A True Renaissance Woman
Gloria Stuart had a lot more going on in her life than simply being a huge Hollywood star. In fact, with her long list of artistic achievements, she brought new meaning to the term “renaissance woman”. But Hollywood kept calling her name, and she kept accepting. But little did Stuart know, she’d have to wait until her late 80s until she got the most significant role of her life.
20th Century Fox, Wikimedia Commons
1. She Was Born In the Kitchen
Gloria Stuart was born Gloria Stewart on the Fourth of July, 1910, right there on the kitchen table in Santa Monica, California. As a child, Stuart regularly attended the Church of Christ with her mother. But going to church didn't make Stuart into a good little girl. In fact, she got the boot from grade school when she kicked her teacher. She later said, "to be honest, she deserved it".
It seemed like a very typical childhood, but it was about to get much more complicated.
2. She Faced An Early Tragedy
When Gloria Stuart was nine years old, a car went by and scraped her father’s leg. His wound became infected, and he passed. Suddenly, Stuart was fatherless, and Mom had two mouths to feed on her own. With few options for work, Stuart’s mom decided to remarry. Stuart began using her step dad’s name, but always wanted to remember her dad, so she took Francis as a middle name to remember Frank Stewart.
With the tragedy behind her, Stuart was ready to begin her remarkable life.
Frank Powolny, Wikimedia Commons
3. She Was Busy With The Arts
While attending Santa Monica High School, Stuart found an interest in acting. Her first big role was the lead in the comedic play, The Swan. But acting wasn’t enough for her. She also began writing short stories and poetry. To round out her busy schedule, she took a job at the Santa Monica Outlook as a cub reporter.
But there was a heartbreaking reason for Stuart to stay busy.
produced by Ray Jones (1892-1967) and supplied to CINEGRAF magazine, Wikimedia Commons
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4. She Escaped To College
Things with Stuart’s stepfather were not good, and Stuart sneakily used her desire to go to college to get out of the house. While in college, and away from her stepdad, she kept on with her interests in writing and acting. She even got a job as an artist's model. College soon led to university, where Stuart made an important discovery about herself.
Universal Studios, Wikimedia Commons
5. She Leaned To The Left
While studying drama and philosophy at the University of California, Berkely, Gloria Stuart also toyed with communism, because she thought it was a way to help people. She was too young to join the Young Communist League, but that may have been a godsend. Years later, Hollywood would try wrangling up all suspected communists. They would have found out this piece of info and used it against her.
Besides finding a social consciousness, though, Stuart also found love.
Unknown authorUnknown author, Wikimedia Commons
6. She Searched For A Community
When Gloria Stuart was just finishing her junior year at Berkeley, she met and married Blair Gordon Newell. Newell was also an artist, but instead of acting and writing he worked in sculpture. Before graduating, Stuart and her husband moved in search of a community of artists, which they found in Carmel-by-the-Sea. Here, they rubbed noses with people like photographer Ansel Adams and activist Ella Winter.
She’d found her community, but life in Carmel-by-the-Sea was going to be rough.
7. She Lived A Basic Existence
Stuart and Newel lived a pretty basic existence when they moved to Carmel-by-the-Sea. Newel was working as a sculpture and woodworking instructor, but also as a brick layer and wood chopper. Stuart was serving at a restaurant, but also sewing pillows and tea linen. Their home was a shack in a wood yard. Stuart later called this time in her life "wonderfully bohemian”.
Well, that was about to change.
New Movie Magazine, Wikimedia Commons
8. She Got Noticed
While in Carmel-by-the-Sea, Gloria Stuart did eventually find some more meaningful employment. She got a job at The Carmelite newspaper and acted at the Golden Bough theater. While performing at the theater, a very important person happened to see her show. This was Gilmor Brown, who owned a private theater in Pasadena called The Playbox.
Soon, she was appearing at The Playbow in front of some Hollywood VIPs.
