Annabella
Encyclopedia
Annabella was a French cinema actress who appeared in 46 films between 1927 and 1952, including some Hollywood films during the late 1930s and 1940s.
Born Suzanne Georgette Charpentier in La Varenne Saint Hilaire
, Val-de-Marne
, France. Annabella's chance to enter films came when her father entertained a film producer who gave her a small part in Napoléon in 1927. It was not until she starred in Le Million
that she was acclaimed and over the following decade established herself as one of France's most popular cinema actresses. In 1936 she won the Volpi Cup
for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival
for Veille d'armes (1935).
She was cast as the female lead in the British
-made film Wings of the Morning
(1937) opposite Henry Fonda
. Under contract to 20th Century Fox, she came to America and appeared in Suez
(1938) with Loretta Young
and Tyrone Power
. Her romance with Power was widely reported by movie magazines of the day. Darryl Zanuck, movie mogul at 20th Century-Fox, did not want his matinee idol married. He offered Annabella a multi-movie deal that would take her overseas. She refused to leave Power, and on completion of Suez
, she returned to France to obtain a divorce from her then-husband, Jean Murat
. She and Power married on April 23, 1939. The two honeymooned in Rome. Within a few months, Annabella and Power had again flown to Europe to bring Annabella's mother back to live in their home, while her father and brother remained behind. Her brother was ultimately shot and killed by the Nazis. Annabella made a return trip to bring her daughter, Anne, back from France to live with them. Power adopted Anne before leaving for the service. Anne Power later married actor Oskar Werner
.
Darryl F. Zanuck, angry with her for marrying his top box office star did not cast her in movies despite Annabella’s contract with 20th Century-Fox. Neither was she loaned out to other studios. She and Power appeared together in the play Liliom
in New Haven, Connecticut
. While Power was away at war, Annabella appeared in Blithe Spirit
in Chicago. On Broadway, she received excellent notices for her work in Jacobowsky and the Colonel, directed by Elia Kazan
, in 1944. Annabella also embarked on an affair with author Roald Dahl
; she had refused to give Power a divorce to marry Judy Garland
, and her marriage was strained. Dahl told his wife, Liccy, that it was an intense and passionate relationship, during which Dahl learned a lot about sex from the actress.
When Power returned from the war, the couple decided to try to make their marriage work once again. Annabella again worked in films, playing the female lead in 13 Rue Madeleine
(1947) opposite James Cagney
. She and Power divorced in 1948, and Annabella returned to France. In 1952 she made her final film, and retired after a 1954 TV appearance.
Annabella and Tyrone Power remained very close, and after his divorce from Linda Christian
, he attempted to reconcile with her, confessing that in giving her up, he had made a terrible mistake. However, Annabella refused. Power informed her that he would not take the elevator to leave her apartment, but the stairs, in case she changed her mind and called him back. She did not.
Annabella died from a heart attack
at Neuilly-sur-Seine
, France, aged 89, and was interred in Passy Cemetery
.
Born Suzanne Georgette Charpentier in La Varenne Saint Hilaire
Saint-Maur-des-Fossés
Saint-Maur-des-Fossés is a commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 11.7 km. from the center of Paris.-The abbey:...
, Val-de-Marne
Val-de-Marne
Val-de-Marne is a French department, named after the Marne River, located in the Île-de-France region. The department is situated to the southeast of the city of Paris.- Geography :...
, France. Annabella's chance to enter films came when her father entertained a film producer who gave her a small part in Napoléon in 1927. It was not until she starred in Le Million
Le Million
Le Million is a 1931 French musical comedy film directed by René Clair. The story was adapted by Clair from a play by Georges Berr and Marcel Guillemand.-Plot:...
that she was acclaimed and over the following decade established herself as one of France's most popular cinema actresses. In 1936 she won the Volpi Cup
Volpi Cup
The Volpi Cups are the principal awards given to actors at the Venice Film Festival. Formal acting awards were introduced in the second festival . Initially they were called Great Gold Medals of the National Fascist Association for Entertainment. The name Volpi Cup was introduced the following year...
for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival
Venice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
for Veille d'armes (1935).
She was cast as the female lead in the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
-made film Wings of the Morning
Wings of the Morning (film)
Wings of the Morning is a 1937 British drama film directed by Harold D. Schuster and starring Annabella, Henry Fonda and Leslie Banks. Glenn Tryon was the originally director but he was fired and replaced by Schuster...
(1937) opposite Henry Fonda
Henry Fonda
Henry Jaynes Fonda was an American film and stage actor.Fonda made his mark early as a Broadway actor. He also appeared in 1938 in plays performed in White Plains, New York, with Joan Tompkins...
. Under contract to 20th Century Fox, she came to America and appeared in Suez
Suez (film)
Suez is a 1938 film account of the building of the Suez Canal by Ferdinand de Lesseps, played by Tyrone Power. It was so highly fictionalized that de Lesseps' descendants sued for libel....
(1938) with Loretta Young
Loretta Young
Loretta Young was an American actress. Starting as a child actress, she had a long and varied career in film from 1917 to 1953...
and Tyrone Power
Tyrone Power
Tyrone Edmund Power, Jr. , usually credited as Tyrone Power and known sometimes as Ty Power, was an American film and stage actor who appeared in dozens of films from the 1930s to the 1950s, often in swashbuckler roles or romantic leads such as in The Mark of Zorro, Blood and Sand, The Black Swan,...
