Vivian Dandridge

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Vivian Dandridge
Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Other names
  • Marina Rozell
  • Vivian Stead[1]
  • Vivian Dandridge–Friedrich
  • Occupations
    • Actress
    • singer
    • dancer
    Years active1933–1970
    Spouses
    Jack Montgomery
    (m. 1942; div. 1943)
    Warren Bracken
    (m. 1945; ann. 1945)
    Ralph Bledsoe
    (m. 1946; div. 1948)
    Forace Stead
    (m. 1951; div. 1953)
    Gustav Friedrich
    (m. 1958; div. 1968)
    PartnerEmmett "Babe" Wallace
    Children1
    Parent
    FamilyNayo Wallace (granddaughter)
    Dorothy Dandridge (sister)

    Vivian Alferetta Dandridge (April 22, 1921 – October 26, 1991) was an American

    dancer. Dandridge is best known for being the older sister of actress and singer Dorothy Dandridge and the daughter of actress Ruby Dandridge. Dandridge was a member of the Dandridge Sisters
    musical group, along with Etta Jones and Dorothy Dandridge from 1934 until the group disbanded in 1940. Dandridge went on to appear in minor roles on films and television from 1940 through the early 1960s. She never really achieved the same notable success as her younger sister, and Vivian Dandridge disappeared from the public eye by 1970. Dandridge died after suffering a stroke on October 26, 1991, at age 70.

    Early life and career

    Dandridge was born in

    Cleveland, Ohio, to Cyril Dandridge,[2][3] and the former Ruby Jean Butler, an aspiring entertainer. Dandridge's parents separated shortly before the birth of her sister Dorothy.[4] Initially, Ruby Dandridge put her two girls to work performing acrobatics, songs, and skits. She billed them as the "Wonder Children". Realizing the potential success of her girls (and acknowledging her chance of stardom in the entertainment industry was at best, limited), Ruby and her girlfriend Geneva Williams decided to have her daughters embark on a tour of the United States. Under Neva's tutelage, the Wonder Children earned $400–$500 per appearance during the late 1920s, touring through Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia
    and many other states. Neva accompanied the girls on piano as well as acted as their manager and was a particularly aggressive disciplinarian. Both Dorothy and Vivian suffered from her angry outbursts, which were frequent and severe.

    Because their income was more important to the family than their education, Dorothy and Vivian did not attend regular classes at school until the 8th grade, instead relying on tutors (since they were the primary breadwinners of the family). After the stock market crash in 1929, the Wonder Children were added to the long list of the unemployed. Ruby Dandridge, still clinging to the hopes of a film career for herself and her daughters, bought four bus tickets and moved the family to Los Angeles. After immersing herself into the professional community of black Hollywood, Ruby found limited opportunities for herself or her girls. After Clarence Muse, a working black actor in Hollywood (who befriended the family) told Ruby that her daughters were unlikely to meet with success in California, she enrolled them in a dancing school run by Laurette Butler.

    The Dandridge Sisters

    In California, the Dandridge daughters befriended another girl, Etta Jones, and began to sing together.

    Hollywood
    films. Dorothy detested life on the road and was certain she could find bigger success as a dramatic actress. This left Vivian in a desperate financial situation. She attempted to find work in clubs, but many were not interested. She did, however, find employment as an occasional actress in films but did not achieve the same level of success as her sister Dorothy.

    Solo career, Film and television

    Dandridge appeared in some minor film roles: she co-starred with Frances Dee as native girl Melisse in the 1943 classic I Walked with a Zombie and appeared alongside her sister in 1953's Bright Road, where she played a small role of schoolteacher Ms. Nelson (she was uncredited in both films) and acted as Dorothy's hairdresser on the film. She appeared with the Dandridge Sisters in musical sequences of the films The Big Broadcast of 1936 (with George Burns and Gracie Allen), A Day at the Races (with the Marx Brothers), It Can't Last Forever (with Ralph Bellamy and Betty Furness), Irene (with Ray Milland, Anna Neagle, and Billie Burke) and Going Places (with Louis Armstrong and Maxine Sullivan). She also appeared in the soundie Snow Gets in Your Eyes as a member of the Dandridge Sisters and as the voice of "So White" in the controversial cartoon Coal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs opposite her mother Ruby Dandridge. Dandridge appeared as an uncredited extra in 1943's Stormy Weather. In the summer of 1955, Dandridge replaced Thelma Carpenter in the Broadway play Ankles Aweigh. She moved to the Alvin Hotel in New York City, but after this engagement she largely disappeared from show business. Dandridge attended the Academy Awards in 1955 with Dorothy Dandridge when Dorothy was nominated for Best Actress for her role in Carmen Jones.

    Disappearance

    By 1956, friends and family members were concerned for the welfare of Dandridge, as she moved away and went into seclusion. Her sister Dorothy hired a

    telegram
    , Dorothy and Vivian remained estranged. Upon Dorothy's death in 1965, Dandridge could not bear to attend the funeral. Instead, she disappeared from the public eye.

    Solo recording

    In 1968, Vivian signed a recording contract with Jubilee Records and released a jazz LP, The Look of Love, that same year. The album was produced by Bob Stephens and conducted by Charles Coleman, and included such tracks as "Love is Blue", "Try to Remember", "Sunny", "Strange Fruit", and "Lover Man". On the cover, Vivian is lying on a sofa, looking pensive while holding a snifter of brandy. The album was not successful.

    The Look of Love

    No.TitleWriter(s)Length
    1."
    Roger "Ram" Ramirez and James Sherman
    2:20
    10."Trav'lin' Light"Trummy Young and Jimmy Mundy2:30
    11."You Don't Know What Love Is"Don Raye and Gene de Paul3:10
    12."Lover, Come Back to Me"Sigmund Romberg and Oscar Hammerstein II2:15

    Personal life, death and legacy

    Dandridge, under the alias "Marina Rozell," later settled in

    heart attack in 1987. Dandridge's granddaughter, Nayo Wallace, is also an actress, appearing on television series, film and on Broadway
    .

    References

    1. ^ "Dandridge Popular At Hollywood Studio". Google Books. JET Magazine/Johnson Publishing Company. September 4, 1952. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
    2. ^ "Ohio Deaths 1908–1932, 1938–1944, and 1958–2002 [database on-line]". United States: The Generations Network. Retrieved May 2, 2009.
    3. ^ "Social Security Death Index [database on-line]". United States: The Generations Network. Retrieved May 2, 2009.
    4. .
    5. ^ "Dorothy Dandridge." Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2nd ed., vol. 18, Gale, 2004, pp. 112-114. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3404707146/GVRL?u=txshracd2598&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=45488943. Accessed 20 July 2022.
    6. ^ Johnson, John H., ed. (December 10, 1953). "Singer Vivian Dandridge wins divorce". Jet. 5 (5). Chicago, Illinois: Johnson Publishing Company, Inc.: 15.
    7. ^ "California Birth Index, 1905–1995 [database on-line]". United States: The Generations Network. Retrieved October 17, 2009.

    External links