Barbara Barondess (July 4, 1907 – May 31, 2000) was an American
stage
Stage, stages, or staging may refer to:
Arts and media Acting
* Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions
* Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage"
* ''The Stage'', a weekly Brit ...
and
film actress.
Barondess was born in New York City, but her family returned to Russia because of the luxury that life held for them there. Her uncle was a lumber magnate in Ukraine. By 1921, however, they left Russia to escape "anarchy and death".
The family went from Russia to England and traveled in
steerage
Steerage is a term for the lowest category of passenger accommodation in a ship. In the nineteenth and early twentieth century, considerable numbers of persons travelled from their homeland to seek a new life elsewhere, in many cases North Amer ...
from there to the United States with their jewels sewn into their underwear. Barondess was 14 years old when the family arrived at
Ellis Island
Ellis Island is an island in New York Harbor, within the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York (state), New York. Owned by the U.S. government, Ellis Island was once the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United State ...
.
After Barondess left acting she became a dress designer, an interior decorator,
and "a broker of fine arts and antiques". Clients for her interior design work included "many prominent motion picture personalities", and she created a room for the 10th Annual National Home-Furnishings Show in 1959.
On October 24, 1933, Barondess filed for divorce from producer Irving Jacobs after four years of marriage. She was married to the actor
Douglas MacLean from 1938 to 1946. On May 28, 1953, she obtained a divorce from attorney Nathaniel S. Ruvell.
Later in the 1950s she was married to Leonard J. Knaster.
Barondess founded the Barbara Barondess Theatre Lab Alliance in 1981 as a way to help performing arts professionals who were struggling
and worked with it for 17 years.
She wrote a memoir, ''One Life Is Not Enough'' (Communications Creativity, 1990).
Barondess died of cardiac arrest in New York City on May 31, 2000.
Selected filmography
* ''
The Reckless Lady'' (1926)
* ''
Summer Bachelors'' (1926)
* ''
Rasputin and the Empress'' (1932)
* ''
Hold Your Man'' (1933)
* ''
Devil's Mate'' (1933)
* ''
Luxury Liner'' (1933)
* ''
Soldiers of the Storm'' (1933)
* ''
Queen Christina'' (1933)
* ''
When Strangers Marry'' (1933)
* ''
Eight Girls in a Boat'' (1934)
* ''
The Pursuit of Happiness'' (1934)
* ''
Change of Heart'' (1934)
* ''
Beggar's Holiday
''Beggar's Holiday'' is a musical with a book and lyrics by John La Touche and music by Duke Ellington.
History and background
The project originated with black scenic designer Perry Watkins, who envisioned a jazz-driven adaptation of John G ...
'' (1934)
* ''
The Fountain'' (1934)
* ''
Unknown Blonde'' (1934)
* ''
Diamond Jim'' (1935)
* ''
People Will Talk
''People Will Talk'' is a 1951 American romantic comedy/drama film directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck from a screenplay by Mankiewicz, based on the German play by Curt Goetz, which was made into a movie in Germa ...
'' (1935)
* ''
Life Begins at 40'' (1935)
* ''
A Tale of Two Cities
''A Tale of Two Cities'' is a historical novel published in 1859 by English author Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. The novel tells the story of the French Doctor Manette, his 18-year-long impr ...
'' (1935)
* ''
Lady Be Careful'' (1936)
* ''
Easy Money'' (1936)
* ''
The Plot Thickens'' (1936)
* ''
Make a Wish'' (1937)
* ''
Fit for a King
''Fit for a King'' is a 1937 American comedy film starring Joe E. Brown and directed by Edward Sedgwick.
Plot
Newspaper reporter "Scoop (term), Scoops" is sent out on assignment, to investigate the failed assassination attempts on Archduke Jul ...
'' (1937)
* ''
Emergency Squad'' (1940)
References
Bibliography
* Fleming E. J. ''Paul Bern: The Life and Famous Death of the MGM Director and Husband of Harlow''. McFarland, 2009.
* Pitts, Michael R. ''Poverty Row Studios, 1929–1940: An Illustrated History of 55 Independent Film Companies, with a Filmography for Each''. McFarland & Company, 2005.
External links
*
1907 births
2000 deaths
American film actresses
American stage actresses
Actresses from Brooklyn
{{US-theat-actor-1900s-stub