Linda Christian
| Linda Christian | |
|---|---|
| Born | Blanca Rosa Welter November 13, 1923 Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico |
| Died | July 22, 2011 (aged 87) Palm Desert, California, U.S. |
| Nationality | Mexican |
| Other names | Linda Christian Power, Linda Welter |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1943–1988 |
| Spouse | Tyrone Power (m. 1949–1956, divorced) 2 children Edmund Purdom (m. 1962–1963, divorced) |
| Children | Romina Power, Taryn Power |
| Parents | Gerardus Jacob Welter (father) Blanca Rosa Vorhauer (mother) |
| Relatives | Ariadne Welter (sister) |
Linda Christian (November 13, 1923[1][2][3] – July 22, 2011[4]) was a Mexican-born, United States-based film actress, who appeared in Mexican and Hollywood films. Her career reached its peak in the 1940s and 1950s. She played Mara in the last Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan film, Tarzan and The Mermaids (1948).[5] She is also noted for being the first Bond girl, appearing in a 1954 TV adaptation of the James Bond novel Casino Royale.[6] In 1963 she starred in an episode of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, "An Out for Oscar".
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[edit] Early life
Christian was born as Blanca Rosa Welter in Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico, a daughter of Dutch engineer and Royal Dutch Shell executive, Gerardus Jacob Welter (1904–1981),[7][8] and his Mexican-born wife, the former Blanca Rosa Vorhauer (born 1901), who was of Spanish, German and French descent.[9][10] The Welter family moved a great deal during Christian's youth, living everywhere from South America and Europe, to the Middle East and Africa.[5] As a result of this nomadic lifestyle, Christian became an accomplished polyglot with the ability to speak fluent French, German, Dutch, Spanish, English, Italian, and even a bit of haphazard Arabic and Russian.[5]
Christian had three younger siblings, a sister, actress Ariadna Gloria Welter (1930–1998), and two brothers, Gerardus Jacob Welter (b. 1924) and Edward Albert Welter (b. 1932).[11][12]
[edit] Career
In her youth Christian's only aspiration was to become a physician.[13] After she graduated from secondary school she had a fortuitous meeting with her screen idol Errol Flynn, who became her lover, and she was persuaded by him to give up her hopes of joining the medical profession, move to Hollywood, and pursue an acting career.[13] Not long after arriving in Hollywood she was spotted by Louis B. Mayer's secretary at a fashion show in Beverly Hills. He offered, and she accepted, a seven year contract with MGM.[14]
Her stage name was invented by Flynn, who gave her the surname of his character in Mutiny on the Bounty.[15]
She made her film debut in the 1944 musical comedy Up In Arms, co-starring Danny Kaye and Dinah Shore. This movie also happened to be Danny Kaye's own first film.[14] This film was followed by Holiday In Mexico (1946), Green Dolphin Street (1947), and what was perhaps her best-known film, Tarzan and the Mermaids[14] (1948). She was the subject of a well-known photograph published in the January 1, 1949, issue of Vogue.
[edit] Marriages and relationships
Christian's fame, however, was largely derived from having married (and divorced) the popular movie actor Tyrone Power[5] from 1949 to 1956. The couple married in Rome, Italy, at Santa Francesca Romana church; Christian wore a formfitting gold-damask gown, and the church was decorated with two thousand 'Esther' carnations. [1] She and Power were the parents of singer Romina Power and actress Taryn Power.[16] Romina was one half of the Italian singing duo Al Bano and Romina Power.
A month after she divorced Tyrone Power, Christian was seen with Spanish athlete Alfonso de Portago, who was married to American Carroll de Portago (later Carroll Petrie). Carroll had recently given birth to "Fon's" second child Anthony. De Portago was also dating model Dorian Leigh, mother of his recently born illegitimate son Kim. Linda was photographed with de Portago at the 1957 Mille Miglia car race. The photo shows Christian leaning in to kiss Fon before he drove off and crashed his Ferrari, killing himself, his navigator Ed Nelson and at least ten spectators in the process. The press labeled the photo, "The Kiss of Death". De Portago was 28 years old. Her ex-husband, Tyrone Power, died the following year of a heart attack at the age of 44. Christian was later married to the Rome-based British actor Edmund Purdom.[4]
On several occasions Christian and Power were offered the opportunity to work together, but for various reasons each offer was refused or rescinded.[16] The most notable opportunity to co-star together came in 1953, when they were offered leading roles in From Here to Eternity. Power didn't want to do the film[16] and rejected the offer. The roles went to Donna Reed and Montgomery Clift.[citation needed]
[edit] Bibliography
- Christian, Linda. Linda, My Own Story. New York: Crown Publishers (1962).
