Virginia Bruce (born Helen Virginia Briggs; September , â€" February
, ) was an American actress and singer.Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota,
Virginia as an infant moved with her parents, Earil and Margaret
Briggs, to Fargo, North Dakota. The city directory of Fargo documents
that the Briggs family lived there at th Street South. After Virginia
graduated from Fargo Central High School in , she moved with her
family to Los Angeles intending to enroll in the University of
California, Los Angeles when a friendly wager sent her seeking film
work. Her first screen work was in as an extra for Paramount in Why
Bring That Up? In she appeared on Broadway in the musical Smiles at
the Ziegfeld Theatre, followed by another Broadway production,
America's Sweetheart, in .Bruce returned to Hollywood in , where at
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in early August she began work on the film Kongo
starring Walter Huston. During production on that project, on August ,
she married John Gilbert with whom she had recently costarred in
another MGM film, Downstairs. The entertainment trade paper The Film
Daily reported that the couple's "quick" wedding was held in Gilbert's
dressing room on the studio lot. Among the people attending the small
ceremony were the head of MGM production Irving Thalberg, who served
as the groom's best man; screenwriter Donald Ogden Stewart, whose wife
Beatrice acted as matron of honor; MGM art director and set designer
Cedric Gibbons; and his wife, actress Dolores del RÃo. Bruce retired
briefly from acting after the birth of their daughter Susan Ann,
although she returned to a hectic schedule of film appearances after
her divorce from Gilbert in May . Gilbert died two years later.Bruce
is credited with introducing the Cole Porter standard "I've Got You
Under My Skin" in the film Born to Dance. That same year she
costarred in the MGM musical The Great Ziegfeld. She also performed
periodically on radio. In , for example, Bruce starred in Make Believe
Town, a -minute afternoon drama broadcast daily on CBS Radio. Much
later, in the early s, the veteran actress retired from films but
emerged from retirement in for a final screen appearance, portraying
the title character in Madame Wang's, a "bizarre" production directed
by Paul Morrissey in association with Andy Warhol.
, ) was an American actress and singer.Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota,
Virginia as an infant moved with her parents, Earil and Margaret
Briggs, to Fargo, North Dakota. The city directory of Fargo documents
that the Briggs family lived there at th Street South. After Virginia
graduated from Fargo Central High School in , she moved with her
family to Los Angeles intending to enroll in the University of
California, Los Angeles when a friendly wager sent her seeking film
work. Her first screen work was in as an extra for Paramount in Why
Bring That Up? In she appeared on Broadway in the musical Smiles at
the Ziegfeld Theatre, followed by another Broadway production,
America's Sweetheart, in .Bruce returned to Hollywood in , where at
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in early August she began work on the film Kongo
starring Walter Huston. During production on that project, on August ,
she married John Gilbert with whom she had recently costarred in
another MGM film, Downstairs. The entertainment trade paper The Film
Daily reported that the couple's "quick" wedding was held in Gilbert's
dressing room on the studio lot. Among the people attending the small
ceremony were the head of MGM production Irving Thalberg, who served
as the groom's best man; screenwriter Donald Ogden Stewart, whose wife
Beatrice acted as matron of honor; MGM art director and set designer
Cedric Gibbons; and his wife, actress Dolores del RÃo. Bruce retired
briefly from acting after the birth of their daughter Susan Ann,
although she returned to a hectic schedule of film appearances after
her divorce from Gilbert in May . Gilbert died two years later.Bruce
is credited with introducing the Cole Porter standard "I've Got You
Under My Skin" in the film Born to Dance. That same year she
costarred in the MGM musical The Great Ziegfeld. She also performed
periodically on radio. In , for example, Bruce starred in Make Believe
Town, a -minute afternoon drama broadcast daily on CBS Radio. Much
later, in the early s, the veteran actress retired from films but
emerged from retirement in for a final screen appearance, portraying
the title character in Madame Wang's, a "bizarre" production directed
by Paul Morrissey in association with Andy Warhol.
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