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Gloria Swanson Key West's First Star! In 1911, a beautiful twelve-year-old girl made her stage debut at the IOOF Hall. Located on Caroline Street in what is now a lot next door to the Heritage House, the Hall consisted of Lodge rooms upstairs for its members and a theatre downstairs. The theatre was used for everything from political speeches to operatic productions to the probable showing of Lubin's Flagler film in Spring, 1912. Opinions of theatregoers as to the twelve-year-old's debut have been lost to time, but they must've been encouraging. For only a few years later little Gloria Mae Josephine Svensson, daughter of Joseph and Adelaide and a Key West Army brat, had become Gloria Swanson, silent film actress extraordinaire.Within a few more years, Swanson was the highest salaried woman in film. By the mid-1920's, she earned $250,000 per week. For a petite woman, she lived life large seven husbands, many affairs (the longest and most well known with Joseph Kennedy,) and, by her own estimation, had gone through $8.5 million dollars merely enjoying herself. Her silent films are numerous, she transitioned easily to "talkies," and she received Oscar nominations in 1929 and 1930. But the role for which she is most remembered and the one that brought her a third Best Actress Oscar nomination in 1950 is that of Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard. Swanson returned to Key West in 1924. She came in on the train on her way to Havana (see issue #12.) While in town, she visited her childhood home at the Army Barracks now Peary Court at White Street and Eaton/Palm Avenue. Swanson had lived in Key West for four years her father was with the US Army transport service. |