9. She Was In Demand
At the Playbox, Stuart got the small role of Masha in The Seagull by Anton Chekhov. On opening night, two VIPs from Hollywood were there. The potential for success was in the air. After the curtain went down, casting directors from both Paramount and Universal came backstage to see Stuart.
They both wanted her to do screen tests. Only one would win.
Picture-Play Magazine, Wikimedia Commons, Enhanced
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10. They Fought Over Her
With two studios vying for her attention, Gloria Stuart was in an enviable position. After a disagreement over who would have the honor, the casting directors shocked everyone by tossing a coin to decide Stuart’s fate. Universal won the toss, and the decision was made.
But wait a minute. Wasn’t the final decision up to Stuart?
Universal Pictures, Wikimedia Commons, Enhanced
11. She Swallowed Her Dreams
Sure, Universal had won the coin toss, but Stuart had to pause. She wanted to have a serious acting career on the stage, and films at this time had a reputation for being inferior. But the unsettling truth was that Stuart and Newel were broke and needed money. She reluctantly signed on with Universal.
Many years later, Stuart would regret this decision.
12. She Was Flirty With Her Father
Universal’s first job for Gloria Stuart was a loan out to Warner Bros, where she appeared in Street of Women. This was during the "pre-code" days when films had racier content. In one scene between her character and her father, there is definite flirting going on. At the end of the scene, she kisses her father and coyly tells him they’ll have to "think up a good lie and stay home together". Yuck.
Luckily, Stuart’s next film would be far more wholesome.
13. She Was A Baby
Stuart’s first film with Universal was 1932's football movie The All-American. While this wholesome sports film did little to excite theatergoers, it did give Stuart’s career a huge boost. In December 1932, WAMPAS (Western Association of Motion Picture Advertisers) named her one of their “Baby Stars”. She was alongside big names like Ginger Rogers and Mary Carlisle.
With this accolade under her belt, Stuart was ready to get her career really going.
14. She Faced Horror
Gloria Stuart got a big break when director James Whale gave her the green light to play in his film The Old Dark House. This was a horror film, but the horrors were in the making of the film. Most of the cast was British, but Stuart and her co-star Melvyn Douglas were not.
Soon, they began to feel an icy chill from the other actors.
Universal Pictures, Wikimedia Commons
15. She Got An Earful
Douglas noticed that he and Stuart often missed the different and sometimes complicated production mandated rest times with cute names like "elevensies" and "foursies." Douglas suggested that he and Stuart form a union. When Stuart asked what a union was, she got an earful. He told her the history of Actors’ Equity, a union for stage actors.
Stuart liked this idea. After all, she already had a few complaints about her life as a movie actor.
Unknown authorUnknown author, Wikimedia Commons
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16. She Wasn’t A Happy Camper
It was Stuart’s first big part in a film, but she already had some complaints. Number one was about the long hours, which included early calls for both hair and makeup. And the day could go even longer at the director’s whim. Sometimes until the wee hours of the morning. To make matters worse, there was no overtime pay offered.
With her list of complaints, Stuart was on a mission.
17. She Started A Union
The Old Dark House received great reviews, and Gloria Stuart earned praise as “clever and charming” from The New York Times. But Stuart had not forgotten her long list of complaints about making the film. She started looking around for other disgruntled actors who were in favor of starting a union. In 1933, the Screen Actors Guild began, and Stuart was one of its founding members.
Stuart was ready to reap the rewards of the new protections for actors.
Unknown authorUnknown author, Wikimedia Commons
18. Her Name Was Everywhere
The Old Dark House was still in theaters when Stuart’s next film, John Ford’s Air Mail, joined it. This meant that Stuart’s name was on multiple movie marquees simultaneously. The movie-going public was beginning to see what a star she was about to become.
But there was one man who was not happy about seeing Stuart’s name up in lights.
Provincial Archives of Alberta, Wikimedia Commons
19. Her Life Changed Dramatically
Remember, Stuart’s husband was a sculptor she’d met in University. The bohemian life they shared in Carmel-by-the-Sea had changed dramatically. He was now the husband of a movie star. Sadly, he realized that he didn't want to be. The two separated and then divorced amicably in 1934.
