Patricia Knight(1915-2004)
- Actress
This hazel-eyed knockout was born Marjorie Heintzen on April 28, 1915
(although several sources list her birth date as either 1918 or 1920).
Her Bostonian father was a leather broker and Patricia received her
formal education at a private school. An early interest in the arts had
her abandoning her studies at the tender age of 14 with the intention
of securing an acting/modeling career. She headed for New York where
she earned some dancing parts in New York shows as well as roles in
such plays as "No War in Troy" and "Here Come the Clowns."
She met rising actor Cornel Wilde in 1936
at a booking agent's office and married him the following year
following an appearance in the Broadway play "Sea Legs." They went on
to appear together in the off-Broadway play "Moon Over Mulberry Street"
in 1938 and, following a part in the musical smash "DuBarry Was a
Lady," earned a small role in the prestigious
Laurence Olivier and
Vivien Leigh Broadway production of "Romeo
and Juliet" in which husband Wilde both played Tybalt and choreographed
the dueling scenes. Following a tragic miscarriage, Patricia bore a
healthy daughter, Wendy, in 1943. Following her husband's meteoric rise
to film stardom with his Oscar-nominated role as composer Chopin in
A Song to Remember (1945),
Patricia began to pursue films as well with his help. His desire to
cast her opposite him in
Forever Amber (1947) failed, but it
did spark interest in her and she made her debut with
Roses Are Red (1947) despite the
fact that she had no film training. As a platinum blonde Patricia
photographed beautifully in her second film
The Fabulous Texan (1947) but
found her most noticeable work steaming up the proceedings opposite
Wilde himself in Shockproof (1949).
In the meantime, the volatile Wilde proved to be an extremely jealous
husband and constant source of interference when it came to controlling
her career. After more than a few tumultuous breakups, they separated
for good and she met and fell in love with Danish skating
champion/sometime actor Nils Larsen. They married a few days after her
August 30, 1951 divorce from Wilde. Without Wilde's influence, however,
Patricia's career dissolved. After prime roles in
The Second Face (1950) and
The Magic Face (1951), she was
finished -- after only five movie parts. She and her second husband
lived in Spain for many years, returning to the States in 1969, two
years before Larsen's death. Her third husband was building advisor
David Wright who died in 1996. Patricia died in Hemet,
California, on October 26, 2004.
(although several sources list her birth date as either 1918 or 1920).
Her Bostonian father was a leather broker and Patricia received her
formal education at a private school. An early interest in the arts had
her abandoning her studies at the tender age of 14 with the intention
of securing an acting/modeling career. She headed for New York where
she earned some dancing parts in New York shows as well as roles in
such plays as "No War in Troy" and "Here Come the Clowns."
She met rising actor Cornel Wilde in 1936
at a booking agent's office and married him the following year
following an appearance in the Broadway play "Sea Legs." They went on
to appear together in the off-Broadway play "Moon Over Mulberry Street"
in 1938 and, following a part in the musical smash "DuBarry Was a
Lady," earned a small role in the prestigious
Laurence Olivier and
Vivien Leigh Broadway production of "Romeo
and Juliet" in which husband Wilde both played Tybalt and choreographed
the dueling scenes. Following a tragic miscarriage, Patricia bore a
healthy daughter, Wendy, in 1943. Following her husband's meteoric rise
to film stardom with his Oscar-nominated role as composer Chopin in
A Song to Remember (1945),
Patricia began to pursue films as well with his help. His desire to
cast her opposite him in
Forever Amber (1947) failed, but it
did spark interest in her and she made her debut with
Roses Are Red (1947) despite the
fact that she had no film training. As a platinum blonde Patricia
photographed beautifully in her second film
The Fabulous Texan (1947) but
found her most noticeable work steaming up the proceedings opposite
Wilde himself in Shockproof (1949).
In the meantime, the volatile Wilde proved to be an extremely jealous
husband and constant source of interference when it came to controlling
her career. After more than a few tumultuous breakups, they separated
for good and she met and fell in love with Danish skating
champion/sometime actor Nils Larsen. They married a few days after her
August 30, 1951 divorce from Wilde. Without Wilde's influence, however,
Patricia's career dissolved. After prime roles in
The Second Face (1950) and
The Magic Face (1951), she was
finished -- after only five movie parts. She and her second husband
lived in Spain for many years, returning to the States in 1969, two
years before Larsen's death. Her third husband was building advisor
David Wright who died in 1996. Patricia died in Hemet,
California, on October 26, 2004.