Stanwyck.
Barbara Stanwyck was born Ruby Katherine Stevens on July 16, 1907 to Byron and Catherine McGee Stevens. Her parents
were originally from Chelsea, Massachusetts but by the time Ruby was born they were living at 246 Classon Avenue in
Brooklyn, New York. She was the youngest of five children with three older sisters, Maud, Mabel and Mildred and one old-
er brother Malcolm Byron.
At the age of three her mother died from a head injury suffered in a streetcar accident. Two weeks after Catherine's funeral
Byron Stevens left to work on the Panama Canal and was never heard from again. The children were moved from foster
home to foster home. "Maybe hapless, but not helpless, not hopeless. We were free to work our way out of our surroundings,
free to work our way up, as far as we could dream," Barbara had said in reference to those days.
Eventually Maud and Mabel married and Mildred took over the responsibility of raising Malcolm and Ruby. She worked as
a showgirl and Ruby learned the routines alongside her sister. This self-made star called herself "a tough old dame from
Brooklyn." By the age of thirteen she was working full-time at a variety of jobs including a store clerk, a receptionist at
Vogue and a stint with the phone company. At the age of fifteen she became a chorus girl in a Times Square nightclub for
$35 a week. She became a Ziegfeld Follies girl not long after.
In 1926 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania she performed in a play called "The Noose." The play received bad reviews but her per-
formance was noted as a standout. The play was rewritten and her part expanded. It was at this time that she chose her
stage name. She took the name from a play marquee that read 'Jane Stanwyck starring in Barbara Frietchie'. In 1927 she
debuted onscreen in the silent "Broadway Nights," which was filmed in New York.
On August 26, 1928 she married actor Frank Fay and in March of 1929 they arrived in California to begin careers in the
movies. Frank was little more than a troublemaker while in Hollywood, for the studios and Barbara. It is believed that the
screenplay for "A Star is Born" is based on their battling relationship. As Frank's career faltered, her career took off and
he began drinking heavily. In February of 1936 they were divorced and fought a bitter custody battle for their adopted son
Anthony Dion Fay. Even as their marriage was falling apart Barbara wrote to Fay, "I still love you in every way that a
woman can possibly love a man."
After an unsteady start with three movies that she later completely disavowed, Barbara considered giving up her career.
About "The Locked Door" she stated, "No stench bomb ever made people walk out of a theater as fast as that picture did."
And about "Mexicali Rose" she commented, "Beyond any question of doubt, it was the worst picture ever made." She re-
fused to even acknowledge the existence of her first movie "Broadway Nights".
However, through "Ladies of Leisure" in 1930 she experienced her first big screen success and shot to stardom. This was
followed with a long-term contract with Columbia but after a series of successful pictures she sued Columbia for a larger
salary. In the deal she agreed to also work for Warners. It was at Warners that she starred in "Forbidden," a major hit that
established her among the most popular actresses in Hollywood.
Signing with RKO, she starred in "Annie Oakley" in 1935 and really showed her versatility. Admired by directors for her
professionalism, unspoiled nature and love for her work, by the late 30's she was a popular leading lady; many Hollywood
insiders commented on her fine qualities as an off screen personality. The women she played were rarely reserved. Her
characters knew what they wanted and they had no qualms about letting you know what was on their minds. With her hands
on her hips, she would stand up against anyone, words snapping like whips.
The common thread between so many of these characters was their meager means of survival. Because of the circumstances
of her youth, Barbara projected a no-nonsense attitude early in her career. Her upbringing was hard and it showed in her
"what you see is what you get" attitude. Columbia and Warners capitalized on these qualities by casting her in roles that
made good use of her down-to-earth qualities. Whatever roles she played, Barbara brought forthrightness and immediacy to
her characters that made them compelling even when they were the nastiest women on the screen.
On May 14, 1939 Barbara married fellow actor Robert Taylor. Robert spent their wedding night with his mother and she
went back to work on "Golden Boy." Robert had said he liked being married to her because he was able to get more 'tough
guy' roles and shed the 'pretty boy' image that he hated. She called him 'Junior' and he dubbed her with a nickname that
would stick throughout the rest of her career, 'The Queen'.
While Robert was filming "Quo Vadis" in Rome it was rumored that the young ladies on the set had little free time
courtesy of the dashing American star. Barbara flew to Rome. Their divorce, finalized on February 15, 1952 was Robert's
idea. Barbara promised him that she would receive 15 percent of his earnings for life, that he would pay and he did. She was
a woman of her word. Although devastated by the marriage's failure, Barbara said many years later about the divorce pro-
ceedings, "Sometimes the chip on my shoulder wasn't exactly invisible."
