1903-09-13 Saint-Mandé, Val-de-Marne, France
Claudette Colbert (September 13, 1903 — July 30, 1996) was an American actress. Born Emilie Claudette Chauchoin in Saint-Mandé, Val-de-Marne, France, she was brought to the United States as a child three years later and went to high school in New York. While studying at the Art Students League when, in 1923, she took the name Claudette Colbert for her first Broadway role in "The Wild Westcotts". Her most noteworthy stage vehicle was the "The Barker" in 1927. Her first film was a silent For the Love of Mike (1927), directed by Frank Capra. Made on a shoestring, the movie was a flop, and she vowed that it would be her last film role: "I only left Broadway when the crash came. The Depression killed the theater, and the pictures were manna from heaven". She had her first film success the next year, however, in The Lady Lies (1929). Her early notable films were all box-office hits and included Cleopatra (1934), in which she played the title role enticingly. She had her greatest triumph playing a runaway heiress, with enormous charm, opposite Clark Gable in Capra's comedy It Happened One Night (1934), for which she won the Academy Award as Best Actress. By 1938 her keen ability in business made her the highest paid star in Hollywood. By 1950, though, her star had begun to wane. She returned to the stage in 1956 when she replaced Margaret Sullavan during the spring and summer in the comedy "Janus". Appearances in other Broadway productions followed, including "The Marriage-Go-Round". Besides the stage, she did TV specials and had a supporting role in a notable TV movie, The Two Mrs. Grenvilles (1987), for which she received a Golden Globe award. In 1989 she was presented with a Life Achievement award from the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. She married actor Norman Foster in 1928, although they never lived together and were divorced after seven years. She married surgeon Dr. Joel Pressman soon after and remained married until his death in 1968. In latter years she divided her time between an apartment in New York and a 200-year-old plantation house in Speightstown, Barbados, where she entertained such guests as Frank Sinatra and Ronald Reagan. She remained on Barbados Island after her stroke. On July 30, 1996, Claudette died in Speightstown, Barbados. She was 92.
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Complicated Women | Self (archive footage) | 2003-05-06 |
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Frank Capra Jr. Remembers: 'It Happened One Night' | Self (archive footage) | 1999-12-27 |
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The Silver Screen: Color Me Lavender | Self (archive footage) | 1997-11-01 |
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That's Entertainment! III | (archive footage) | 1994-07-01 |
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Parrish | Ellen McLean | 1961-05-04 |
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The Comedian | Self (intro) | 1957-02-14 |
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One Coat of White | Betsy Gregg | 1957-02-21 |
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Blithe Spirit | Ruth Condomine | 1956-01-14 |
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Texas Lady | Prudence Webb | 1955-11-23 |
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Destinées | Elizabeth Whitefield (segment "Elisabeth") | 1954-01-21 |
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Si Versailles m'était conté | Mrs. de Montespan | 1954-02-10 |
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The Planter's Wife | Liz Frazer | 1952-12-04 |
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Let's Make It Legal | Miriam Halsworth | 1951-10-31 |
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Thunder on the Hill | Sister Mary Bonaventure | 1951-10-17 |
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Three Came Home | Agnes Newton Keith | 1950-02-20 |
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The Secret Fury | Ellen Ewing | 1950-02-21 |
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Bride for Sale | Nora Shelley | 1949-11-12 |
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Family Honeymoon | Katie Armstrong Jordan | 1948-12-06 |
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Sleep, My Love | Alison Courtland | 1948-02-18 |
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The Egg and I | Betty MacDonald | 1947-05-01 |
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Tomorrow Is Forever | Elizabeth Hamilton | 1946-02-20 |
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The Secret Heart | Lee Addams | 1946-12-25 |
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Without Reservations | Kit Madden | 1946-05-13 |
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Guest Wife | Mary Price | 1945-07-27 |
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Since You Went Away | Mrs. Anne Hilton | 1944-06-30 |
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Practically Yours | Peggy Martin | 1944-12-20 |
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So Proudly We Hail | Lt. Janet 'Davy' Davidson | 1943-09-09 |
