From Being A Gay Icon To Going Against Charles Manson, 5 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Angela Lansbury
British actress Angela Lansbury who starred in the Broadway musicals Mame and Gypsy and solved numerous crimes as crime novelist Jessica Fletcher in the popular Television show Murder, She Wrote, has passed away at the age of 96. Her three children released a statement confirming that she passed away on Tuesday at her Los Angeles home five days before turning 97. She developed one of television’s most beloved characters, featured in renowned theatre performances, played strong women in films, sang the theme song for the animated picture Beauty and the Beast, and was named a dame by Queen Elizabeth II throughout the course of her 75-year career. While these are all facts you might have already known about this legend, there are some facts that aren’t that commonly known about Angela Lansbury, and here are some of them.
1. Angela Lansbury was discovered while she was a salesperson
All the leads, including Ingrid Bergman, Charles Boyer, and Joseph Cotton, were cast when MGM released the noir movie Gaslight in 1943. But the studio struggled to cast Nancy, the sly, flirtatious maid, until a member of the creative team, happened to see a young Lansbury working as a salesperson at Bullock’s department store. The director, George Cukor, was sufficiently impressed by the 17-year-old Lansberry’s screen test enough to cast her despite her lack of prior film experience. Angela Lansbury’s role attracted attention. She received a contract with MGM as well as her first Oscar nomination for the part.
Imagine single-handedly fending off a Nazi invasion using witchcraft and that not even being your most iconic or best remembered role. Angela Lansbury had the range. pic.twitter.com/VNyASfOgGe
— Philip Ellis (@Philip_Ellis) October 11, 2022
2. Angela Lansbury was considered a gay icon
Lansbury received a Golden Globe Award for The Picture of Dorian Gray, which was based on the novel of Oscar Wilde, the quintessential gay man, and was nominated for an Oscar the same. Lansbury’s theatrical work—starting with the gay-themed A Taste Of Honey (1961) and continuing with the controversial musical Anyone Can Whistle she worked in a lot of LGBTQ+ themed stories. Lansbury married Richard Cromwell, a fellow actor, when she was 19 years old. When they both learned that he was gay, the marriage ended after just a few short months. He had married Lansbury in the futile hope that it would turn him straight, but they stayed friends until his death. Lansbury was taken around Hollywood’s underground gay culture after befriending a bunch of gay guys. Many renowned gay artists’ works, including those by Sondheim, Arthur Laurents, Coward, Herman, Vidal, Cukor, and Stephen Rutledge, are frequently linked to Lansbury’s career.
A thing you should know:
In September, 1987, Angela Lansbury headlined a show that packed the Chicago Theater with 2,400 people to raise money for AIDS research. It was the first major AIDS benefit in Chicago, and it raised $1 million. 🧵 pic.twitter.com/lpKHNlGbsu— Rebecca Makkai (@rebeccamakkai) October 11, 2022
Also Read: Queen Elizabeth II’s Death: What Is The Official Protocol To Be Followed Now That The Queen Is Dead?
3. Angela Lansbury’s grandfather was an important political figure
Angela Lansbury’s grandfather was British Labor Party leader and campaigner George Lansbury. From 1932 until 1935, he served as the chairman of the Labour Party in England. He also advocated for women’s rights, which in 1913 also resulted in jail time. Lansbury’s grandpa was a pacifist who led the No More War Movement and served as president of War Resisters International. While doing so, he visited with President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Adolf Hitler.
Angela Lansbury made her film debut in the classic George Cukor film, Gaslight (1944).
This is her very first scene.
She was 18 at the time and working at Bullocks Department store in LA. pic.twitter.com/UUY0t1TrSN
— Danny Deraney (@DannyDeraney) October 11, 2022
4. Angela Lansbury faced a huge loss
Angela Lansbury’s path to fame started with a horrific tragedy. Lansbury was only nine years old when her father passed away due to stomach cancer, leaving her bereft with grief. Lansbury had difficulty handling her father’s death.
Never forget that Angela Lansbury moved her teenager children from California to Ireland to save her daughter from Charles Manson’s cult and help her son get clean from drugs at the risk of losing her career, and they are still alive and well today because she put them first. RIP pic.twitter.com/JMznhwGSld
— Margaret "Molly" Rasberry🏳️🌈 (@RasberryRazz) October 11, 2022
Also Read: ‘Sacred Games’ Actress Elnaaz Norouzi Strips In Solidarity With Iranian Women, Says No One Has The Right To Judge Their Choices
5. Angela Lansbury saved her children from Charles Manson
Charles Manson is already known for being a predator toward children. So when Lansburg’s children had gotten addicted to drugs because of Manson’s influence, Lansburg made the decision to take her children and move to Ireland to keep them away from Manson.
Angela Lansbury was a gay icon and a brilliant actress who was way ahead of her time. She made an impact on Hollywood and also a lot of people who grew up in a time when being from the LGBTQ+ community was looked down upon. Till this day, she is considered to be a gay icon for very justifiable reasons.
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