But Stuart didn't stay single for long.
Unknown authorUnknown author, Wikimedia Commons
20. She Met A Quick Wit
Gloria Stuart hadn’t even finalized her divorce when she met husband number two. She started working on a comedy called Roman Scandals, and she started a relationship with one of the writers on the film. Arthur Sheekman was a celebrated writer who Groucho Marx had called "The Fastest Wit in the West."
Stuart’s personal life was a dream, but it led to one of her first failures.
Donaldson Collection, Getty Images
21. She Faced Failure
Stuart married Sheekman in August 1934, and soon she was pregnant. This didn't stop her from working, but it did stop her from succeeding. A pregnant Stuart appeared in the musical Gold Diggers of 1935. But her pregnancy kept her from singing and dancing, and the critics noticed. It was her first bad review.
Oh well, she had motherhood to look forward to.
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22. She Made Room For A Baby
Gloria Stuart barely paused her career while she was pregnant. Instead, she took it down a notch to a manageable four films a year. In June 1935, she gave birth to a baby girl. They named her Sylvia, as that was the name of Stuart’s character in the film where she’d met Sheekman.
But a baby wasn’t about to keep Stuart from exploring the world.
23. She Travelled The World
At the beginning of 1939, Stuart and Sheekman realized something. Both of their studio contracts were up, and they were free agents. They decided to do something interesting with their freedom. They spent four months traveling around the world with stops in Asia, Egypt, and Italy. When they got to France, they had to take a moment.
The world was going through a change, and they were at the center of it.
24. She Was In A Dangerous Place
When Gloria Stuart and Sheekman arrived in France, that country had just entered WWII against Germany. Stuart had always had a side to her that wanted to help, and that was the idea she and Sheekman had. They rushed to the American consul and presented themselves as willing and able to serve their country.
They didn‘t get the answer they were expecting.
Trailer screenshot, Wikimedia Commons, Enhanced
25. They Got Sent Home
Gloria Stuart had decided that she would be a hospital volunteer, and Sheekman would be a correspondent for the conflict. Together, they would do what they could for the fight against Germany. The American consul didn’t see it the same way. They just wanted the two of them out of Europe and safely back in America. Stuart and Sheekman were on the first boat back to the States.
Stuart decided it was time for a career change.
Universal Pictures, Wikimedia Commons
26. Her Name Meant Nothing
Gloria Stuart was ready to use her Hollywood fame to make a career on Broadway. But serious theater makers gave an even cooler-than-lukewarm reception. Simply put, they didn’t see Hollywood actors as serious actors, and they wouldn’t hire her. Stuart was going to have to pivot her career.
John Springer Collection, Getty Images
27. She Got her Chance
Gloria Stuart was looking for a career change, so she took singing and dancing lessons. Instead of using them in a Broadway show, she joined the USO and entertained the recruits who were heading to battle in WWII. Stuart could finally realize her dream of serving her country.
When the USO work ended, Stuart still needed a steady acting job.
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28. She Had To Beg
Since Broadway didn’t want her, Stuart had no choice but to go back to films. Unfortunately, Hollywood had forgotten her, and she had to beg her agents to find her work. But she was in for a shock. In her prime, she made more than four films a year. Now she was making only one a year and, worse still, these were mainly supporting roles.
Somehow, Stuart still managed to live the life of a Hollywood star.
Paramount Studios, Wikimedia Commons, Enhanced
29. She Lived With The Rich And Famous
During this time, Gloria Stuart, her husband, and daughter lived at the Garden of Allah. This was a residential hotel where celebrities lived together and partied. Stuart and her husband threw legendary dinners where their daughter served as sous chef. Sylvie would later use these early experiences to become a celebrated food author.
Stuart soon realized she didn’t need acting, and In 1946, she quit. Now, the world was her oyster.
