Susanna Foster
| Susanna Foster | |
|---|---|
Foster in 1943.
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| Born |
Suzanne DeLee Flanders Larson December 6, 1924 Chicago, Illinois |
| Died | January 17, 2009 (aged 84) |
| Occupation | Actress, singer |
| Spouse(s) | Wilbur "Wib" Evans (1948-56) |
Susanna Foster (born Suzanne DeLee Flanders Larson, though some sources give "Suzan Larsen"or "DeLis") (December 6, 1924 – January 17, 2009) was an American film actress best known for her leading role as Christine in the 1943 film version of Phantom of the Opera.
Foster was born in Chicago, Illinois, and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She was taken to Hollywood at the age of twelve by MGM, who sent her to school and groomed her for an acting and singing career. Two of her classmates at this school were Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland. She claimed the high point of being at MGM was meeting her idol Jeanette MacDonald and Clark Gable, who treated her like "the Queen of England." Foster was originally slated to star in the MGM production of B Above High C, a film that was never made. The movie's title referred to the top of her vocal register.
After hiring agent Milo Marchetti, Foster was signed by Paramount Pictures where she began to study voice for the first time with Marchetti's sister Gilda. She made her first film at fourteen years of age where she was introduced as 'Susanna Foster' in The Great Victor Herbert (1939) opposite Mary Martin and Allan Jones. She took the name "Susanna" from the song Oh Susanna, and Foster from its writer Stephen_Foster.
After seeing Foster in The Great Victor Herbert, William Randolph Hearst flew her to his 67,000-acre (270 km2) estate Wyntoon for a private recital for him and Marion Davies. The following year for Paramount she appeared in There's Magic in Music opposite Allan Jones and Glamour Boy opposite Jackie Cooper. She then signed with Universal Studios, where she portrayed the ingénue in the 1943 film version of the Gothic melodrama Phantom of the Opera opposite Nelson Eddy and Claude Rains. The film garnered two Academy Awards and was Universal's biggest money-maker that year. Hearst columnist Louella Parsons, who had the power and reputation to make or break stars, stated, “Susanna Foster establishes herself as one of the great stars of today.” She became so popular the studio set her on a meteoric rise with back-to-back pictures during the years 1943 to 1945, including Star Spangled Rhythm, Top Man, This Is the Life, The Climax, Bowery to Broadway, Frisco Sal, and That Night With You.
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