| Birth: | Jul. 16, 1911 | | Death: | Apr. 25, 1995 | 
Actress, Singer, and Dancer. She was given the name "Ginger" by her cousin, who could not pronounce "Virginia" correctly. She neither smoked nor drank, preferring ice cream sodas. Born Virginia Katherine McMath in Independence, Missouri, her family moved to Texas when she was a toddler. Her parents divorced, and her father died when she was 11. She then moved with her mother to her grandparents' home in Kansas City, Missouri, where she was raised. Her mother went to Hollywood in search of work as a screenwriter, and quickly found a job there. But her mother remarried and moved to Fort Worth, Texas, where Ginger graduated from high school. Appearing in school theatrical productions, Ginger discovered her love of acting. After graduating from high school, she moved to New York, and got a job in the Broadway production of "Top Speed" (1929). Her work there got her an invitation for a screen test, and she was quickly hired. Her first film "A Night in a Dormitory" (1929) was a bit part, but it was her start in Hollywood. She made two quick films "A Day of a Man of Affairs" (1929) and "Campus Sweethearts" (1929), which got her better parts. In the film "Gold Diggers of 1933" (1933), she became noticed by the public for the first time when she sang "We're in the Money," even though she did not play the lead role. In 1934, she starred with Dick Powell in "Twenty Million Sweethearts" which built her popularity with the public. Her real stardom hit in 1933, when she was paired with Fred Astaire in "Flying Down to Rio," in which she and Fred literally stole the show dancing the Carioca. She and Fred then went on to make eight more movies, dancing in each, and the two quickly became a Hollywood Icon. In 1940, she starred in "Kitty Foyle," which won her an Oscar for Best Actress. She then decided to strike out on her own, and continued to make dramatic movies. In 1965, she appeared for the last time in "Harlow;" from that moment on she appeared only in plays and on Broadway. In 1984, she retired, and wrote her autobiography "Ginger, My Story" (1991). Suffering from diabetes in her final years, she died of natural causes in 1995 at Rancho Mirage, California. She was married four times: Jack Pepper (1928-1930), Lew Ayres (1934-1941), Jacques Bergerac (1953-1957), and William Marshall (1961-1962).
Search Amazon for Ginger Rogers | | | Burial:
Oakwood Memorial Park
Chatsworth
Los Angeles County
California, USA
GPS (lat/lon): 34.2517090, -118.6185532 |
Maintained by: Find A Grave
Record added: Jan 01, 2001
Find A Grave Memorial# 1626 |
|
|
|
|
(4.7 after 406 votes)