[edit] References
- ^ Ancestry.com. New Orleans Passenger Lists, 1820–1945 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, US: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006. Micropublication T905. RG085. Rolls #104. Entry for Blanca Rosa Welter Age 1yr 4 months. Gender Female. Nationality: Dutch. Port of Departure: Tampico, Mexico. Ship Name: Maasdam Port of Arrival: New Orleans, Louisiana. Date of Arrival: Mar 23, 1925.
- ^ Ancestry.com. New York Passenger Lists, 1820–1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, US: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006. Year: 1947; Microfilm serial: T715; Microfilm roll: T715_7515; Line: 6;. Entry for: Blanca Welter. Gender Female. Age: 24 years. Port of Departure: Southampton, England. Nationality: Mexican. Place of Birth: Tampico, Mexico. Occupation: Actress. Ship Name: Queen Mary. Port of Arrival: New York, NY. Date of Arrival: Dec 10, 1947.
- ^ Ancestry.com. New York Passenger Lists, 1820–1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, US: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006. Year: 1941; Microfilm serial: T715; Microfilm roll: T715_6565; Line: 9; .Entry for: Blanca Rosa Welter. Gender: Female. Age: 17. Nationality: Dutch. Occupation: Student. Place of Birth: Tampico, Mexico. Port of Departure: Cape Town, South Africa. Ship Name: President Monroe. Port of Arrival: New York, NY. Date of Arrival: July 31, 1941. Editor's note: if she was 17 in July 1941, that would mean she was going to turn 18 that November; another confirmation of 1923 as her year of birth.
- ^ a b Associated Press (July 25, 2011). "Linda Christian, Actress and Tyrone Power's Wife, Dies at 87". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/26/movies/linda-christian-actress-and-tyrone-powers-wife-dies-at-87.html?_r=1&ref=deathsobituaries.
- ^ a b c d Paul Parla & Charles P. Mitchell Screen sirens scream!, McFarland, 2000, p. 35.
- ^ Rubin, Steven Jay. The complete James Bond movie encyclopedia, pp. 70, 76–77. Contemporary Books, 2003.
- ^ Birth and death dates given in Il coraggio di scrivere, Volume 1, by Gianni Ippoliti (Baldini Castoldi Dalai, 1992), p. 14.
- ^ Ancestry.com. New Orleans Passenger Lists, 1820–1945 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, US: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006. Port of Departure: Tampico, Mexico. Ship Name: Maasdam Port of Arrival: New Orleans, Louisiana. Date of Arrival: Mar 23, 1925.
- ^ Birth date given in Il coraggio di scrivere, Volume 1, by Gianni Ippoliti (Baldini Castoldi Dalai, 1992), p. 14.
- ^ Paul Parla & Charles P. Mitchell Screen sirens scream!, McFarland, 2000, pp. 35–36.
- ^ Ancestry.com. New Orleans Passenger Lists, 1820–1945 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, US: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006. Micropublication T905. RG085. Rolls #104. Port of Departure: Tampico, Mexico. Ship Name: Maasdam Port of Arrival: New Orleans, Louisiana. Date of Arrival: Mar 23, 1925.
- ^ Ancestry.com. New York Passenger Lists, 1820–1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, US: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006. Year: 1941; Microfilm serial: T715; Microfilm roll: T715_6565; Line: 9;. Port of Departure: Cape Town, South Africa. Ship Name: President Monroe. Port of Arrival: New York, NY.
- ^ a b Paul Parla & Charles P. Mitchell Screen sirens scream!, McFarland, 2000, p. 36.
- ^ a b c Paul Parla & Charles P. Mitchell Screen sirens scream!, McFarland, 2000, p. 37.
- ^ Thomas McNulty, Errol Flynn: The Life and Career (McFarland, 2004), pp. 165, 166.
- ^ a b c Paul Parla & Charles P. Mitchell Screen sirens scream!, McFarland, 2000, p. 39.
| New title | Bond girl 1954 |
Succeeded by Ursula Andress |
