Today marks what would have been the 80th wedding anniversary of Ann Dvorak and Leslie Fenton.
On the morning of March 17, 1932, Ann and Leslie boarded a chartered plane from what is now the Bob Hope airport in Burbank, and flew to Yuma, Arizona. They were married by noon. Instead of flying back home immediately, they took a detour to the Agua Caliente resort in Mexico but did not tell anyone. When the couple did not show up at the expected time, and reports of a plane crash started appearing, the worst was feared. The newlyweds finally arrived in the early evening and were greeted by friends, family, and press photographers.
They marriage would last 14 years and during that time, Fenton would prove to have a great deal of influence over his wife. Ann’s pre-War years with Fenton did seem to be her happiest and most secure, and the day she eloped was probably one of the most memorable of her life.
Happy anniversary Ann & Leslie!
I have been a big fan of Tom Tierney’s paper doll books since I was a kid, when my grandma bought me his Vivien Leigh collection. I am now an even bigger fan of Mr. Tierney after coming across his “Movie Mobsters” paper dolls and discovering he included Ann Dvorak as Cesca Camonte in Scarface! The book was published in May of 2011, and how it could have not landed on my Ann-D radar for almost an entire year is a mystery. Oh how I wish I had Mr. Tierney’s talent, so I could create an entire paper doll book devoted to Ann and include such costumes as the “Fish Dress” from Midnight Court, the bird-like thing from Sweet Music, and the poofy-sleeved monstrosity from Merrily We Live.
This delighted me so much that I had to share. OK, back to writing the biography.
(Images reproduced with permission from Tom-Kat Paper Dolls.)
The Strange Love of Molly Louvain is going to air on Turner Classic Movies on Tuesday, March 6th at 8:15 PST.
Click here to see my previous comments about The Strange Love of Molly Louvain.
If you have not seen this one, it’s an Ann Dvorak must!