There was an exchange in "Union Pacific" that seemed fitting of Barbara's experiences with men. Joel McCrea's character
says to her character, "Till the right man comes along and gives you the spanking you deserve," to which her character re-
plies, "Ah, that's the man I dream of." She always wanted a man with strong character, as strong as hers, but always seemed
to fall short in the men she picked.
Upgrading her image in the 1940s, Barbara landed better scripts and hit her peak. The roles she played during this decade
showed both the light and dark sides of the American breed of desirable femme fatale, demonstrating what critic Richard
Corliss said: "When she was good, she was very, very good. And when she was bad, she was terrific." In 1944 the IRS named
her as the highest paid woman in America, drawing $400,000 for the year.
She received four Oscar nominations for her work in the movies Stella Dallas (1937), Ball of Fire (1941), Double Indemnity
(1944) and Sorry, Wrong Number (1948) but never took the Oscar home for any of these nominations. She would eventually
be referred to as "The best actress never to win the Oscar."
In the 50's her career diminished and she tended to work in poor films. The quality of the scripts was falling and opportun-
ity was drying up. She had one advantage over most other actors of her period, though, she was a millionaire. She retired
from the big screen in the 60's and turned her talents to the small screen first in The Barbara Stanwyck Show, garnering
an Emmy in 1961, then in The Big Valley. In this TV western she portrayed the strong matriarch of a wealthy ranching
family and her talent was introduced to a new generation of fans. In 1966 she won another Emmy for her portrayal of
Victoria Barkley in The Big Valley.
Upon the show's conclusion, she made three TV movies then vanished from the public eye for the remainder of the 1970s.
In 1981 she was awarded an honorary Oscar as "an artist of impeccable grace and beauty, a dedicated actress and one of the
great ladies of Hollywood," for "superlative creativity and unique contribution to the art of screen acting."
In 1982 she was the recipient of a Lincoln Center Life Achievement Award. Frank Capra, who directed her in five films in-
cluding her first hit, "Ladies of Leisure", told the 2500 guests, "It's this gift of hers to communicate the truth of a role
which has made Barbara the great actress she is. She's played them all- big city dames and cattle queens, adulterous wives
and dewy-eyed ingenues. Her many faces are all different, and all dazzling." He also wrote of her in later years, "Naive,
unsophisticated, caring nothing about makeup, clothes or hairdos, this chorus girl could grab your heart and tear it to
pieces."
In 1983 she returned to television to co-star in the mini-series "The Thorn Birds," for which she won her third Emmy for
best actress. In 1985 she starred in the TV series "The Colbys," a spin-off of "Dynasty". This was her last project before
retiring.
While truly a "tough dame from Brooklyn" she suffered several heartbreaking blows in her life that shook her confidence.
A rift between Barbara and her son widened to the point that they had not spoken with each other since the 1950s. When
Robert Taylor died June 8, 1969 the mask fell. At his funeral she cried loudly, openly and uncontrollably. He might not
have been the man she spent her life seeking but she still felt deeply for him.
In 1971, while filming a TV pilot, she finished the day's shooting before finally going to the hospital where a kidney had to
be removed. At the age of 74 she was beaten and robbed in her home by an intruder in the wee hours of the morning, des-
troying her peace of mind as to her safety and security. A final blow came in 1985 when her house burned to the ground,
taking with it most of her momentos, including her cherished love letters from Robert Taylor. She smoked too much, con-
sumed alcohol too often and drank coffee all day long.
Despite these and the other traumas in her life, and a long, distinguished career that only gave her three Emmy awards
and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Screen Actors Guild her spirit could not be denied, and she garnered the re-
spect from everyone in show business.
Every April 1st William Holden sent Barbara two dozen roses and a white gardenia to mark the anniversary of "Golden
Boy." Henry Fonda, forty years after their first meeting, would say, "Everyone who is close to me knows I've been in love
with Barbara Stanwyck since I met her. She's a delicious woman. We've never had an affair, she's never encouraged me,
but dammit, my wife will verify it, my daughter and son will confirm it, and now you all can testify to the truth."
She was considered a gem to work with, for her serious but easygoing attitude on the set. She worked hard at being an
actress and she never allowed her star quality to go to her head. In her 59-year career, spanning from 1927 to 1986, she
gave us 93 movies and a legion of television appearances. These are her legacy to us.
Barbara's health failed drastically in the last five years of her life, causing her to have fewer friends and visitors. Most of
her days were clouded with loneliness and despair. Late in the afternoon of January 20, 1990, her heart succumbed to
congestive heart failure and stopped beating. She died in her sleep at home in Santa Monica, California, feeling very alone
and forgotten.
She had no funeral and has no grave. Her body was cremated, and the ashes were scattered over Lone Pine, California,
near Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks.