Nadia Gray (born Nadia Kujnir; 23 November 1923 – 13 June 1994) was a

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

n film actress.

Biography

Gray was born into a Jewish family in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

. Her father moved to Romania from

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, and her mother was from

Akkerman Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi (, ; ; ), historically known as Aq Kirmān () or by other names, is a port city in Odesa Oblast, southwestern Ukraine. It is situated on the right bank of the Dniester Estuary leading to the Black Sea, in the historical r ...

, in

Bessarabia Bessarabia () is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Bessarabia lies within modern-day Moldova, with the Budjak region covering the southern coa ...

(nowadays

Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi (, ; ; ), historically known as Aq Kirmān () or by other names, is a port city in Odesa Oblast, southwestern Ukraine. It is situated on the right bank of the Dniester Estuary leading to the Black Sea, in the historical r ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

). She left Romania for

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in the late 1940s to escape the Communist takeover after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Her film debut was in ''L'Inconnu d'un soir'' in 1949. Perhaps her best-known role was in the

Federico Fellini Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He is known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and ...

film ''

La Dolce Vita ''La Dolce Vita'' (; Italian for 'the sweet life' or 'the good life'Kezich, 203) is a 1960 satirical comedy-drama film directed by Federico Fellini and written by Fellini, Ennio Flaiano, Tullio Pinelli, and Brunello Rondi. The film stars M ...

'' (1960). She played a guest role in an episode of the television series ''

The Prisoner ''The Prisoner'' is a British television series created by Patrick McGoohan. McGoohan portrays Number Six (The Prisoner), Number Six, an unnamed British intelligence agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a The Village (The Prisoner), mysteri ...

'' ("

The Chimes of Big Ben "The Chimes of Big Ben" is an episode of the allegorical British science fiction TV series, ''The Prisoner''. It was written by Vincent Tilsley and directed by Don Chaffey and fifth to be produced. It was the second episode to be broadcast in t ...

", 1967).

Personal life

She was first married to N. Goldenberg (later Herescu), a wealthy businessman from

Chișinău Chișinău ( , , ; formerly known as Kishinev) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Moldova, largest city of Moldova. The city is Moldova's main industrial and commercial centre, and is located in the middle of the coun ...

, then to Constantin Cantacuzino, a Romanian aristocrat who was one of Romania's top

fighter ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ...

s of the war. They were married from 1946 to his death in 1958. Her third husband was

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

attorney Herbert Silverman (1912–2003). They were married from 1967 to her death in 1994. She died in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

from a stroke. Nadia Gray had a brief affair with Nissim Allony, one of Israel's leading dramatists.

Partial filmography

Most of Gray's films were non-English language productions. * ' (1949) - Édith aka Marie-Ange * '' The Spider and the Fly'' (1949) - Madeleine Saincaize * ''

Monseigneur (plural: Messeigneurs or Monseigneurs) is an honorific in the French language, abbreviated Mgr., Msgr. In English use it is a title before the name of a French prelate, a member of a royal family or other dignitary. ''Monsignor'' is both a tit ...

'' (1949) - La duchesse de Lémoncourt * '' Night Without Stars'' (1951) - Alix Delaisse née Malinay * '' Valley of Eagles'' (1951) - Kara Niemann * '' Wife for a Night'' (1952) - Geraldine * ''

Deceit Deception is the act of convincing of one or many recipients of untrue information. The person creating the deception knows it to be false while the receiver of the information does not. It is often done for personal gain or advantage. Deceit ...

'' (1952) - Anna Comin * ''

Top Secret Classified information is confidential material that a government deems to be sensitive information which must be protected from unauthorized disclosure that requires special handling and dissemination controls. Access is restricted by law or ...

'' (1952) - Tania * ''

Puccini Giacomo Puccini (22 December 1858 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he was descended from a long line of composers, s ...

'' (1953) - Cristina Vernini * ' (1953) - Maria Meister * '' Ivan, Son of the White Devil'' (1953) - Principessa Alina * '' Finalmente libero!'' (1954) - Carla * '' 100 Years of Love'' (1954) - Countess Muriella di Lucoli (segment "Pendolin") * ''Gran Varietà'' (1954) * '' Pietà per chi cade'' (1954) - Anna Savelli * ''Melody of Love'' (1954) - Nadia Sandor * '' Neapolitan Carousel'' (1954) - Pretty tramp * '' The Women Couldn't Care Less'' (1954) - Henrietta Aymes * '' Crossed Swords'' (1954) - Fulvia * ''

House of Ricordi ''House of Ricordi'' () is a 1954 French-Italian historical film, historical biographical melodrama film based on the early history of the Italian music publishing house Casa Ricordi. It is directed by Carmine Gallone and stars Märta Torén, Mar ...

