Steffi Duna (born Erzsébet Berindey; 8 February 1910 – 22 April 1992) was a Hungarian-born film actress.

Hungarian dancer

Born in the Eastern name order in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population o ...

of Czech extraction and nicknamed Stefi (Stefánia) by her friends and family, Duna started dancing at the age of nine and first attracted attention as a thirteen-year-old

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form ...

dancer in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. She made her first stage appearance in dramatized

fairy tales A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic (paranormal), magic, incantation, enchantments, and mythical ...

at the Children's Theater of Budapest. Initially opposed to the idea, her father sent her to the best schools in the Hungarian capital to learn dancing, and soon she had danced in most of the capitals of Europe. In 1932, she appeared on the London stage in

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...

's revue '' Words and Music'' as one of the four actresses to create the song "

Mad about the Boy "Mad About the Boy" is a popular song with words and music by actor and playwright Noël Coward. It was introduced in the 1932 revue '' Words and Music'' by Joyce Barbour, Steffi Duna, Norah Howard and Doris Hare. The song deals with the them ...

Movie actress

When she came to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

in 1932, Duna could not speak a word of English. She made up her mind to learn quickly. Directors advised her to stay away from her Hungarian friends to speed up her learning. Within a few years, she could speak not only English but five other languages. During the 1930s, she played a variety of nationalities. However, despite her European background, she was often cast as fiery Latin ''femmes fatales'' in films that made full use of her exotic and glamorous persona, such as ''

La Cucaracha La Cucaracha ("The Cockroach") is a popular Mexican folk song about a cockroach who cannot walk. The song's origins are unclear, but it dates back at least to the 1910s during the Mexican Revolution. The song belongs to the Mexican genre. The s ...

'' (1934), the first live-action short film made in three-strip

Technicolor Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...

. She made her film debut in ''

The Indiscretions of Eve ''The Indiscretions of Eve'' is a 1932 British comedy film directed by Cecil Lewis and starring Steffi Duna, Fred Conyngham and Lester Matthews. It was made by British International Pictures at the company's Elstree Studios near London.Wood p. ...

'' (1932) in the starring role (along with

Jessica Tandy Jessie Alice Tandy (7 June 1909 – 11 September 1994) was a British-American actress. Tandy appeared in over 100 stage productions and had more than 60 roles in film and TV, receiving an Academy Award, four Tony Awards, a BAFTA, a Golden Globe ...

, also making her debut). Signed by

RKO Radio Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orph ...

, she played Guninana, the

Eskimo Eskimo () is an exonym used to refer to two closely related Indigenous peoples: the Inuit (including the Alaska Native Iñupiat, the Greenlandic Inuit, and the Canadian Inuit) and the Yupik (or Yuit) of eastern Siberia and Alaska. A related ...

wife of

Francis Lederer Francis Lederer (November 6, 1899 Prague – May 25, 2000) was an Austro-Hungarian Empire-born American film and stage actor with a successful career, first in Europe, then in the United States. His original name was Franz (Czech František) Le ...

, in '' Man of Two Worlds'' (1934). Lederer had performed with Duna in the

Berlin, Germany Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

production of ''Die Wunderbar''. In 1936, she played Nedda in the British film version of ''

Pagliacci ''Pagliacci'' (; literal translation, "Clowns") is an Italian opera in a prologue and two acts, with music and libretto by Ruggero Leoncavallo. The opera tells the tale of Canio, actor and leader of a commedia dell'arte theatrical company, who ...

'', starring

Richard Tauber Richard Tauber (16 May 1891 – 8 January 1948) was an Austrian tenor and film actor. Early life Richard Tauber was born in Linz, Austria, to Elisabeth Seifferth (née Denemy), a widow and an actress who played soubrette roles at the local theat ...

