Rafaela Ottiano (March 4, 1888 – August 14, 1942) was an Italian-American actress. She was best known for her role as Suzette in '' Grand Hotel'' (1932) and as Russian Rita in '' She Done Him Wrong'' (1933).

Early life

Ottiano was born on March 4, 1888, in Venice, Italy as the second child and daughter of the six children of Maddalena Polcari (1869–1914), a housewife, and Antonio Ottiano (1859–1915), a musician. Maddalena immigrated to United States in 1880, where she met Antonio who came four years after and married him in 1885. Ottiano was named after her paternal grandmother and older sister. Her sisters were Rafaela Bellizia Ottiano (born 1886), who died in infancy, and Maria Fransesca "Francis" De Stefano (born 1889), who moved with her to

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 ...

on April 30, 1899. Her brothers were Pasquale "Patsies" (1892–1938) and James (1896–1971), both musicians, and Augustino Ottiano (1898–1987). In 1910, she immigrated to the United States with her parents and then was processed 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 ...

, and resided in Boston with her family. Ottiano worked as a saleslady in a department store before she began her acting career.

Personal life

In 1913, Ottiano's youngest sister, Maria Fransesca, was married to Carmen De Stefano, a shoe cutter, and later had two children, Vincent and Madeline De Stefano. The marriage of Fransesca later made their family residence in Maverick St. had to be sold in between 1917 and 1920, where the couple took their part of the profits and later purchased a house at 382 Lovell St. in East Boston. The house was valued at USD 6000 in 1930, and the three unmarried Ottiano brothers; Patsies, James, Augustino, later moved with them as did their uncle and aunt, Nelson and Jennie Mottola. Her mother, Maddalena, died at her residence in East Boston on October 15, 1914, from cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 45, and she was buried at St. Michael's Cemetery. Her father Antonio died a year later at Massachusetts General Hospital from a lung abscess at the age of 56, and he was interred with her mother. Ottiano never married or had children; she died at her parents' residence in East Boston on August 14, 1942, at the age of 54.

Career

Ottiano began acting at age 18 and established herself as a stage actress in Europe before arriving in Hollywood in 1924 and appearing in American movies. She appeared on Broadway in '' Sweeney Todd'' (1924), the

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play '' Diamond Lil'' (1928), and the play version of '' Grand Hotel'' (1930). She made her film debut in the John L. McCutcheon-directed drama ''The Law and the Lady'' (1924) with Len Leo, Alice Lake, and Tyrone Power, Sr. Ottiano was part of the original 1928 Broadway cast of the hit play ''Diamond Lil'', written by and starring Mae West. She reprised her role as Rita when the play was adapted for the movie '' She Done Him Wrong'' (1933), directed by Lowell Sherman. Throughout the 1930s, she often specialized in roles as sinister, malevolent, or spiteful women, such as her role in the

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-directed horror film '' The Devil-Doll'' (1936), with Lionel Barrymore and Maureen O'Sullivan. Other notable film roles for Ottiano include Lena in '' As You Desire Me'' (1932) with

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, and

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, Mrs. Higgins in the

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musical-comedy ''Curly Top'' (1935), as a matron in the crime-drama '' Riffraff'' (1936), starring

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and

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, and as Suzette, Greta Garbo's devoted maid in the

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-directed drama '' Grand Hotel'' (1932). In 1940, she starred in ''

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'', a melodramatic film which was adapted from novel by the same name by

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, and she was credited for her amusing incidental performance by ''The New York Times''. Ottiano's last film was the musical comedy '' I Married an Angel'' (1942), starring

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and

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, and

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. When ''Grand Hotel'' was turned into a Broadway musical in 1989, her character was renamed Rafaela Ottiano in honor of the actress, who had appeared on Broadway in 1930 in the original play version of the Vicki Baum novel and in the subsequent movie adaptation.

