Olympe Bradna

Olympe Bradna

Olympe Bradna, 1938
Born (1920-08-12)12 August 1920
Paris, France
Died 5 November 2012(2012-11-05) (aged 92)
Lodi, California
Occupation Dancer, actress
Years active 1921-1941

Olympe Bradna (12 August 1920 – 5 November 2012) was a French dancer and actress, who emigrated to the United States where she lived for the rest of her life.

Early years

Bradna was born in a dressing room in the Olympic Theatre in Paris,[1] and her full name was Antoinette Olympe Bradna. Her father, Joseph Bradna, was a Bohemian Czech and her mother, Jana Bradna, was Austrian German. (Another source says that her mother was French.)[2] They were circus performers before Olympe began her career.[3] (Jana Bradna had been an opera singer before she joined her husband in the circus.)[2] Her aunt also was in the circus, as an equestrienne.[4] An item in a newspaper in 1936 reported that Bradna "followed a line of trained dogs on the stage in France, when she was only 18 months old."[5]

Dancing

Branda appeared at 18 months of age with her parents, who were world-famous bare back riders. By the time she was 8, Bradna "had attracted so much attention that agents were anxious to book her as a 'single.'"[2] Her parents accompanied her to Sweden, Norway, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and France as she danced. She performed "an acrobatic dance" in the Paris, France, production of Hit the Deck.[2]

Later she joined the Folies Bergère.[6] She was with that group for eight months and danced at the French Casino in New York City for eight more months.[2]

She danced in Stockholm, New York City and other world capitals.

Film

Olympe Bradna in 1936, when she broke into film with Paramount Pictures.

Bradna started her film career in France, then, in 1934, moved to Hollywood, California where she saw her greatest success, signing a seven-year contract with Paramount Pictures.[7] In 1935, she was one of seven young women "named by Paramount ... as possible screen stars of the future."[8] She was one of six newcomers selected by Paramount in December 1935 to appear in a planned musical.[9] Her screen debut came in Three Cheers for Love (1936).[10] In 1936, she appeared in College Holiday.[11] Later, branching out from musicals to more serious films, she had roles in The Last Train from Madrid and Souls at Sea.[12]

During her career she appeared in more than a dozen films[13] and was seen opposite such notable film stars as Ronald Reagan, George Raft and Gary Cooper.

Early retirement, later years

In May, 1941 Olympe married Douglas Woods Wilhoit, at which point she retired from acting. For many years she and her family lived in Stockton, California, before ultimately settling in Lodi, California. Together, she and Douglas would have four children, five grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. They were married for over seventy years, with Douglas passing away in February, 2012, just nine months prior to Olympe's death.

Death

Bradna died November 5, 2012, in Stockton, California, at age 92.[12] (Another source says, "... Bradna died at her home in San Joaquin, California ...)[13] She was survived by a son, two daughters, five grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.[12]

Filmography

References

  1. ↑ "Olympe Begins Early". Altoona Tribune. Pennsylvania, Altoona. January 2, 1936. p. 10. Retrieved April 30, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Harrison, Paul (April 16, 1936). "Hollywood". The Post-Register. Idaho, Idaho Falls. NEA Service. p. 5. Retrieved April 30, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ Vecchi, Nina (January 13, 1935). "Folies Bergeres Girls Are Truly Scandalized". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. New York, Brooklyn. p. 30. Retrieved April 29, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "News and Comment Of Stage and Screen". Fitchburg Sentinel. Massachusetts, Fitchburg. April 11, 1936. p. 7. Retrieved April 30, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "'Veteran' of 15 Starts in Films". The Indiana Gazette. Pennsylvania, Indiana. NEA. April 10, 1936. p. 5. Retrieved April 30, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "News of the Stage". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. New York, Brooklyn. December 7, 1934. p. 14. Retrieved April 29, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Bits About 'Em". The Charleston Daily Mail. West Virginia, Charleston. May 24, 1936. p. 25. Retrieved May 1, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Hollywood Roundup". Oshkosh Daily Northwestern. Wisconsin, Oshkosh. October 23, 1935. p. 10. Retrieved April 30, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Young 'Unknowns'". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. New York, Brooklyn. December 13, 1935. p. 14. Retrieved April 30, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ Dickstein, Martin (February 6, 1936). "Picture Parade". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. New York, Brooklyn. p. 20. Retrieved April 30, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ Burdett, Winston (December 24, 1936). "The Screen". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. New York, Brooklyn. p. 6. Retrieved May 1, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. 1 2 3 Vitello, Paul (November 15, 2012). "Olympe Bradna, Stage and Screen Actress, Dies at 92". The New York Times. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
  13. 1 2 Lentz III, Harris M. (2013). Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2012. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc. pp. 38–39. ISBN 978-0-7864-7063-1. Retrieved 1 May 2016.

Further reading

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/16/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.