. Films in which she played lead roles, such as ''

Panama Lady ''Panama Lady'' is a 1939 film starring Lucille Ball. Plot ''Panama Lady'' is a cleaned-up remake of the 1932 Helen Twelvetrees film vehicle '' Panama Flo''. Lucille Ball essays the old Twelvetrees role as Lucy, a nightclub "hostess" stranded ...

'' (1939) with

Lucille Ball Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American actress, comedienne and producer. She was nominated for 13 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning five times, and was the recipient of several other accolades, such as the Gold ...

, were popular but did not make her a major star. Her best remembered films include ''

Anthony Adverse ''Anthony Adverse'' is a 1936 American epic historical drama film directed by Mervyn LeRoy and starring Fredric March and Olivia de Havilland. The screenplay by Sheridan Gibney draws elements of its plot from eight of the nine books in Herve ...

'' (1936) and ''

Waterloo Bridge Waterloo Bridge () is a road and foot traffic bridge crossing the River Thames in London, between Blackfriars Bridge and Hungerford Bridge and Golden Jubilee Bridges. Its name commemorates the victory of the British, Dutch and Prussians at t ...

'' (1940).

Personal life and death

Duna was married twice. Her first marriage was in 1935 to actor John Carroll, her co-star in the screen comedy ''

Hi, Gaucho! ''Hi, Gaucho!'' was a 1935 American comedy film directed by Tommy Atkins (who also wrote the story), from a screenplay by Adele Buffington. Released by RKO Radio Pictures on October 11, 1935, the film stars John Carroll (in his first credited r ...

''. They had one child, a daughter, and divorced in 1938. In 1940 Duna married actor

Dennis O'Keefe Dennis O'Keefe (born Edward Vanes Flanagan, Jr., March 29, 1908 – August 31, 1968) was an American actor and writer. Early years Born in Fort Madison, Iowa, O'Keefe was the son of Edward Flanagan and Charlotte Flanagan, Irish vaudevill ...

, and they had a son. Duna died in May 1992 of cancer at her home in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...

Partial filmography

* ''

'' (1932) - Eve * '' The Iron Stair'' (1933) - Elsa Damond * '' Man of Two Worlds'' (1934) - Guninana * ''

'' (1934, Short) - Chaquita * ''

Red Morning ''Red Morning'' is a 1934 American adventure film directed by Wallace Fox from a screenplay by John Twist and Wallace Fox, based on a story by Gouverneur Morris. The film stars Steffi Duna, Regis Toomey, Raymond Hatton, and Mitchell Lewis. Ca ...

'' (1934) - Kara Perava * ''

One New York Night ''One New York Night'' (also released as ''The Trunk Mystery'') is a 1935 American comedy film directed by Jack Conway and written by Frank Davis. The film stars Franchot Tone, Una Merkel, Conrad Nagel, Harvey Stephens, Steffi Duna and Charles ...

'' (1935) - Countess Louise Broussiloff * ''

'' (1935) - Inez del Campo * '' La Fiesta de Santa Barbara'' (1935, Short) - Herself * ''

I Conquer the Sea! ''I Conquer the Sea!'' is a 1936 American drama film. Directed by Victor Halperin, the film stars Steffi Duna, Dennis Morgan, and Douglas Walton. It was released on January 24, 1936. Cast list * Steffi Duna as Rosita Gonzales * Dennis Morgan as ...

'' (1936) - Rosita Gonzales * ''

Dancing Pirate ''Dancing Pirate'' is a 1936 American musical comedy film directed by Lloyd Corrigan. It is the third film shot in the three strip Technicolor process and the first musical in that format. Produced by the makers of ''Becky Sharp'', the film was ...

'' (1936) - Serafina Perena * ''

'' (1936) - Neleta * ''

'' (1936) - Nedda Salvatini * '' Escape by Night'' (1937) - Josephine 'Jo' Elliott * '' Rascals'' (1938) - Stella * '' Flirting with Fate'' (1938) - Carlita * ''

'' (1939) - Cheema * ''

The Girl and the Gambler ''The Girl and the Gambler'' is a 1939 Western film, from RKO Radio Pictures, starring Tim Holt. It was an early starring Western for Holt, who soon replaced George O'Brien as the studio's main Western star. The film was based on a play which ...

