Maria Montez
| María Montez | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
María África Gracia Vidal 6 June 1912 Barahona, Dominican Republic |
| Died | 7 September 1951 (aged 39) Suresnes, France |
| Cause of death | Heart attack and drowning |
| Resting place | Cimetière du Montparnasse |
| Occupation | actress |
| Years active | 1940–1951 |
| Spouse(s) |
William McFeeters (m. 1932; div. 1939) Jean-Pierre Aumont (m. 1943–51) |
| Children | Tina Aumont |
| Awards | Order of Merit of Juan Pablo Duarte (1943) |
María África Gracia Vidal aka The Queen of Technicolor (6 June 1912 – 7 September 1951) was a Dominican motion picture actress who gained fame and popularity in the 1940s as an exotic beauty starring in a series of filmed-in-Technicolor costume adventure films. Her screen image was that of a hot-blooded Latin seductress, dressed in fanciful costumes and sparkling jewels. She became so identified with these adventure epics that she became known as "The Queen of Technicolor". Over her career, Montez appeared in 26 films, 21 of which were made in North America and five in Europe.
Montez was born María Antonia García Vidal de Santo Silas (some sources cite María África Gracia Vidal or María África Antonia García Vidal de Santo Silas as her birth name) in Barahona, Dominican Republic. She was one of ten children born to Ysidoro García, who worked as the Spanish consul in Dominican Republic, and his wife Teresa. Montez was educated at the Sacred Heart Convent in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. In the mid-1930s, her father was appointed to the Spanish consulship in Belfast, Northern Ireland where the family moved. It was there that Montez met her first husband, William G. McFeeters, whom she married at age 17. In the book, "Maria Montez, Su Vida" by Margarita Vicens de Morales, 2003 edition, on page 26, there is a copy of Maria Montez birth certificate proving that her original name was Maria Africa Gracia Vidal. Her father's name was Isidoro Gracia (not Garcia) and her mother's name was Teresa Vidal. On page 54, there is a copy of a fake biography made by Universal Pictures, where it says that Maria Montez was educated in Tenerife and that she lived in Ireland, which was never true. Maria Montez lived the first 27 years of her life in the Dominican Republic.
Montez was spotted by a talent scout while visiting New York. Her first film was The Invisible Woman (1940). It was made for Universal Pictures, who signed her to a long term contract starting at $150 a week.
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