Leni Lynn (born Angelina Ciofani; May 3, 1923 – January 1, 2010) was an American actress and a contralto singer. She was also known as Leni Hoffer. The daughter of a

Passaic Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city was the state's 16th-most-populous municipality,New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, dye-goods factory worker, Francesco Ciofani, and his wife, Carmelita, who worked in a dress factory, Lynn learned to sing by listening to recordings. When she was 13, friends and neighbors in Pasaic contributed 10,000 dimes to send her 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) * Hollywood ...

to try for success in films. On September 6, 1938, she received a contract from

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

. Lynn was married four times. In 1942, she married British insurance executive Edward Thomas Hopkin; they divorced on March 23, 1949. Her last husband, composer and conductor Bernard Hoffer, survived her. On January 1, 2010, Lynn died of complications of a stroke in

Croton-on-Hudson Croton-on-Hudson ( ) is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 8,327 at the 2020 United States census over 8,070 at the 2010 census. It is located in the town of Cortlandt as part of New York City's northern ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. She was 86.

Selected filmography

* ''

Babes in Arms ''Babes in Arms'' is a 1937 coming-of-age musical comedy with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Lorenz Hart, and book by Rodgers and Hart. It concerns a group of small-town Long Island teenagers who put on a show to avoid being sent to a work ...

'' (1939) * '' Hullabaloo'' (1940) * '' Angels with Broken Wings'' (1941) * '' Heaven Is Round the Corner'' (1944) * ''

Give Me the Stars ''Give Me the Stars'' is a 1945 British musical drama film directed by Maclean Rogers and starring Leni Lynn, Will Fyffe, Jackie Hunter and Olga Lindo. American Toni Martin travels to Scotland and finds herself looking after her cranky grandfa ...

'' (1945) * '' Gaiety George'' (1946) * '' Spring Song'' (1946)

References

External links

* 1923 births 2010 deaths American film actresses Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract players Actresses from Waterbury, Connecticut People from Croton-on-Hudson, New York Actresses from New York (state) 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American women {{US-singer-stub