'' (1939) - Dolores 'The Dove' Romero * ''

The Magnificent Fraud ''The Magnificent Fraud'' is a 1939 American crime film directed by Robert Florey and starring Akim Tamiroff, Lloyd Nolan, Mary Boland and Patricia Morison. Plot Akim Tamiroff plays an actor performing in a nameless Latin American country w ...

'' (1939) - Carmelita * '' Way Down South'' (1939) - Pauline * ''

Hitler – Beast of Berlin ''Hitler—Beast of Berlin'' (1939) was one of the most popular "hiss and boo" films of the World War II era, based on the novel ''Goose Step'' by Shepard Traube (1907–1983). Production history The film was the first production of Producer ...

'' (1939) - Elsa Memling * ''

Law of the Pampas ''Law of the Pampas'' is a 1949 American Western film directed by Nate Watt and written by Harrison Jacobs. The film stars William Boyd, Russell Hayden, Sidney Toler, Steffi Duna, Sidney Blackmer, Pedro de Cordoba and William Duncan. The fil ...

'' (1939) - Chiquita * ''

The Marines Fly High ''The Marines Fly High'' is a 1940 action film, starring Richard Dix, Chester Morris and Lucille Ball and directed by George Nicholls, Jr. and Benjamin Stoloff from a story by A.C. Edington. Plot In 1940, the Central American cocoa plantation ow ...

'' (1940) - Teresa * ''

'' (1940) - Lydia * ''

Phantom Raiders ''Phantom Raiders'' is a 1940 film, the second in the series starring Walter Pidgeon as detective Nick Carter. The film was part of a movie trilogy based on original stories featuring the character from the long-running ''Nick Carter, Detective'' ...

'' (1940) - Dolores * ''

The Great McGinty ''The Great McGinty'' is a 1940 political satire comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, starring Brian Donlevy and Akim Tamiroff and featuring William Demarest and (in her final screen appearance) Muriel Angelus. It was Sturges's fir ...

'' (1940) - The Dancing Girl * '' River's End'' (1940) - Cheeta * ''

Girl from Havana ''Girl from Havana'' is a 1940 American drama film directed by Lew Landers and written by Malcolm Stuart Boylan and Karl Brown. The film stars Dennis O'Keefe, Claire Carleton, Victor Jory, Steffi Duna, Gordon Jones and Bradley Page. The film was ...

'' (1940) - Chita (final film role)

Sources

*''

Bismarck Tribune ''The Bismarck Tribune'' is a daily newspaper with a weekly audience of 82,000 unique readers, printed daily in Bismarck, North Dakota. Owned by Lee Enterprises, it is the only daily newspaper for south-central and southwest North Dakota N ...

'', "Steffi Duna Important Character In Picture", Wednesday, November 20, 1935, p. 8. *''Hammond Times'', "Hollywood", March 16, 1939, p. 35. *''

Oakland Tribune The ''Oakland Tribune'' is a weekly newspaper published in Oakland, California, by the Bay Area News Group (BANG), a subsidiary of MediaNews Group. Founded in 1874, the ''Tribune'' rose to become an influential daily newspaper. With the declin ...

'', "Money-Important In Marriage, Or Is It?", Sunday, November 26, 1939, p. 79. *''Salisbury Times'', "Dennis O'Keefe Picks That As Official Name", Monday Evening, August 28, 1944, p. 5.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Duna, Steffi 1910 births 1992 deaths Actresses from Budapest 20th-century Hungarian actresses Hungarian ballerinas Hungarian film actresses Hungarian emigrants to the United States Western (genre) film actresses Hungarian people of Czech descent