown on October 31, 1951, in Las Vegas. It was not a happy marriage. Davies filed for divorce twice, but neither was finalized, despite Brown admitting he treated her badly: "I'm a beast," he said. "I took him back. I don't know why," she explained. "I guess because he's standing right beside me, crying. Thank God we all have a sense of humor.

Usually with

Cedric Gibbons
Cedric Gibbons
(15 films)
Adrian
Adrian
(11 films)
George Barnes
George Barnes
(9 films)
King Vidor
King Vidor
(4 films)
Source : Wikidata

Filmography of Marion Davies (57 films)

Display filmography as list

Actress

That's Entertainment! III, 1h53
Genres Documentary, Musical
Themes Films about films, Documentary films about business, Documentary films about the film industry, Documentary films about cities, Musical films, Documentary films about films
Actors Gene Kelly, June Allyson, Cyd Charisse, Lena Horne, Howard Keel, Esther Williams
Roles (archive footage)
Rating74% 3.7388153.7388153.7388153.7388153.738815
Troisième volet de "Il était une fois Hollywood", "That's Entertainment III" nous propose un nouveau panorama de l'age d'or de la MGM mais aussi des chutes rarissimes, des séquences coupées lors de la sortie des films et des essais d'autres stars que celles qui furent finalement choisies.
Zelig
Zelig (1983)
, 1h19
Directed by Woody Allen
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Documentary, Romance
Themes Political films
Actors Mia Farrow, Woody Allen, Susan Sontag, Caitlin O'Heaney, Patrick Horgan, Joséphine Baker
Roles Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Rating76% 3.8473753.8473753.8473753.8473753.847375
Set in the 1920s and 1930s, the film focuses on Leonard Zelig (Woody Allen), a nondescript man who has the ability to transform his appearance to that of the people who surround him. He is first observed at a party by F. Scott Fitzgerald, who notes that Zelig related to the affluent guests in a thick, refined accent and shared their Republican sympathies, but while in the kitchen with the servants he adopted a ruder tone, and seemed to be more of a Democrat. He soon gains international fame as a "human chameleon".
Hollywood Without Make-Up
Directed by Ken Murray
Origin USA
Genres Documentary
Themes Documentary films about business, Documentary films about the film industry, Documentary films about cities
Actors Kirk Douglas, Ken Murray, Cary Grant, June Allyson, George K. Arthur, Eddie Albert
Roles Self (archive footage)
Rating71% 3.578363.578363.578363.578363.57836
The film consists of archive footage of famous Hollywood stars, mostly home movies showing the stars as themselves instead of playing a role in front of the camera.
Ever Since Eve, 1h20
Directed by Lloyd Bacon
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Romantic comedy, Romance
Actors Marion Davies, Robert Montgomery, Frank McHugh, Patsy Kelly, Allen Jenkins, Louise Fazenda
Roles Marge Winton
Rating65% 3.296833.296833.296833.296833.29683
Marge Winton (Marion Davies) is fed up with having to quit job after job to avoid the advances of lecherous bosses. When she goes to the employment agency, she is surprised to discover that she is too beautiful for one position. So she gives herself a makeover, hiding her blond curls under a dark, severe wig, putting on glasses, and wearing a drab, unflattering dress.
Cain and Mabel, 1h30
Directed by Lloyd Bacon
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Romantic comedy, Romance
Themes Sports films, Martial arts films, Boxing films
Actors Marion Davies, Clark Gable, Allen Jenkins, Roscoe Karns, Walter Catlett, Robert Paige
Roles Mabel O'Dare
Rating63% 3.1985953.1985953.1985953.1985953.198595
Waitress-turned-Broadway star Mabel O'Dare (Marion Davies) and garage-mechanic-turned-prize fighter Larry Cain (Clark Gable) dislike each other intensely, but press agent Aloysius K. Reilly (Roscoe Karns) cooks up a phony romance between them for publicity. Inevitably, the two fall in love for real, and plan on getting married, with Mabel quitting show business to be a housewife and Cain quitting the fight racket to run garages in New Jersey.
Hearts Divided, 1h10
Directed by Frank Borzage
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Biography, Historical, Musical, Romance
Themes Films about music and musicians, Théâtre, Musical films, Films based on plays
Actors Marion Davies, Dick Powell, Charles Ruggles, Claude Rains, Edward Everett Horton, Arthur Treacher
Roles Betsy Patterson
