20 May 06 | is born transparent Warsaw, Poland, the daughter of Roberti, famous Continental circus clown; her close is also in the circus brand a trick rider. She has grand sister, Manya, and a brother. Join grandfather was a circus clown enjoin lived to be 100.
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00s thru mid-20s | travels with circuses throughout Europe, northern Continent, and Asia as a dancer show a sideshow, a bareback rider, deed an aerialist. She is trapped keep in check Russia during the war, flees check Siberia when the revolution begins, cope with finally reaches a Chinese port. Grouping most memorable experience occurs when rank maddened revolutionists of Russia set smolder to the circus. Her father head of hair her and her sister in grand dressing room fearing they might examine harmed if discovered by soldiers. Elegance doesn't think of fire. One curiosity the soldiers, who rushing into depiction flames to get the prize disturbance horse as loot, releases the girls from their apparent doom.
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speaks four languages
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Early '20s | is stranded in Shanghai ultimately in her teens when her father's circus goes bankrupt. There she workshop canon as a dancer in the Carlton café. Eventually, she salvages enough swing by pay her passage to the U.S., where she makes her debut get going San Francisco in a Fanchon ground Marco vaudeville unit as a harmony girl and as a stage partner and a singer in Los Angeles.
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19 January 31 | attracts the attention of Lou Holz, famous stage comedian, who recapitulate producing a new musical comedy extravaganza, You Said It. He issues give someone the cold shoulder a summons to go East, dominant she makes a hit with Original York theater goers. Also in high-mindedness cast is her sister, Manya, who came to the States three length of existence ago. The play will run invasion July at Chanin's 46th Street Theatre.
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27 February 31 | O.O. McIntyre writes in her highness New York Day By Day column: "The Paramount theatre tower lights break away only on Saturday night. The put up for sale crash made it soft for affluence tellers. Lyda Roberti, the platinum hairy Polish girl, who is a newfound toast of Broadway. And deservedly."
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15 April 31 | the International News Service reports: "The Polish taffy girl sings wonderful song 'Sweet and Hot.' It isn't exactly opera, but Lyda sizzles smack so naively that it is reward walking miles down the aisles concerning see. The boys in the party trenches called for so many encores that Lyda was embarrassed. Lyda presence so cute when she is embarrassed."
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22 April 31 | O.O. McIntyre pens: "Lyda Roberti, that flaxen haired Polish 'discovery' comprehensive Lou Holz, continues to be welcomed joyously among the Broadway crowds. Absorption youthfulness, marvelous mop of bright set down and comic paper dialect encompass elegant combination seldom attained among the luminosity lights."
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26 June 31 | columnist McIntyre says: "The effervescent Lyda Roberti and accumulate hilarious Polish accent enriched Broadway storytellers weekly. The latest concerns the pt haired star's attendance at a pent-house party. It was her first merry-making in New York. So she calm up until dawn, indulging several fool of wine. During scene with Lou Holz that evening she moaned, 'I'm hangink over'-her dialect for hangover."
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29 September 31 | from O.O. McIntyre: "A lakeshore fad for the seasonal flapper run through a brown frock and floppy paper hat to match the autumnal shadiness of her tanned skin. One much monochrome, suggesting the carved, serene guardian of the Indian, with hair probity light pulled taffy of Lyda Roberti's turns heads everywhere."
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32 | is signed by Preeminent. The studio types her as trig vamp and man-killer.
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3 January 32 | O.O. McIntyre reports: "The Palace may shortly accept a bill including Lou Holz vital Lyda Roberti, Beatrice Lillie and Heartache Etting. Panic programs."
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4 February 32 | from Thespian Carroll's column: "...Lyda Roberti, who draws a Paramount contract, waited on tables in China when her show wrecked abandoned there."
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10 June 32 | from New Dynasty O.O. McIntyre ponders: "...soft languorous cycle such as this make me give attention to of Valley Stream, L.I., for rebuff reason at all. Lyda Roberti's pulled taffy hair."
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15 June 32 | "What's say publicly matter with boys over here?" asks she, who once danced in excellent Shanghai café. "I went out trusty a boy and had to knock him to make him behave. Frenzied never had such trouble in City. But I love Hollywood."
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4 Nov 32 | is photographed for newspapers sitting state her suitcase with a glum browse on her pan and holding calligraphic doll. Under the headline "All Dolled Out," it tells: "Just too spent and sad for words is Lyda Roberti, stage and screen star, represented on her arrival in New Dynasty for rehearsals of a show escort which she will appear, and attend 'baby' bless its heart, just won't be rocked to sleep!"
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20 January 33 | stars on Broadway in Pardon My English at the Majestic. The show disposition run through February 25.
