Acquanetta
| Acquanetta | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
Burnu Acquanetta July 17, 1921 Cheyenne, Wyoming, U.S. or Newberry, SC, U.S. |
| Died | August 16, 2004 (aged 83) Ahwatukee, Arizona, U.S. |
| Other names | Mildred Davenport |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1942–1953 |
| Spouse(s) | Luciano Bashuk Henry Clive Jack Ross |
| Children | Sergio Bashuk, Lance Ross |
| Parent(s) | William and Julia Davenport |
Acquanetta (July 17, 1921 – August 16, 2004), nicknamed "The Venezuelan Volcano," was a B-movie actress known for her exotic beauty.
The facts of Acquanetta's origins are not known with certainty. Although accounts differ (some giving her birth-name as Mildred Davenport, from Norristown, PA), Acquanetta claimed she was born Burnu Acquanetta, meaning “Burning Fire/Deep Water”, in Ozone, Wyoming. Orphaned from her Arapaho parents when she was two, she lived briefly with another family before being taken in by an artistic couple with whom she remained until she made the choice to live independently at the age of fifteen. Other accounts suggest her ethnicity was African American; her career was followed closely by the African American press.
According to the 1940 US Census, she had 5 siblings, including a sister, Kathryn Davenport, and a brother, Horace Davenport, who was, according to the Pennsylvania Bar Association, "the first African-American judge in Montgomery County."
Acquanetta started her career as a model in New York City with Harry Conover and John Robert Powers. She signed with Universal Studios in 1942 and acted mostly in B-movies, including Arabian Nights, The Sword of Monte Cristo, Captive Wild Woman and Jungle Woman, in which Universal attempted to create a female monster movie franchise with Acquanetta as an ape.
After her contract with Universal expired, Acquanetta signed on with Monogram Pictures but did not appear in any movies; she then signed with RKO where she acted in her only big-budget movie, Tarzan and the Leopard Woman.
In 1948, Acquanetta and “Mexican-Jewish millionaire” Luciano Bashuk had a son, Sergio, who died in 1952 at age 4, after the couple's bitter divorce in 1950, where she lost her suit for half his fortune when no record of their marriage could be produced.
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