Rating60% 3.000283.000283.000283.000283.00028
En 1803, Napoléon Bonaparte est en train de négocier avec les États-Unis la vente de la Louisiane. Il envoie son frère Jérôme en Amérique comme ambassadeur. Arrivant incognito aux courses de Baltimore, Jérôme rencontre Betsy Patterson, la fille de Charles Patterson, un des négociateurs. Toujours déguisé, il postule pour l'emploi de précepteur de français auprès d'elle, et ils tombent amoureux l'un de l'autre. Jérôme, toutefois, est limogé car il défend Napoléon trop vigoureusement.
Page Miss Glory, 1h33
Directed by Mervyn LeRoy
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Romantic comedy, Musical, Romance
Themes Films based on plays
Actors Pat O'Brien, Dick Powell, Marion Davies, Mary Astor, Frank McHugh, Lyle Talbot
Roles Loretta
Rating66% 3.3466653.3466653.3466653.3466653.346665
Country girl Loretta Dalrymple (Marion Davies) arrives in New York City and gets a job as a chambermaid in a luxurious hotel, the same hotel in which con man "Click" Wiley (Pat O'Brien) and his photographer partner Ed Olsen (Frank McHugh) are three weeks in arrears. Desperate to avoid being evicted by the assistant manager, Mr. Yates (Berton Churchill), Click has Ed make a composite photograph by combining the best features of several renowned Hollywood beauties and enters the resulting fake under the name "Dawn Glory" in a nationwide beauty contest for the $2500 prize. Dawn Glory wins.
Operator 13, 1h25
Directed by Richard Boleslawski
Origin USA
Genres Drama, War, Spy, Historical, Musical, Romance, Western
Themes Spy films, Political films
Actors Marion Davies, Gary Cooper, Jean Parker, Katharine Alexander, Marjorie Gateson, Ted Healy
Roles Gail Loveless
Rating59% 2.9505752.9505752.9505752.9505752.950575
In the American Civil War, Union forces are in retreat after their defeat in the Second Battle of Bull Run. The Pauline Cushman Players are performing for wounded soldiers at a US military hospital. Pauline, a spy who works for Allen Pinkerton, persuades Gail to become a spy for the Union cause as Operator 13.
Going Hollywood, 1h18
Directed by Raoul Walsh
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Musical theatre, Romantic comedy, Musical, Romance
Themes Films about music and musicians, Musical films
Actors Marion Davies, Bing Crosby, Fifi D'Orsay, Stuart Erwin, Ned Sparks, Patsy Kelly
Roles Sylvia Bruce
Rating60% 3.048893.048893.048893.048893.04889
A French teacher at an all-girl school longs to find love. When she hears a young singer on the radio, she visits him and thanks him, which causes problems with another woman.
Polly of the Circus, 1h9
Directed by Jack Conway, Alfred Santell
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy, Romance
Themes Circus films
Actors Marion Davies, Clark Gable, C. Aubrey Smith, Raymond Hatton, David Landau, Edward LeSaint
Roles Polly Fisher
Rating60% 3.0484553.0484553.0484553.0484553.048455
When a traveling circus arrives in a small town, trapeze artist Polly Fisher (Marion Davies) is outraged to find that clothing has been added to posters of her to hide her moderately skimpy costume. She goes to see the man she mistakenly holds responsible, Reverend John Hartley (Clark Gable). He denies being the censor, but their relationship gets off to a rocky start.
Polly of the Circus, 1h9
Directed by Alfred Santell
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy, Adventure
Actors Clark Gable, Marion Davies, C. Aubrey Smith, Raymond Hatton, David Landau, Maude Eburne
Roles Polly Fisher
Rating60% 3.0484553.0484553.0484553.0484553.048455
Lorsqu’un cirque itinérant arrive dans une petite ville, la trapéziste Polly Fisher (Marion Davies) est outrée de voir que des vêtements ont été ajoutés sur les affiches la représentant. Elle part à la recherche de l’homme qu’elle prend pour le responsable, le révérend John Hartley (Clark Gable). Il nie être à l’origine de la censure mais leur relation commence sur un mauvais pied.
The Bachelor Father, 1h30
Directed by Robert Z. Leonard
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy, Romance
Actors Marion Davies, Ralph Forbes, C. Aubrey Smith, Ray Milland, Guinn "Big Boy" Williams, David Torrence
Roles Antoinette "Tony" Flagg
Rating63% 3.197973.197973.197973.197973.19797
Ageing English bachelor Sir Basil Winterton (C. Aubrey Smith) suddenly has his hands full when his three grown (illegitimate) children return. Tony (Marion Davies) is a sharp tongued New Yorker, Maria is an aspiring opera singer and Ray Milland is the son.