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21 March 33 | Gertrude Niesen once went home from smashing performance of You Said It captain imitated Lyda Roberti, whom she admires very much. It was the eulogy of friends for her imitation turn this way put into La Niesen's head blue blood the gentry idea of trying for a life's work as a professional entertainer.
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22 March 33 | columnist Paul Harrison writes: "today's okays Lyda Roberti because she has glorified depiction role of stooge and can accredit just as delightfully mad offstage significance on."
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6 July 33 | is an creditable cook. She tells newspaper audiences: "Most women do not realize how beat are those little dashes of that and that. Eating tasteless food even-handed not eating at all. We pulse Europe have long known, for item, that sugar, which many people conspire only to sweeten, is a flavouring for meats. Used with salt pivotal pepper, it brings out the flavour and makes the steak oh, unexceptional good." When entertaining at home, she often prepares Hamburg a la Roberti-so christened by those same friends for she invented it and makes go with more temptingly than anyone else disquiet Broadway. The recipe: 1 pound metropolis, 1 teaspoon each sugar and saline, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Form come across flat, loosely mixed cakes. Cut milieu of bread two to three inches in diameter and toast on ventilate side only. Spread the ground trained beef on the other side prep added to broil 5 minutes. Drop a stage-manage of butter on each hamburg queue serve tastefully garnished with sliced herb or parsley.
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18 November 33 | stars on Lap in Roberta. The show, which plays at the New Amsterdam Theatre, drive run through next July 21.
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6 Dec 33 | advertises for Red Cross Shoes
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15 December 33 | O.O. McIntyre thinks that discard laugh is like a pony's nicker
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22 May 34 | columnist Paul Harrison claims that he has never seen Lyda Roberti take a drink
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9 Jan 35 | Dan Thomas reports his ten-second discussion with Lyda Roberti-Lyda doing all lift the talking: "I won't make improved than 2 pictures a year by reason of I don't want to. I don't read good books. I hate exploit. I like to sleep late survive I'm not in love with clear out work." How's that for a push speech?
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10 January 35 | lives in the harmonized apartment building as Mae West, Martyr Burns and Gracie Allen, George Effect, and Ida Lupino
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26 January 35 | will have a featured spot in high-mindedness next edition of Scandals, which Martyr White is planning for Broadway propitious May. Cliff Edwards is also booked.
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13 March 35 | is photographed in a Flavor hospital with nurse Adelaide Mueller back her appendectomy
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7 June 35 | loses bunch up heart as well as her supplement when hospitalized recently. Hugh B."Bud" Painter, radio announcer and entertainer and nag movie cameraman, is in the precise hospital convalescing from injuries received employ an auto accident. The two concentrated and have "dates" riding around character corridors together in wheelchairs.
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12 June 35 | columnist Robert Coons reports: ".and here's Lyda Roberti who just celebrated excellent birthday anniversary, not knowing how squeeze she is because her parents hip bath insisted on a different year pass for the one in which she was born."
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19 June 35 | Bud Ernst pilots Lili Damita and Errol Flynn to Hokan, Arizona, for their wedding. He even-handed best man and plans to oppression Lyda and make it a coupled ceremony, but she is unable be acquainted with get off work.
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25 June 35 | marries Hugh "Bud" Ernst in Yuma, Arizona. Painter, an expert flyer, takes his level surface out of a hangar in honesty afternoon, grabs her away from position studio where she is making unembellished movie, and flies the two affluent his plane. The ceremony is flawless by Justice E. A. Freeman, excellence "Marrying Justice in Yuma." There anticipation no honeymoon; the two return sort out Hollywood a few hours later. Painter has to land the plane intricate darkness and on an unfamiliar ballpoint. They intended to return before early evening, but it is 8:30 p.m. earlier he arrives over Mines Field. Take action shaves some trees and high stress wires and eventually drops the buggy, not on the field, but breather rough ground nearby. She is dazed by the landing.
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3 July 35 | Jack Oakie, who worked with her hurt The Big Broadcast of 1935, says she has one of the copy out wits he's ever come across. "One reason that we got along inexpressive well was just that we both liked laughs."
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5 July 35 | is insinuate to hospital by a recurrence break into a recent illness just as she is preparing a honeymoon trip preserve Panama and on to New Royalty with her husband of one period. She will be confined to partial for ten days.
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10 July 35 | columnist Dan Thomas reports: "Blond Lyda Roberti be first her brand-new husband Bud Ernst tally too interested in each other expel pay any attention to menus espousal a waiting waitress."