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No Time for Love | Katherine Grant | 1943-04-09 |
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The Palm Beach Story | Geraldine 'Gerry' Jeffers | 1942-08-28 |
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Hedda Hopper’s Hollywood No. 6 | Herself | 1942-10-05 |
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Skylark | Lydia Kenyon | 1941-11-21 |
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Remember the Day | Nora Trinell | 1941-12-25 |
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Cavalcade of the Academy Awards | Self (archive footage) | 1940-07-31 |
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Hollywood: Style Center of the World | Self | 1940-05-29 |
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Boom Town | Betsy Bartlett | 1940-08-30 |
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Arise, My Love | Augusta Nash | 1940-11-08 |
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Drums Along the Mohawk | Lana (Magdelana) | 1939-11-10 |
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It's a Wonderful World | Edwina Corday | 1939-05-19 |
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Midnight | Eve Peabody | 1939-03-24 |
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Zaza | Zaza | 1938-12-29 |
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Hollywood Goes to Town | Self | 1938-07-07 |
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Breakdowns of 1938 | Tatiana (archive footage) (uncredited) | 1938-12-31 |
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Bluebeard's 8th Wife | Nicole De Loiselle | 1938-03-25 |
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Tovarich | Grand Duchess Tatiana Petrovna Romanov | 1937-12-25 |
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I Met Him in Paris | Kay Denham | 1937-05-28 |
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Maid of Salem | Barbara Clarke | 1937-02-12 |
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Under Two Flags | Cigarette | 1936-04-30 |
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The Fashion Side of Hollywood | Self | 1935-11-04 |
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The Bride Comes Home | Jeannette Desmereau | 1935-12-25 |
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She Married Her Boss | Julia Scott | 1935-09-19 |
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The Gilded Lily | Marilyn David | 1935-01-25 |
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Private Worlds | Dr. Jane Everest | 1935-04-19 |
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Imitation of Life | Beatrice 'Bea' Pullman | 1934-11-23 |
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It Happened One Night | Ellie Andrews | 1934-02-22 |
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Cleopatra | Cleopatra | 1934-10-05 |
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Four Frightened People | Judy Jones | 1934-01-26 |
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Torch Singer | Sally Trent, aka Mimi Benton | 1933-09-08 |
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Three Cornered Moon | Elizabeth Rimplegar | 1933-08-04 |
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Tonight Is Ours | Princess Nadya | 1933-01-21 |
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I Cover the Waterfront | Julie Kirk | 1933-05-19 |
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The Misleading Lady | Helen Steele | 1932-04-15 |
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The Phantom President | Felicia Hammond | 1932-09-23 |
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The Sign of the Cross | Empress Poppaea | 1932-11-30 |
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The Wiser Sex | Margaret Hughes | 1932-03-14 |
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The Man from Yesterday | Sylvia Suffolk | 1932-06-24 |
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Make Me a Star | Claudette Colbert (uncredited) | 1932-07-01 |
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The House That Shadows Built | (archive footage) | 1931-07-08 |
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The Smiling Lieutenant | Franzi | 1931-08-01 |
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Secrets of a Secretary | Helen Blake | 1931-09-05 |
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Honor Among Lovers | Julia Traynor | 1931-03-21 |
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His Woman | Sally Clark | 1931-11-20 |
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Manslaughter | Lydia Thorne | 1930-07-22 |
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Young Man of Manhattan | Ann Vaughn | 1930-04-19 |
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The Big Pond | Barbara Billings | 1930-05-03 |
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The Hole in the Wall | Jean Oliver | 1929-04-27 |
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The Lady Lies | Joyce Roamer | 1929-09-21 |
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For the Love of Mike | Mary | 1927-07-31 |
