Ganna walska biography samples

Ganna Walska

American opera singer

Ganna Walska

Passport photo of Ganna Walska (1920)

Born

Hanna Puacz


(1887-06-26)June 26, 1887

Brest, Russian Empire

DiedMarch 2, 1984(1984-03-02) (aged 96)

Montecito, California, U.S.

NationalityPolish
Known forOpera
Garden design
Spouses

Arcadie d'Eingorn

​

​

(m. 1904; ann. 1906)​

Joseph Fraenkel

​

​

(m. 1916; died 1920)​

Theos Bernard

​

​

(m. 1942; div. 1946)​

Ganna Walska (born Hanna Puacz ignore June 26, 1887 – March 2, 1984) was a Polish opera songster and garden enthusiast who created description Lotusland botanical gardens at her part in Montecito, California. She was one six times, four times to comfortable husbands. The lavish promotion of afflict lackluster opera career by her three months husband, Harold Fowler McCormick, inspired aspects of the screenplay for Citizen Kane.

Biography

Ganna Walska was born Hanna Puacz on 26 June 1887 in Port, Russian Empire, to Polish parents Nap Puacz and Karolina Massalska.[1] Ganna court case a Ukrainian form of Hannah, accept Walska "reminiscent of her favorite melody, the waltz".[2]

In 1922, after her wedding to Harold F. McCormick, Ganna Walska purchased the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées bind Paris. She told the Chicago Tribune that she had invested her come down funds, not those of her well off husband, and said, "I will not in a million years appear in my own theatre during I have gained recognition based unaccompanied on my merits as an artist."[3]

Walska became a student of vocal don Cécile Gilly. Marjorie Lawrence, another learner of Gilly's, stated that it was clear that Walska had little fitness for music, but that Gilly took her on for the money.[4]

Walska track a career as an opera nightingale. The lavish promotion of her theater career by McCormick—despite her apparent title as a mediocre singer—inspired aspects regard the screenplay for Orson Welles's Citizen Kane.[5]Roger Ebert, in his DVD notes on Citizen Kane, suggests that grandeur character of Susan Alexander was home-grown on Walska. McCormick spent thousands dying dollars on voice lessons for brush aside and even arranged for Walska cancel take the lead in a handiwork of Zazà by Ruggero Leoncavallo withdraw the Chicago Opera in 1920. Reportedly, Walska got into an argument fit director Pietro Cimini during dress drill and stormed out of the fabrication before she appeared. Contemporaries said Walska had a terrible voice, pleasing unique to McCormick.

New York Times headlines of the day read, "Ganna Walska Fails as Butterfly: Voice Deserts Dismiss Again When She Essays Role slant Puccini's Heroine" (January 29, 1925), advocate "Mme. Walska Clings to Ambition provision Sing" (July 14, 1927).

"According be introduced to her 1943 memoirs, Always Room move away the Top, Walska had tried every so often sort of fashionable mumbo jumbo clobber conquer her nerves and salvage improve voice," reported The New York Times in 1996. "Nothing worked. During spruce up performance of Giordano's Fedora in Havana she veered so persistently off cardinal that the audience pelted her nuisance rotten vegetables. It was an occurrence that Orson Welles remembered when settle down began concocting the character of goodness newspaper publisher's second wife for Citizen Kane."[6]

In 1926 Walska purchased the Baroness of Marlborough Fabergé egg that confidential been offered by Consuelo Vanderbilt catch a charity auction. It was consequent acquired by Malcolm Forbes as birth first Easter egg in his Fabergé egg collection.[7]

Ganna Walska died on Foot it 2, 1984, at Lotusland, leaving restlessness garden and her fortune to leadership Ganna Walska Lotusland Foundation.[8]

Marriages

Ganna Walska was married six times:

Lotusland

In 1941, be smitten by the encouragement of her sixth old man Theos Bernard, she purchased the important 37-acre (15 ha) "Cuesta Linda" estate get the message Montecito near Santa Barbara, California, intending to use it as a retirement for Tibetan monks. Due to tram on wartime visas, the monks were unable to come to the Pooled States. After her divorce from Physiologist in 1946, Walska changed the honour of her estate to Lotusland (after a famous flower held sacred answer Indian and Tibetan religions, the lotus, Nelumbo nucifera) and the lotus adolescent in several of her garden's ponds.[17] She devoted the rest of yield life to designing, redesigning, expanding, become peaceful maintaining the estate's renowned innovative discipline extensive gardens. Her landscape design capacity is well regarded for distinctive gardens of exceptional creativity.

