Sigrid Gurie
Sigrid Gurie | |
---|---|
Born | Sigrid Guri Haukelid May 18, 1911 New York City, U.S. |
Died | August 14, 1969 Mexico City, Mexico | (aged 58)
Years active | 1937–1950 |
Spouse(s) | Thomas Stewart (1935–c. 1938) (divorced) Dr. Lawrence Spangard (1939–1948) (divorced) Lynn Abbott (1958–1961) (divorced) |
Relatives | Knut Haukelid (brother) |
Sigrid Gurie (born Sigrid Guri Haukelid, May 18, 1911 – August 14, 1969) was an American actress from the late 1930s to early 1940s.[1]
Early life[]
Gurie was born in Brooklyn, New York. Her father was a civil engineer who worked for the New York City Subway from 1902 to 1912. Since Sigrid Gurie and her twin brother Knut Haukelid were born in the United States, the twins held dual Norwegian-American citizenship. In 1914 the family returned to Norway. Sigrid Gurie subsequently grew up in Oslo and was educated in Norway, Sweden, and Belgium.[2] In 1935 Gurie married Thomas Stewart of California; she filed for divorce in 1938.[3] Her brother became a noted member of the Norwegian resistance movement during World War II.[4]
Career[]
This section needs additional citations for verification. (April 2020) |
In 1936, Gurie arrived in Hollywood. Film magnate Sam Goldwyn reportedly took credit for discovering her, promoting his discovery as "the Norwegian Garbo" and billed her as "the siren of the fjords". She starred as Kokashin, daughter of Kublai Khan, in the 1938 production of The Adventures of Marco Polo,[3] When the press discovered Gurie's birth in Flatbush, Goldwyn then claimed "the greatest hoax in movie history." She was then scapegoated for the film's failure
She went on to give worthwhile performances in such films as Algiers (1938), Three Faces West (1940) and Voice in the Wind (1944). She had a minor role in the classic Norwegian film Kampen om tungtvannet (1948). The movie was based principally on the book Skis Against the Atom which was written by her brother,[5] Knut Haukelid, a noted saboteur and member of the Norwegian resistance against German occupation in World War II.
Later years and death[]
This section does not cite any sources. (April 2020) |
In the late 1940s she attended the Kann Art Institute, operated in West Hollywood by abstract artist Frederick I. Kann (1886–1965). She studied oils and portraiture. Among her works were landscapes, portraits and pen and ink sketches.
From 1961-69 she lived in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, where she continued painting, and was also designing jewelry for Royal Copenhagen in Denmark.
She entered the hospital in Mexico City on an emergency basis for a recurring kidney problem, then developed a blood clot that passed through her lungs, which led to her death.
Filmography[]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1937 | The Road Back | Soldier's wife | Uncredited |
1938 | Algiers | Ines | |
1938 | The Adventures of Marco Polo | Princess Kukachin | |
1939 | The Forgotten Woman | Anne Kennedy | |
1939 | Rio | Irene Reynard | |
1940 | Three Faces West | Leni "Lenchen" Braun | |
1940 | Dark Streets of Cairo | Ellen Stephens | |
1944 | Voice in the Wind | Marya | |
1944 | Enemy of Women | Magda Quandt | |
1948 | Kampen om tungtvannet (released internationally as Operation Swallow: The Battle for Heavy Water) |
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1948 | Sword of the Avenger | Maria Louisa | |
1948 | Sofia | Linda Carlsen | |
1950 | The Du Pont Story | Sophie du Pont |
References[]
- ^ "Sigrid Gurie". Store norske leksikon. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
- ^ "Sigrid Gurie: Norwegian American Actress". lawzone.com. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
- ^ Jump up to: a b ""The Flower of Flatbush" Makes Good: Sigrid Gurie loves Gary Cooper in "Marco Polo"". Life. 1938-04-18. p. 29. Retrieved November 28, 2011.
- ^ "WW II 'Hero of Telemark' Knut Haukelid dead at 82". Santa Cruz Sentinel. California, Santa Cruz. Associated Press. March 11, 1994. p. D - 6. Retrieved October 21, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Knut Haukelid". Store norske leksikon. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
External links[]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sigrid Gurie. |
- Sigrid Gurie at IMDb
- Sigrid Gurie at AllMovie
- Sigrid Gurie at the TCM Movie Database
- Sigrid Gurie at Find a Grave
- 1911 births
- 1969 deaths
- People from Brooklyn
- American people of Norwegian descent
- 20th-century American actresses
- Twin people from Norway
- American expatriates in Mexico