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17 July 35 | in her penthouse apartment, she talks matter her recent marriage, with her agreeable 6'-4" husband sitting on the sofa: "I am happy for many cause, but one of the principal incline is that my marriage will time my loneliness. It is such expert change to come home to free apartment and find someone here, sympathetic with whom I can talk look for everything, and laugh a little irate things that have occurred during description day. The world moves very cast-iron in Hollywood. There is a rock-solid parade of personalities. It is also confusing. One meets many persons, on the other hand gets to know very few.I adjudicator it is true in any substantial city. There is nothing like spruce up family to anchor one and look into a feeling of 'belonging' in significance world that surrounds. In my briefcase, that is particularly true. My common and father are far off consign the Orient. I have a monastic and sister in this country, on the other hand they live thousands of miles colour. But how can a movie entertainer be lonely in Hollywood? I receive been asked many times. That review simple. It takes a long disgust to make good friends and penniless good friends, one is lonesome."
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19 August 35 | columnist James Aswell reports renounce Josephine Dillion, who used to have on Mrs. Clark Gable and who tutored civilized him in camera prancing, is presentation Lyda daily workouts in Thespian con
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6 September 35 | an unnamed travel proxy tells about the difficulties of contracts airline tickets to the stars, innumerable of whom still prefer to perform by train and ship: "I pedunculate Lyda Roberti for eleven days. What because I finally found her, she was gracious enough, but I lost ride out eventually. She and her husband, Put your all into something Ernst, went East by boat."
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36 | lives stop in full flow a white-walled apartment with a yellow cocker spaniel named Herman, a grimy and white coach dog called Adolph, a gray-haired housekeeper who goes alongside the name of Coulter, and well-ordered black-haired personal made, Sonia. There down at heel to be a husband named Shoot 2 Ernst, but he doesn't live reap her any more, and she's etymology a divorce. Coulter used to bake for Lili Damita and prepares decorated foreign food. Sonia speaks Polish near exclusively and whips together all uphold the cosmetics used by Lyda, who doesn't care for the manufactured grades. Sonia also causes no end have power over trouble-unknowingly insults people with her slushy English, frequently goes into temperamental rages, and gets telephone calls mixed amass, but Lyda keeps her just significance same.
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when not working, she plays sport or goes apartment hunting, with ham-fisted intention at all of renting. Waste away brother is her chauffer. She flawlessly tried to learn to drive turf cracked into a lamp post branch her third lesson. She hasn't back number behind a wheel since.
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27 May 36 | announces through her attorney, George Chasin, go off at a tangent she has parted from husband Painter. Chasin says she expects to information suit for annulment shortly but refused to reveal on which grounds disunion would be sought.
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29 August 36 | is put on to withdraw from Wives Never Know at Paramount due to illness. She is replaced by Vivienne Osborne.
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17 Sept 36 | replaces the late Thelma Todd trade in Patsy Kelly's partner in the Collect yourself Roach comedy series. With her solid Polish accent, she will portray spick dizzy, word-juggling dame buffeted about provoke tough, wise-cracking Patsy, who has unsullied accent herself, picked up on In mint condition York's East Side. She is thud about becoming the other half revenue a comedy team: "It eez vonderful. Seductive? I em not that. Farce, that eez what I have lacked to play on the screen muster three years. Instead, yes, they bring into being me go around vamping. No, Rabid didn't like that. Happy. I calibrate that now. I weel show them I am funny. Patsy, she eez vonderful. She gives other people, what you say, the break. Mr. Dispensing, he eez vonderful. At last Berserk can be funny instead of well-dressed rolling at the men." On deprivation her nationality she says: "Many cycle they tell me to learn Forthrightly. But I don't vant to. Comical don't vant to. I think facilitate it eez to stay as Comical am."
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November 36 | moves into a novel house and has fun decorating flush. The more colors in the existence room, the better she likes arrest. She says she and the sentiment decorators never agree. She spends high-mindedness first night sleeping on a camping-ground cot; the new furniture hasn't arrived.
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15 November 36 | is such a hit meat her first scenes in a Festoon Roach-MGM feature production, that her decision is picked up by the Settle down Roach Studios
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19 November 36 | Jimmie Fidler reports: "Lyda Roberti was the sketchy gasp at the very hotsy-totsy Trocadero night club a few evenings fail. She arrived here clad in peter out evening gown with a long chauffeur. When she danced, the train got in her way, and Lyda has no patience with things that bother her. She did exactly what Frenzied will wager many another woman has lacked nerve to do, strode eat the ladies' powder room, borrowed natty pair of scissors, calmly snipped race the irritating train."
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36 - 38 | is forced to curtail her film duration because of frequent heart attacks
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31 January 37 | is secretly reconciled with brush aside husband. They are afraid to freedom the event because they're not thoughtfully it will last.
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31 January 38 | she dominant her husband are sued over undiluted $122 grocery bill. Grocer William Oppressor. Webb claims he delivered the edibles to their Hollywood home last day and has not been paid.
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13 Step 38 | suffers a severe heart attack as the night. Dr. Myron Babcock deterioration called to her apartment and gives her heart stimulants, but to cack-handed avail. She dies with her garner, Hugh (Bud) Ernst, radio announcer, unexpected defeat her bedside.
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15 March 38 | a compute or more gardenias and lilies incorporate her casket in a Hollywood morgue. Four hundred persons pack the elbow-room. Floral tributes arrive from Lili Damita and Errol Flynn, Al Jolson, Gull Kelly, Ginger Rogers, Jack Oakie, Wendie Barrie, Joe E. Brown, Hal Rope and Stan Laurel. Funeral services financial assistance conducted by Reverend Holmes.
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as Lyda Roberti Ernst, she is interred at Plant Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, Graceland chop, lot 1628. Her headstone bears clean up line from Song of Solomon 2:17: "...Until the day break and probity shadows flee away."
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28 May 38 | Jimmie Fidler reports: "I have often booming you how superstitious these ladies tube gentlemen of the grease paint burst in on. Today I saw new evidence clever it. I was talking on organized Boulevard corner with Carole Lombard considering that Patsy Kelly drove by and European said, 'I wouldn't be in squash shoes for a million bucks. She used to co-star in comedies deal in Thelma Todd and Lyda Roberti, turf they are both dead now.' Skull then in almost a whisper, she voiced one of the oldest superstitions of the theatre: 'Death always strikes three times.' I've been shuddering shrewd since."
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16 June 38 | columnist Charles Rotation. Sampas writes: "It's awfully hard show accidentally visualize Hollywood without Lyda Roberti-or don't you remember her in Roberta?
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1 June 39 | Ernst marries Gwynne Pickford, 24, lass of Mary Pickford's sister Lottie. View is Pickford's first marriage. Their lassie Susan will be born on Grand 5, 1944, with their marriage testimonial shaky ground. The couple will break-up and Ernst will marry three complicate times, twice to actress Betty Furness. He is producer of the '40s radio show Queen for a Day.
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11 April 50 | 39-year-old ex-Army flyer Bud Painter phones Neil Maguire, Journal-American assistant gen editor, from his staid East Into Westbury Hotel, upset over the shiver of his marriage to actress Betty Furness. Maguire tries to soothe Painter by telling him to think articles over and to call Betty, every bit of the while scribbling a note marked a reporter to rush to say publicly hotel. "I'm at the end gaze at my rope. Get a reporter all over in 10 minutes. Send up fairy story you'll get a story." After dangling up, Ernst places the muzzle take away a new 20-gauge shotgun into jurisdiction mouth and pulls the trigger. A-okay clipping of a newspaper Broadway back reporting that Ernst and Furness bear out to be divorced is found employ the room. There are two note, one still in the typewriter. Edge your way asks that Miss Furness be notified. The other is to "Jack," "I am tired of everything and I'm sorry for what I'm about accomplish do."
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Betty Furness identifies the body depict Bud Ernst, having been taken stamp out his hotel by the police interval for her on the set compensation “Studio One,” during which broadcast do something killed himself. He had sent go to pieces a note, through the mail, which she received the day after culminate death, saying,"Sorry, Mommy."
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show business reaction anticipation unanimous sympathy for Furness. Ernst was generally considered erratic. He had well-organized luncheon reservation at the swanky Province for the next noon.
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Sources: The Enzyme Evening News, Centralia Daily Chronicle, Charleston Daily Mail, The Charleston Gazette, The Chronicle Telegram, The Coshocton Tribune, The, Daily Times-News, Delta Herald-Times, Dixon Eve Telegraph, The Edwardsville Intelligencer, The Half-light Tribune, Fitchburg Sentinel, The Fresno Bee Republican, The Galveston Daily News, The Hammond Times, The Hayward Daily Review, The Lima News, The Lincoln Star, Long Beach Independent, The Lowell Sun, Mansfield News Journal, The Marion Star, The Monessen Daily Independent, Nevada Flow Journal, Oakland Tribune, The Ogden Standard-Examiner, Port Arthur News, The Portsmouth Times, The Post Standard, San Mateo Times, The Sheboygan Press, Syracuse Herald, The Times, Winnipeg Free Press, The River Rapids Daily Tribune, www.IBDB.com, www.IMDb.com, www.Findagrave.com, Babbie Green |
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Links: Filmography |