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Theatre, Film, and Television Biographies
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Gabrielle Fitzpatrick to Christopher Fulford
Joan Fontaine Biography (1917-)
Real name, Joan de Beauvoir de Havilland; born October 22, 1917, in Tokyo, Japan; immigrated to the United States, c. 1919; naturalized citizen of the United States, 1943; daughter of Walter (an attorney) and Lillian (maiden name,Ruse; an actress) de Havilland; sister of Olivia de Havilland (an actress); married Brian Aherne (an actor), August 20, 1939 (divorced, June, 1944); married William Dozier, May 2, 1946 (divorced, 1951); married Collier Young, November, 1952 (divorced, 1961); married Alfred Wright, Jr., 1964 (divorced, 1969); children: (second marriage) Deborah Leslie. Avocational interests: Amateur piloting. Career: Actress. Appeared in the stage in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, and San Francisco, CA. Began her career in film using the names Joan Burfield and Joan St. John. Awards, Honors: Academy Award nomination, best actress, 1940, for Rebecca; Academy Award, best actress,1941, for Suspicion; Academy Award nomination, best actress, 1943, for The Constant Nymph; Golden Apple Award, Hollywood Women's Press Club, Star of the Year, 1947. Addresses: Agent: The Gage Group, 9255 Sunset Blvd., Suite 515, Los Angeles, CA 90069.
The surname "Fontaine" was taken from Jean's stepfather, George M. Fontaine,whom her mother married shortly after divorcing Walter de Havilland. Jean andsister Olivia, both fond of the department store owner, introduced the two.
- Nationality
- American
- Gender
- Female
- Occupation
- Actress
- Birth Details
- October 22, 1917
- Tokyo, Japan
Famous Works
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CREDITS
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Film Appearances
- (Film debut; as Joan Burfield) Caroline Rumsey, No More Ladies, Metro- Goldwyn-Mayer, 1935
- Trudy Olson, You Can't Beat Love, RKO Radio Pictures, 1937
- (Uncredited) Charlotte Parratt, Quality Street, RKO Radio Pictures, 1937
- Jean Clemens, Music for Madame, RKO Radio Pictures, 1937
- Joan Stevens, A Million to One, Puritan, 1937
- Lady Alyce Marshmorton, A Damsel in Distress, RKO Radio Pictures,1937
- Meg, Sky Giant, RKO Radio Pictures, 1938
- Doris King, The Man Who Found Himself, RKO Radio Pictures, 1938
- Sheila Harrison, Maid's Night Out, RKO Radio Pictures, 1938
- Ann Porter, The Duke of West Point, United Artists, 1938
- Ann, Blonde Cheat, RKO Radio Pictures, 1938
- Peggy Day, The Women, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1939
- Emmy Stebbins, Gunga Din, RKO Radio Pictures, 1939
- Eliza Allen, Man of Conquest, Republic Pictures, 1939
- Mrs. De Winter, Rebecca, United Artists, 1940
- Lina McLaidlaw Aysgarth, Suspicion, RKO Radio Pictures, 1941
- Prudence Cathaway, This Above All, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1942
- Tessa Sanger, The Constant Nymph, Warner Bros., 1943
- Title role, Jane Eyre, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1944
- Lady Dona St. Columb, Frenchman's Creek, Paramount, 1944
- Susan Darell, The Affairs of Susan, Paramount, 1945
- Susan, From This Day Forward, RKO Radio Pictures, 1946
- Ivy Lexton, Ivy, Universal, 1947
- Dee Dee Dillwood, You Gotta Stay Happy, Universal, 1948
- Jane Wharton, Kiss the Blood Off My Hands (also known as BloodOn My Hands), Universal, 1948
- Lisa Berndle, Letter from an Unknown Woman, Universal, 1948
- Johanna Franziska von Stultzenberg, The Emperor Waltz, Paramount,1948
- Monina Stuart, September Affair, Paramount, 1950
- Christabel Caine, Born to Be Bad, RKO Radio Pictures, 1950
- Mrs. Alice Grey, Darling, How Could You! (also known as Rendezvous), Paramount, 1951
- Page, Othello (also known as Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice), United Artists, 1952
- Jenny Carey, Something to Live For, Paramount, 1952
- Lady Rowena, Ivanhoe, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1952
- Susan, Flight to Tangier, Paramount, 1953
- Fiametta, Bartolomea, Ginevra, and Isabella, Decameron Nights (also known as Tres historias de amor), Film Locations, 1953
- Eve Graham, The Bigamist, Filmmakers, 1953
- Francesca Bruni, Casanova's Big Night, Paramount, 1954
- Kendell Hale, Serenade, Warner Bros., 1956
- Susan Spencer, Beyond a Reasonable Doubt, RKO Radio Pictures, 1956
- Anne Leslie, Until They Sail, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1957
- Mavis Norman, Island in the Sun, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1957
- Polynesian woman, South Pacific, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1958
- Francoise Ferrand, A Certain Smile, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1958
- Dr. Susan Hiller, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (also known as Journey to the Bottom of the Sea), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1961
- Baby Warren, Tender is the Night, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1962
- Gwen Mayfield, The Devil's Own (also known as The Witches),Twentieth Century-Fox, 1966
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Television Appearances
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Movies
- The faded film star, The Users, ABC, 1978
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Dark Mansions, ABC, 1986
- Queen Ludmilla, Good King Wenceslas, syndicated, 1994
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Miniseries
- Alexandra Markham, Crossings, ABC, 1986
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Episodic
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Four Star Playhouse, CBS, 1953
- Lynne Abbott, "Stranger in the Night," The 20th Century-Fox Hour,CBS, 1956
- Naomi Kaylor, "The Naomi Kaylor Story," Wagon Train, ABC, 1963
- Thelma Cain, "The Star," Cannon, CBS, 1975
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Stage Appearances
- (Stage debut) Call It A Day, Los Angeles, CA, 1935
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Tea and Sympathy, Broadway production, 1954
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The Lion in Winter, English Speaking Theatre, Vienna, Austria, 1979
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Major Tours
- Ann Stanley, Forty Carats, U.S. cities, 1974
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WRITINGS
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Autobiography
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No Bed of Roses, Morrow (New York City), 1978
Further Reference
OTHER SOURCES
Books:
- Beeman, Marsha Lynn, Joan Fontaine: A Bio-bibliography, GreenwoodPress (Westport, CT), 1994.
- Higham, Charles, Sisters: The Story of Olivia de Havilland and Joan Fontaine, Coward-McCann (New York City), 1984.*
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