Gene Eliza Tierney was born on 19 November 1920 in Brooklyn, New York City and raised in Westport, Connecticut. Her father, Howard Sherwood Tierney, was an insurance broker and her mother, Belle Lavinia, was a former teacher. During her childhood she often lived with her grandparents in Connecticut, attended some of the finest schools on the East Coast and spent time in Switzerland at finishing school. She returned to America a couple of years later to complete her education.
Her first acting role was in 1938 when she appeared in What A Life! on Broadway which saw her carrying a bucket of water across the stage. One critic, writing in the entertainment paper Variety, wrote, "Miss Tierney is, without a doubt, the most beautiful water carrier I have ever seen!" It was hard to disagree with his comments as she was admired for her beautiful green eyes, luminous skin and high cheekbones... every inch a Hollywood Starlet.
Further roles on Broadway during the final years of the 1930s included Primrose Path, Mrs O'Brian Entertains and Ring Two which found her tackling meatier roles and receiving critical acclaim from the New York critics. Richard Watts, one such critic, said, "I see no reason why Miss Tierney should not have a long and interesting theatrical career, that is if the cinema does not kidnap her away." Fortunately for the cinema-going public it was exactly what happened.
In 1940 Tierney was appearing on stage as Patricia Stanley in the hit show The Male Animal and came to the attention of legendary producer and studio boss Darryl F. Zanuck. Impressed with this stunning young actress he signed her to a contract with 20th Century Fox. Her movie career began in 1940 with her role as Barbara Hall in Hudson's Bay and the same year she would also appear in The Return Of Frank James.
The next few years were very busy for Tierney with films including The Shangai Gesture, Sundown, John Ford's comedy Tobacco Road, Belle Star all released in 1941 and the following year she turned to comedy again in Rings On Her Fingers.
Around this time she was approached to recreate her role as Patricia Stanley in the film version of The Male Animal. Unfortunately she was under contract to make Tobacco Road and the part went to Joan Leslie.
Demand for her acting talents, and no doubt stunning looks, meant she was offered more roles and 1942 saw her in China Girl, Thunder Birds and, the next year, top billing in the Ernst Lubitsch comedy Heaven Can Wait alongside Don Ameche and Charles Coburn. She received her first award for the film, The Photoplay Award for 'Best Performances of the Month'. However, the following year would see her playing her most famous role.
Critics agree that her portrayal of murder victim Laura Hunt in Otto Preminger's film noir Laura was an outstanding performance. Starring alongside Dana Andrews, Clifton Webb, Vincent Price and Judith Anderson it told the story of police detective Mark McPherson (Dana Andrews) who falls in love with the woman whose murder he is investigating.
The film received five Academy Award nominations, winning the 'Best Black & White Cinematography' category, was selected in 1999 for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being 'culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant and named one of the best ten mystery films of all time by the American Film Institute. A second Photoplay Award came her way for 'Best Performances of the Month (January)'.
Laura wasn't the only film in which she starred with Dana Andrews. They also worked together on Tobacco Road, Belle Star, The Iron Curtain and Where The Sidewalk Ends.
The mystery/romance Dragonwyck, released in 1946, saw her appearing alongside Vincent Price again having already worked together on Laura, Hudson's Bay and Leave Her To Heaven.
Her portrayal of Ellen Brent in Leave Her To Heaven (1945) earned her an Oscar nomination in the 'Best Actress' category which, despite not winning, just confirmed, if any confirmation was necessary, her position in Hollywood society.
More praise came her way in 1946 with her role as Isabel Bradley in the wartime romance film The Razor's Edge, based on a book by W. Somerset Maughaw and the next year as Lucy Muir in the acclaimed romance The Ghost And Mrs Muir.
The 1940s had been good years for Tierney and the 1950s would find her just as busy. Among her film credits during the decade were Night And The City (1950), The Mating Season (1951), Close To My Heart (1951), Plymouth Adventure (1952), Personal Affair (1953) and The Left Hand Of God (1955), which would be her last role for seven years.
She returned to the silver screen in 1962 in Advise & Consent but demand for her waned and The Pleasure Seekers (1964) was her last feature film although she did make a TV appearance in 1980 in the mini-series Scruples.
While Gene Tierney was a successful actress, loved on the silver screen and across the world her personal life was not such a happy story.
She struggled for years with depression and, following consultations with psychiatrists, was admitted to a number of facilities. Following shock treatment, meant to alleviate depression, she fled one facility and became very outspoken about the therapy which, she claimed, had severely damaged parts of her memory. Talking about her depression she said, "No one suggested psychiatric help. No one saw it then as a clue to the mental breakdown still ahead of me, or the kind of trick the mind plays on the body."
She worked as a salesgirl in a dress shop before being recognised by a customer and this resulted in newspaper headlines. In 1959 she was offered a role in Holiday For Lovers but the stress was too much and after a few days of production she dropped out of the film. As we have already seen she did make a comeback in 1962 in Advise & Consent. Explaining why she hadn't been working she commented, "My departure from Hollywood was described as a walk-out. No one understood I was cracking up."
Tierney was married twice. Her first husband, Oleg Cassini, was a fashion designer and they had two children, Antionette Daria and Christina. They married in 1941 and separated in 1946 during which time she was linked romantically with John F. Kennedy and Kirk Douglas. A reconciliation with Cassini only lasted a few years and they were divorced in 1952. She met oil baron William Howard Lee in 1958 and they married in 1960 and lived a fairly quiet life in Texas and Miami until his death in 1981.
While pregnant with Daria, in June 1943, Tierney contracted Rubella, possibly from a fan who had the illness. She was born prematurely, weighing just over three pounds, and the illness caused congenital damage. Daria was deaf, partially blind and mentally disabled. She spent a lot of her life in institutions and passed away in 2010 aged 66. Howard Hughes apparently paid all the medical expenses ensuring she had the best care possible, something Tierney never forgot.
Gene Tierney had started smoking the first time she saw herself on-screen commenting that, "I sounded like an angry Minnie Mouse." She thought smoking would help lower her voice but it came at a great cost. She passed away on 6 November 1991 of emphysema and was buried at the Glenwood cemetery in Houston. She was two days away from her 71st birthday.
The last words should be from Darryl F. Zanuck who said, "She was unquestionably the most beautiful woman in movie history."
I have to agree.
I have never really known much about her Tbh, so thank you for the interesting information! She was very beautiful I agree.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite movie star!
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