Gloria
Swanson
I have to preface this story with a disappointing statement.
I've poured through all of my books and files, and cannot locate a single
obituary for this woman. I don't
know what happened to it, so if anyone can help with details, I would be most
appreciative. Drop me a line with
funeral arrangements etc. Thanks.
During her life, Gloria Swanson had been married six times, and divorced
5. Her last marriage was in 1976,
to writer William Dufty.
Gloria was in one of the greatest films ever, Sunset Boulevard, with
William Holden. She was also in Airport
1975 - which was FANTASTIC. She
played herself and she was penning an autobiography when Karen Black had to take
over flying the plane. She tossed
her diamonds out of her jewelery case and stuffed her taped notes into the box
instead claiming, "It's bombproof, the insurance people insisted upon
it." To steal a joke, it's the
only thing in that film that was bombproof.
I love it, but not as much as I loved her on The
Beverly Hillbillies. Sorry
to go on.
History: Sometime in 1927,
Gloria put her footprints in
cement, in the forecourt of the Chinese Theatre.
It's common knowledge that Gloria was doing Joe Kennedy for years, and
according to legend - they used to meet for trysts in the Castle
Argyll, in downtown Hollywood.
I have to thank our friends of Findadeath.com - Stacy Weinstein (with
the very cool mom) and Joanne Melito for their fantastic photographs of Ms.
Swanson's home. Gloria was living
in an apartment at on Fifth
Avenue, in Manhattan. Her
building was number 920.
Here's the front door, with the handy,
ready to serve doorman standing by, and no doubt Ms. Swanson lived in one of these
apartments. Thanks, Stacy
and Joanne!
On April 4th, 1983, the Studio 54 diva died in her sleep at
The New York Hospital, located at 525
E. 68th Street, in New York City.
She was admitted on March 20th for treatment of what was
said by a friend, a minor heart attack. She
was 83 years old.
In her will, she specified that she be cremated, and the service be
private and confined to family members only, and there be "no public
funeral or display of any sort." She
was indeed cremated, on April 5th, a Tuesday. She is interred at the Church of Heavenly Rest, in New York
City.
Trivia: Gloria was insane
about the use of sugar. I mean she
would go ballistic if someone used it around her. She claimed that America lost
the Vietnam War because of sugar.
Her last husband, William Duffy, wrote a book called, "Sugar
Blues." It is the history of sugar and contains some personal
insightful confrontations with sugar, experienced by the author. Thanks
for Findadeath.com friend RM for that tidbit. I
remember reading a story about someone who hated her guts, sending her a baby
casket filled to the rim with sugar. That
took a lot of thought.
This was sent in by Findadeath.com friend Kevin Kusinitz. Thanks
Kevin! Another piece of trivia for your files. "Sugar Blues," the book by Gloria
Swanson's husband, was a favorite book of John Lennon's. Apparently, he'd hand out copies of the book the way Henry Ford did "Protocols of the Elders of Zion."
Lennon, like Gloria, was sure that sugar was the curse of the world. Of course,
Lennon chain-smoked moccasin-like French cigarettes and downed about 20 cups of espresso a day. Real health nut, that Lennon.
Gloria's husband received nothing in her will.