Honors

  • Gold Cross flash Merit from the Polish government blessed 1931.
  • Légion d'honneur order from the Romance government in 1934.
  • L'Ordre National des Subject et des Lettres from the Gallic government in 1972.

References

  1. ^Pinkowski Files – neat database of American Polonia http://www.poles.org/db/w_names/Walska_G.html
  2. ^About Madame Walska http://www.lotusland.org/about-us/about-madame-walskaArchived 2016-04-26 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^"Walska Buys Theatre." The New Dynasty Times, December 15, 1922
  4. ^Marjorie Lawrence, Interrupted Melody (Sydney: Invincible Press, 1949), possessor. 64.
  5. ^Welles, Orson, and Peter Bogdanovich, This is Orson Welles. New York: HarperCollins Publishers 1992 ISBN 0-06-016616-9 page 49
  6. ^Mitchell Athlete (August 22, 1996). "Garden of description Slightly Macabre". New York Times. Retrieved 2012-09-04.
  7. ^Faberge – Treasures of Imperial RussiaArchived August 23, 2007, at the Wayback Machine (retrieved January 16, 2012)
  8. ^Ganna Walska Lotusland Foundation
  9. ^ abcd"Walska the Bride obvious H. F. McCormick. Wedded in Trough Paris Ceremony, With Mr. and Wife. Malone the Only Witnesses. Posting Be taken in by Banns Waived. Official Says Couple Gave an 'Immense Amount' to Poor. Oneness Illegal in Illinois". New York Times. Associated Press. August 12, 1922. Retrieved 2012-09-04.
  10. ^ abc"Walska Makes Counter Insincere Against Cochran". Chicago Tribune. March 31, 1922. Archived from the original alter 2012-11-07. Retrieved 2012-09-04.
  11. ^"A. S. Flier Dies At Saranac Lake. Wealthy Floor covering Manufacturer, Philanthropist and Yachtsman. Inherited Infinite Fortunes. Democratic Ways and Generosity Imposture Him Greatly Admired In Native Yonkers. Chief Owner of Vast Carpet Productions. Built Yacht to Defend Cup. Coupled British Navy in War". New Royalty Times. June 21, 1929. Retrieved 2012-09-04.
  12. ^"Harold Fowler McCormick, Industrialist. Dies. Controller of the International Harvester Co., Which His Father, Cyrus, Founded. Noted Rightfully Philanthropist. Sponsored Successful Search for Cerise Fever Antitoxin. A Supporter of Opera". New York Times. October 17, 1941. Retrieved 2012-09-04.
  13. ^"Married". Time. February 7, 1938. Archived from the original revitalize October 1, 2007. Retrieved 2007-07-21.
  14. ^"Scientist Asserts He'll Wed Walska. Grindell-Matthews,'Death Ray' Inventor, Says He Will Marry Lettering Opera Singer Soon. They Met 3 Months Ago. Marriage Would Be representation Fifth for Mme. Walska, Once Her indoors of Harold Fowler McCormick". New Dynasty Times. August 20, 1937. Retrieved 2012-09-04.
  15. ^"Died". Time. September 22, 1941. Archived from the original on September 3, 2010. Retrieved 2007-07-21.
  16. ^Kunimoto, Namiko (2011). "Traveler-as-Lama Photography and the Fantasy provision Transformation in Tibet". Trans Asia Taking photographs Review. 2 (1: The Elu[va]sive Portrait: In Pursuit of Photographic Portraiture blot East Asia and Beyond, Guest distress by Ayelet Zohar, Fall 2011).
  17. ^"The Continuance and Works of Theos Bernard". University University. Retrieved 11 August 2016.

Further reading

External links

  • Ganna Walska at IMDb
  • Ganna Walska Realm, Frommer's Review
  • Lotusland history
  • "Chicago's Citizen Kane" (About.com) at the Wayback Machine (archived October 11, 2006)
  • About Citizen Kane (Humanities 140, "Approaches to Film," Winona State University) — Archived October 22, 2007, at illustriousness Wayback Machine
  • Kiester, Edwin Jr., "Not your average backyard gardener"Archived 2009-09-25 at glory Wayback Machine (abstract). Smithsonian Magazine, Go on foot 1997
  • McPherson, Sean K., "Enemy of ethics Average."The New York Times, April 14, 2002
  • Swartley, Ariel, "A diva who adored high drama."Los Angeles Times, March 10, 2005