John Springer Collection, Getty Images
30. It Was Love At First Sight
Stuart’s husband was still very involved in Hollywood. As a writer, he got the chance to return to New York City to see a play they wanted him to adapt for the screen. Stuart accompanied her husband and, by chance, found a new vocation in life. A friend took her to meet an artist, and it was love at first sight.
ullstein bild Dtl., Getty Images
31. She Sold Her Wares
Luckily for her husband, it wasn't the artist that Stuart fell in love with, it was découpage. When she got back to LA, she opened Décor Ltd, where she sold things like lamps, mirrors, and tables made in the découpage style. While it started small, Stuart was soon selling her one of a kind pieces in places like Lord & Taylor and Neiman Marcus.
But there was one thing she hadn't thought through.
32. She Went Belly Up
The thing about découpage is that it takes sixteen coats of lacquer and a lot of fine cutting. Stuart was successful but was not really making any money because of the intensive labor. She closed her shop and decided to try something else. With a husband who was making good money in Hollywood, Stuart had no shortage of options.
ullstein bild Dtl., Getty Images
33. Some Paintings Made An Impression
In 1954, Stuart visited Paris with Sheekman, and she had the chance to see Impressionist paintings for the first time in her life. Once again, Stuart felt a strong wave of inspiration, and she wanted to do the same thing. Luckily for her, there was a tax break for Americans living in Europe.
Stuart and her husband headed to Italy, so she could indulge her new passion.
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34. She Lived The Life Of An Artist
While in Italy, Stuart decided to live the life of an artist and paint all day. Her husband also took this time to change his focus from writing for film to writing for the theater. They lived this glorious existence for 18 months. Back at home, she continued painting and even had a chance to explore the art of bonsai.
And after many years of hard work, Stuart was ready to show her paintings to the public.
35. She’d Show Them All
After Sheekman’s play, The Joker, failed to get off the ground, Stuart got a break. It had been years of artistic production for Stuart, and she had 40 paintings to show for her time as a painter. In 1961, Victor Hammer of New York’s Hammer Galleries offered to give her a one-woman show.
She had a chance to see what the art world thought of her work.
36. She Was Primitive
As it turned out, Stuart sold almost all of her paintings. She was painting the "primitive" style, and it seemed to do well for her. She had shows at New York’s Bianchini Gallery and at other galleries in LA, Beverly Hills, and Palm Springs. It looked like Stuart had found a new career far from the stress of Hollywood.
But somehow this wasn’t enough.
ullstein bild Dtl., Getty Images
37. She Danced With A Star
Strangely, Stuart started accepting very small roles in TV shows like The Waltons, and in the TV movie The Legend of Lizzie Borden. In 1982, she appeared with Peter O’Toole in My Favorite Year. This was her first feature film since 1946. She didn’t have a single line in the Academy Award-nominated film, but she really enjoyed dancing with Peter O’Toole.
But she was also facing heartache.
38. She Was Losing Him
Stuart continued to take small roles in films, but she had other concerns. Back in 1960, her husband had suffered a heart attack. Ten years later, Sheekman was feeling confused and disoriented. The doctors finally called it pre-senile dementia. Starting in 1970, Sheekman lived in a nursing facility.
Stuart later remembered one of Sheekman’s famous visitors.
39. He Waited For The Right Time
While Stuart’s husband was in the nursing facility, his old pal Groucho Marx showed up for a visit. Sheekman was friends with and worked with Marx for years. Stuart remembers that Marx showed a rare kindness to her husband. He told Sheekman not to go before he did. Sheekman listened to Marx and waited five months, and passed after him.
Stuart was in her late 60s and very much alone.
White Studio, Wikimedia Commons
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40. She Received A Mysterious Package
In 1983, Stuart got a package in the mail. It was a book, and the sender was an old friend of her first husband’s. His name was Ward Ritchie, and he sent the book because he was now a book designer and printer. Stuart had some interest in what Ritchie was doing, and she invited him for dinner.
