Claudette Colbert is an American dramatic actress, popular from the 1920s to the 1950s. Over the years, she was awarded the Academy Award, Tony, and Golden Globe. The actress was nominated for an Emmy Award.
Childhood and youth
Claudette Lily Shoshuan is the real name of Claudette Colbert. The biography of the actress is rich in events, her life has never been dull and boring. She was born on September 13, 1903 in France, in the town of Saint-Mandet in the le-de-France region. Her father is a banker Georges Claude, her mother is a pastry chef Jeanne Low Shoshuan. Colbert also had an older brother, Charles.
Claudette's parents immigrated to New York in 1906, when the girl was three years old. The girl graduated from high school in the city of Washington. Her speech teacher Alice Rossetter helped her get rid of the accent, and then invited her to take part in an audition for a theatrical production. So at the age of only 14, Claudette performed her first role in the play “The Widow Weil” on the stage of the theater.
After school
After graduating from school, Colbert goes to study in the League of Art Students and at the same time goes to work in a clothing store, so that there is something to pay for tuition. At first, the girl dreams of a career as a fashion designer, but, having attended a lecture by playwright Enne Morrison, she seriously thinks about the career of an actress. Morrison invites her to play one of the roles in his play Wild Wescottes. The performance is shown on the Broadway stage in 1923. The girl will start performing under the stage name Claudette Colbert only in 1925. The surname Colbert was not chosen by chance, this is the real name of her maternal grandmother.
Actor career
They began to perceive the girl as a real actress in the 1920s, when she began working on Broadway. During the Great Depression in America, many theaters on Broadway closed, and then Claudette decides to act in films. Her first roles were in silent cinema, then the era of sound films began. Brother Claudette, Charles Wendling, worked for many years as an agent and manager of the actress.
The girl worked at Paramount Pictures studio and after a while became one of the most popular actresses in America. In 1935, Colbert received an Academy Award for her role in the comedy film "It Happened One Night." In other years, Claudette was twice nominated for this award for her other works - roles in the dramatic films "Private Worlds" in 1936 and "Since You Left" in 1945.
In the late 1950s, the actress starred less and less and in 1961 the last time she played a role in the movie. When the fame of the actress began to fade in the late fifties, she again went to work in the theater. The roles that the actress played in the movie are distinguished by professional calm performance, aristocracy, elegance and a certain touch of the French style.
Claudette Colbert, films in her filmography prove it, worked as an actress for 60 years. She played roles in 64 films, among which were both dramatic and comedic. Colbert has always been more fond of acting in comedy films; her talent has been revealed more and more precisely in this genre.
Personal life
Claudette was married twice. For the first time in 1928, the actress married Norman Foster, an actor and director who participated with her in the Broadway production of Barker. This marriage was unusual at the time. They lived separately, justifying this by the fact that the mother of the actress did not like her son-in-law. Claudette lived with her mother, and her mother forbade Foster to appear in their house.
In 1935, unable to withstand such a relationship, the actors divorced. In the same year, Colbert marries again. This time for Los Angeles surgeon Joel Pressman.
With Joel Claudette, married for 33 years. In 1968, Pressman suddenly died of liver cancer. In 1971, the brother of the actress died.
After the death of her husband, ceasing to act in films and perform on stage, the actress lived in Barbados in the city of Speystown. Claudette Colbert died on July 30, 1996 at the age of 92. The actress was buried in Barbados in the cemetery of the church of St. Peter. Claudette had no children. The actress bequeathed her property to her friend Helen O'Hagen, who took care of her for the last three years of her life.
Interesting Facts
- In 1999, Claudette Colbert was included in the list of the greatest movie stars and was in this list in 12th place.
- On the Hollywood Walk of Fame there is a star Claudette Colbert. It is installed at Hollywood Boulevard, 6812.
- In the movie, the actress always tried to shoot on the left side. This was due to the fact that the right side of Claudette’s face was slightly damaged by a shot as a result of an accident on the set.
- In 1935, the actress did not think she would receive an Oscar, so she did not go to the award ceremony. As a result, she was called from the train at the station to urgently arrive for the award.
- During the filming of her first color film, The Drums of the Mahonke Valley, the actress was very worried that she would look bad in color. After this film, Claudette Colbert, photos confirm this, she was more likely to shoot in black and white tapes than in color.
- The Emmy and Golden Globe Award actress was awarded only in 1987-1988. Claudette received them for their supporting role in the miniseries Two Mrs. Grenville.