ANITA PAGE

'Anita Pomares' better known as 'Anita Page' (born August 4 1910) is an American film actress and one of the few known living persons who was an adult (albeit young) star of silent films (Barbara Kent, Dorothy Janis, and Miriam Seegar are among the handful of others). She is also the last person alive who was in attendance at the very first Academy Awards in 1929.

Contents

Rise to stardom

Retirement

Filmography

External links

Rise to stardom

Page entered films in ''A Kiss For Cinderella'' 1925, and after a few small but well received parts, was offered a contract with MGM Studios. MGM moulded her into one of their biggest female stars of the silent era, pairing her with such popular actors as Ramon Novarro and William Haines. Her performances in ''Our Dancing Daughters'' (1928) opposite Joan Crawford (with whom she appeared in three films), and ''The Broadway Melody'' (1929) opposite Bessie Love were her greatest successes of the period, and her popularity allowed her to make a smooth transition into talking pictures.
She was the leading lady to Buster Keaton, Robert Montgomery, and Clark Gable (among others) and during the early 1930s, she was one of Hollywood's busiest actresses. She was involved briefly with Gable romantically during that time. At the height of her popularity, she was receiving more fan mail than any other female star, with the exception of Greta Garbo, and received multiple marriage proposals from Benito Mussolini in the mail.
One of her finest roles was as the prostitute, Jenny LeGrand, in the 1932 pre-Code movie, ''Skyscraper Souls'', which starred Warren William and a young Maureen O'Sullivan.
Her body was featured in a poster labeling her "The Ideal Movie Star", which discussed her body parts and measurements, and another actress who possessed one comparable for each.

Retirement

When her contract expired in 1933, she surprised Hollywood by announcing her retirement at the age of 23. She made one more movie (in the UK in 1936), and then left the screen, virtually disappearing from Hollywood circles for 60 years.
In a 2004 interview with author Scott Feinberg, she revealed that her refusal to meet demands for sexual favors by MGM head of production Irving Thalberg, supported by studio chief Louis B. Mayer, is what truly ended her career. She said that Mayer colluded with the other studio bosses to ban her and other uncooperative actresses from finding work.
She married composer Nacio Herb Brown that same year but their marriage was dissolved a year later. She married Admiral Hershel A. House in 1937 and they moved to Coronado, California and lived there until his death in 1991. They had two daughters, the elder of whom, Sandra, predeceased Anita.
She returned to the screen in 1996 after sixty years retirement and has since appeared in several low budget horror films, several of which appeared to have been uncompleted or not released. Surprisingly, film veteran Margaret O'Brien appeared in two of them.
Anita Page has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contributions to Motion Pictures, at 6116 Hollywood Boulevard.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Other notes
2004	''Bob's Night Out''	Socialite	Filmed in 1997
2002	''The Crawling Brain''	Grandma Anita Kroger
2000	''Witchcraft XI: Sister's in Blood''	Sister Seraphina
1996	''Sunset After Dark''	unknown
1936	''Hitchhike to Heaven''	Claudia Revelle
1933	''I Have Lived''	Jean St. Clair
	'' The Big Cage''	Lilian Langley
	''Soldiers of the Storm''	Natalie
	''Jungle Bride''	Doris Evans
1932	''Prosperity''	Helen Praskins Warren
	''Skyscraper Souls''	Jenny LeGrande
	''Night Court''	Mary Thomas
	''Are You Listening?''	Sally O'Neil
1931	''Under 18''	Sophie
	''Sidewalks of New York''	Margie Kelly
	''Gentleman's Fate''	Ruth
	''The Easiest Way''	Peg Murdock Feliki
	''Reducing''	Vivian Truffle
1930	''War Nurse''	Joy Meadows
	''Little Accident''	Isabel
	''Our Blushing Brides''	Connie Blair
	''Caught Short''	Genevieve Jones
	''Free and Easy''	Elvira Plunkett
1929	''Navy Blues''	Alice Brown
	''Speedway''	Patricia
	''Our Modern Maidens''	Kentucky Stafford
	''The Broadway Melody''	Queenie Mahoney
	''The Flying Fleet''	Anita Hastings
1928	''While the City Sleeps''	Myrtle
	''Our Dancing Daughters''	Ann 'Annikins'
	''Telling the World''	Chrystal Malone
1926	''Love 'Em and Leave 'Em''	extra	uncredited
1925	''A Kiss for Cinderella''	extra	uncredited

External links

★ Official Web Site

★

★ Anita Page Photo Gallery

★ Anita Page at Golden Silents

★ Guardian Interview with Anita Page

★ Photographs of Anita Page