. Her romance with Power was widely reported by movie magazines of the day. Darryl Zanuck, movie mogul at 20th Century-Fox, did not want his matinee idol married. He offered Annabella a multi-movie deal that would take her overseas. She refused to leave Power, and on completion of Suez
Suez (film)
Suez is a 1938 film account of the building of the Suez Canal by Ferdinand de Lesseps, played by Tyrone Power. It was so highly fictionalized that de Lesseps' descendants sued for libel....
, she returned to France to obtain a divorce from her then-husband, Jean Murat
Jean Murat
Jean Murat was a French actor. He was married to the French actress Annabella.-Selected filmography:* Carnival in Flanders * Les mutinés de l'Elseneur * On the Riviera * Alarm in Morocco...
. She and Power married on April 23, 1939. The two honeymooned in Rome. Within a few months, Annabella and Power had again flown to Europe to bring Annabella's mother back to live in their home, while her father and brother remained behind. Her brother was ultimately shot and killed by the Nazis. Annabella made a return trip to bring her daughter, Anne, back from France to live with them. Power adopted Anne before leaving for the service. Anne Power later married actor Oskar Werner
Oskar Werner
-Early life:Born Oskar Josef Bschließmayer in Vienna, Werner spent much of his childhood in the care of his grandmother, who entertained him with stories about the Burgtheater, the Austrian state theatre, where he was accepted at the age of eighteen by Lothar Müthel. He was the youngest person ever...
.
Darryl F. Zanuck, angry with her for marrying his top box office star did not cast her in movies despite Annabella’s contract with 20th Century-Fox. Neither was she loaned out to other studios. She and Power appeared together in the play Liliom
Liliom
Liliom is a 1909 play by the Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnár. It was very famous in its own right during the early to mid-20th century, but is best known today as the basis for the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel.- Plot :...
in New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
. While Power was away at war, Annabella appeared in Blithe Spirit
Blithe Spirit
Blithe Spirit is a comic play written by Noël Coward which takes its title from Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem "To a Skylark" . The play concerns socialite and novelist Charles Condomine, who invites the eccentric medium and clairvoyant, Madame Arcati, to his house to conduct a séance, hoping to...
in Chicago. On Broadway, she received excellent notices for her work in Jacobowsky and the Colonel, directed by Elia Kazan
Elia Kazan
Elia Kazan was an American director and actor, described by the New York Times as "one of the most honored and influential directors in Broadway and Hollywood history". Born in Istanbul, the capital of the Ottoman Empire, to Greek parents originally from Kayseri in Anatolia, the family emigrated...
, in 1944. Annabella also embarked on an affair with author Roald Dahl
Roald Dahl
Roald Dahl was a British novelist, short story writer, fighter pilot and screenwriter.Born in Wales to Norwegian parents, he served in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, in which he became a flying ace and intelligence agent, rising to the rank of Wing Commander...
; she had refused to give Power a divorce to marry Judy Garland
Judy Garland
Judy Garland was an American actress and singer. Through a career that spanned 45 of her 47 years and for her renowned contralto voice, she attained international stardom as an actress in musical and dramatic roles, as a recording artist and on the concert stage...
, and her marriage was strained. Dahl told his wife, Liccy, that it was an intense and passionate relationship, during which Dahl learned a lot about sex from the actress.
When Power returned from the war, the couple decided to try to make their marriage work once again. Annabella again worked in films, playing the female lead in 13 Rue Madeleine
13 Rue Madeleine
13 Rue Madeleine is a 1947 World War II spy film starring James Cagney, Annabella and Richard Conte.The title refers to the Le Havre address where a Gestapo headquarters is located.-Plot:...
(1947) opposite James Cagney
James Cagney
James Francis Cagney, Jr. was an American actor, first on stage, then in film, where he had his greatest impact. Although he won acclaim and major awards for a wide variety of performances, he is best remembered for playing "tough guys." In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked him eighth...
. She and Power divorced in 1948, and Annabella returned to France. In 1952 she made her final film, and retired after a 1954 TV appearance.
Annabella and Tyrone Power remained very close, and after his divorce from Linda Christian
Linda Christian
Linda Christian was a Mexican movie 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...
, he attempted to reconcile with her, confessing that in giving her up, he had made a terrible mistake. However, Annabella refused. Power informed her that he would not take the elevator to leave her apartment, but the stairs, in case she changed her mind and called him back. She did not.
Annabella died from a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
at Neuilly-sur-Seine
Neuilly-sur-Seine
Neuilly-sur-Seine is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.Although Neuilly is technically a suburb of Paris, it is immediately adjacent to the city and directly extends it. The area is composed of mostly wealthy, select residential...
, France, aged 89, and was interred in Passy Cemetery
Passy Cemetery
The Passy Cemetery is a famous cemetery located at 2, rue du Commandant Schlœsing in Passy, in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France.-History:...
.
Selected filmography
- Napoléon (1927)
- La Maison de la FlécheLa Maison de la FlécheLa Maison de la Fléche is a 1930 French mystery film directed by Henri Fescourt and starring Alice Field, Léon Mathot and Gaston Dupray. The film was based on the novel The House of the Arrow by A.E.W. Mason, and was made at Twickenham Studios in London as part of a co-production that saw an...
(1930)