'' (1954) - Giulia Grisi * '' The Two Orphans'' (1954) - Diane de Vaudrey - countess de Linières * '' Cardinal Lambertini'' (1954) - Isabella di Pietramelara * '' I cinque dell'Adamello'' (1954) - Magda * '' Casta Diva'' (1954) - Giuditta Pasta * '' Sins of Casanova'' (1955) - Margherita Teresa von Kleinwert * '' The Last Five Minutes'' (1955) - Valeria Roberti, moglie di Filippo * ''La moglie è uguale per tutti'' (1955) - Lea * '' Music in the Blood'' (1955) - Gina Martelli * ''Il falco d'oro'' (1955) - Ines della Torre * ''Agguato sul mare'' (1955) - Circe * ''Hengst Maestoso Austria'' (1956) - Gräfin Marika Szilady * '' Folies-Bergère'' (1957) - Suzy Morgan * ''Parola di ladro'' (1957) * '' The Black Devil'' (1957) - Duchessa Lucrezia * ''

Sénéchal the Magnificent ''Sénéchal the Magnificent'' (French: ''Sénéchal le magnifique'') is a 1957 French-Italian comedy film directed by Jean Boyer and starring Fernandel, Nadia Gray and Madeleine Barbulée.Bessy & Chirat p.191 It was shot at Billancourt Stud ...

'' (1957) - La princesse Marida Ludibescu * '' La Parisienne'' (1957) - La reine Greta * '' Vacanze a Ischia'' (1957) - Carla Occhipinti * ''Meine schöne Mama'' (1958) - Mathildes Mutter Maria * '' The Captain's Table'' (1959) - Mrs. Porteous * ''Violent Summer'' (1959) - (uncredited) * ''Muerte al amanecer'' (1959) - Victoria Costa * ''

'' (1960) - Nadia * '' Le signore'' (1960) - Tatiana Becker * '' Letto a tre piazze'' (1960) - Amalia * '' Maria, Registered in Bilbao'' (1960) - Berta * '' Candide ou l'optimisme au XXe siècle'' (1960) - La dame de compagnie / Dame * '' Mr. Topaze'' (1961) - Suzy * ''Le pavé de Paris'' (1961) - Monique * ''Gioventù di notte'' (1961) - Fulvia * ''Mourir d'amour'' (1961) - Patricia * ''Les croulants se portent bien'' (1961) - Thérèse * ''Le jeu de la vérité'' (1961) - Solange Vérate * ' (1962) - Hilde Goetz * ' (1963) - Comtesse * '' Maniac'' (1963) - Eve Beynat * ' (1963) - Mrs. Button * '' Encounter in Salzburg'' (1964) - Felicitas Wilke * '' The Crooked Road'' (1965) - Cosima * '' The Adventurer of Tortuga'' (1965) - Dona Rosita * '' Winnetou and Old Firehand'' (1966) - Michèle Mercier * ''

The Oldest Profession ''The Oldest Profession'' () is a 1967 internationally co-produced comedy film. It features contributions from six different film directors, each one doing a segment on prostitution through the ages. Plot *''The Prehistoric Era'' – The cavew ...

'' (1967) - Nadia (segment "Aujourd'hui") * '' Two for the Road'' (1967) - Francoise Dalbret * '' The Naked Runner'' (1967) - Karen Gisevius

References

External links

*
Nadia Gray papers, 1930s-1977
held by the Billy Rose Theatre Division,

New York Public Library for the Performing Arts The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center, is located at 40 Lincoln Center Plaza, in the Lincoln Center complex on the Upper West Side in Manhattan, New York City. Situated between the Metropolitan O ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gray, Nadia 1923 births 1994 deaths Actresses from Bucharest Romanian film actresses 20th-century Romanian actresses Romanian Jews French people of Romanian-Jewish descent American people of Romanian-Jewish descent Romanian emigrants to France French emigrants to the United States