Partial filmography

*'' The Law and the Lady'' (1924) - Ma Sims *'' Married ?'' (1926) - Maid *'' Grand Hotel'' (1932) - Suzette *'' Night Court'' (1932) - Evil Tongued Neighbor (uncredited) *'' As You Desire Me'' (1932) - Lena *'' The Washington Masquerade'' (1932) - Mona *'' She Done Him Wrong'' (1933) - Russian Rita *'' Bondage'' (1933) - Miss Trigge *'' Ann Vickers'' (1933) - Mrs. Feldermans *''

Female An organism's sex is female ( symbol: ♀) if it produces the ovum (egg cell), the type of gamete (sex cell) that fuses with the male gamete (sperm cell) during sexual reproduction. A female has larger gametes than a male. Females and ...

'' (1933) - Della - Alison's Maid (uncredited) *''

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'' (1934) - Madame Lacalles *'' All Men Are Enemies'' (1934) - Filomena *'' The Last Gentleman'' (1934) - Retta Barr *'' A Lost Lady'' (1934) - Rosa *''

Great Expectations ''Great Expectations'' is the thirteenth novel by English author Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed novel. The novel is a bildungsroman and depicts the education of an orphan nicknamed Pip. It is Dickens' second novel, after ''Dav ...

'' (1934) - Mrs. Joe *'' Enchanted April'' (1935) - Francesca *'' Lottery Lover'' (1935) - Gaby's Maid *'' The Florentine Dagger'' (1935) - Lili Salvatore *'' One Frightened Night'' (1935) - Elvira *'' Curly Top'' (1935) - Mrs. Higgins *'' Remember Last Night?'' (1935) - Mme. Bouclier *''

Crime and Punishment ''Crime and Punishment'' is a novel by the Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was first published in the literary journal '' The Russian Messenger'' in twelve monthly installments during 1866.

'' (1935) - Landlady (uncredited) *'' We're Only Human'' (1935) - Mrs. William Anderson (uncredited) *'' Riffraff'' (1936) - Matron *'' The Devil-Doll'' (1936) - Malita *'' Anthony Adverse'' (1936) - Signora Buvino *'' Mad Holiday'' (1936) - Ning *'' That Girl from Paris'' (1936) - Nikki's Personal Maid (uncredited) *'' Seventh Heaven'' (1937) - Madame Frisson *'' Maytime'' (1937) - Ellen *'' The League of Frightened Men'' (1937) - Dora Chapin *'' The Toy Wife'' (1938) - Felicianne (uncredited) *''

Marie Antoinette Marie Antoinette (; ; Maria Antonia Josefa Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last List of French royal consorts, queen of France before the French Revolution and the establishment of the French First Republic. She was the ...

'' (1938) - Louise - Marie's Maid (uncredited) *'' I'll Give a Million'' (1938) - Proprietress *''

Suez Suez (, , , ) is a Port#Seaport, seaport city with a population of about 800,000 in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez on the Red Sea, near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal. It is the capital and largest c ...

'' (1938) - Maria De Teba *'' Paris Honeymoon'' (1939) - Fluschotska *'' Vigil in the Night'' (1940) - Mrs. Henrietta Sullivan (uncredited) *'' The Long Voyage Home'' (1940) - Bella *'' A Little Bit of Heaven'' (1940) - Mme. Lupinsky *''

'' (1940) - Madame Makanoff *'' Topper Returns'' (1941) - Lillian - the Housekeeper *'' The Adventures of Martin Eden'' (1942) - Marie Sylva *'' I Married an Angel'' (1942) - Madelon (uncredited)

References

External links

* * *
Rafaela Ottiano: The Venetian who Played the Villainess
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ottiano, Rafaela 1888 births 1942 deaths American film actresses American silent film actresses American stage actresses Italian emigrants to the United States Italian stage actresses Actresses from Venice People from East Boston 20th-century American actresses Naturalized citizens of the United States Actresses from Boston