This dinner would change her life.
De Carvalho Collection, Getty Images
41. She Found Love At A Late Age
This dinner date with this 78-year-old printer ended up being a life changer for Stuart. Not only did she find a new vocation at this late stage of her life, but she also found a partner. Yes, the two fell in love. Stuart also fell in love with printing. Stuart went back to school and then bought her own hand press. She then started her own private press, which she called Imprenta Glorias.
Stuart’s career as an actress seemed like ancient history. But that ended with one phone call.
42. She Got A Strange Call
In May 1996, Stuart was checking her voicemail, and there was one that said she was calling from Lightstorm Entertainment. All Stuart heard was something about a film about the sinking of the Titanic that James Cameron was directing. Soon Cameron himself was in her house.
She was 86 years old and auditioning for one of Hollywood’s top directors.
Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, Wikimedia Commons
43. She Knew What He Wanted
When Stuart met up with Cameron in her own home to audition for Titanic, you could have forgiven her for being extremely nervous. He was a hot action film director who’d made a huge name for himself with two Terminator movies. But Stuart wasn’t nervous. She said, “I knew I would read Old Rose with the sympathy and tenderness that Cameron had intended ..."
Five days after her 86th birthday, she got the role that would change her life.
44. She Wasn’t Old Enough
As an actress, Stuart was already fairly old. But the role of Rose called for a 100-year-old woman. So, believe it or not, they had to put aging makeup on this octogenarian. Her time on set only totalled three weeks, and Cameron filmed them in Halifax, Nova Scotia. On April 7, 1997, the publicity for Titanic started, and she said it never stopped.
But Stuart wasn't really getting the recognition she deserved.
Screenshot from Titanic, Paramount Pictures(1997), Enhanced
45. Her Name Was Missing
When Titanic started to become a global phenomenon, it came out that the woman playing Old Rose had once been a big Hollywood name. Strangely, her name didn't even appear on any of the publicity. As Stuart’s story about returning to acting got attention, they finally honored her by putting her name on the advertising.
Next, Stuart would prove that her name belonged on that poster.
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46. She Took Home A Trophy
Of the 14 Academy Award nominations that Titanic received, Kate Winslet and Stuart were the only acting nominations. Stuart also got a nomination from the Golden Globes. The place where she took home a trophy was at the Screen Actors Guild Awards. Here, the audience rose to their feet to congratulate her. The icing on the cake came when People magazine added her to its "The 50 Most Beautiful People in the World" list.
It was a career renaissance like no other.
47. She Got A Diagnosis
Stuart’s post-Titanic work included roles in two films by auteur director Wim Wenders. Sadly, when she turned 94, she received a diagnosis from her doctor. She had lung cancer. Radiation treatment didn’t completely remove the cancer, and in time it spread. As she approached her 100th birthday, it wasn’t clear if she’d make it.
48. She Reached A Milestone
Turning 100 is a big deal for anyone, but for Stuart, it was extra special. It was the same age as her most famous character, Rose from Titanic. To celebrate her centennial, James Cameron hosted a party. On display at the ACE Gallery in Beverly Hills were examples of Stuart’s paintings, books, decoupage and even some of her bonsai trees.
This was an amazing send-off to a woman who had accomplished so much.
49. She Went To The Sea
You’d think that after Titanic, Stuart might be afraid of the sea. Not so. Her wish for her remains was for a cremation and a spreading of her ashes in Santa Monica Bay. On a nearby pier stood family, friends, and many cast and crew members from Titanic.
Stuart hadn’t lived a typical Hollywood life. Her legacy isn’t typical either.
50. Her Legacy Continues
Stuart set a record for being, with Kate Winslet, the first pair of actors to get award nominations for playing the same character: Rose and Old Rose. Even more impressive is this fact. To this day, Stuart has her paintings as a part of the permanent collections of the J Paul Getty Museum, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and others.
Alberto E. Rodriguez, Getty Images
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