About

Known credits:
32
Birthday:
1904-12-06
Place of birth:
Venice, Italy
Website:
N/A

Elissa Landi

Overview

Elissa Landi (December 6, 1904 – October 21, 1948) was an Italian born actress who was popular in Hollywood films of the 1920s and 1930s. Rumoured to be a descendant of Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria, she was noted for her aristocratic bearing.

Born Elisabeth Marie Christine Kühnelt in Venice, Landi was raised in Austria and educated in England.

Her first ambition was to be a writer, and she wrote her first novel at the age of twenty. She would return to writing during lulls in her acting career. She joined the Oxford Repertory Company at an early age, appearing in many British and American stage successes.

During the 1920s she appeared in British, French, and German films before travelling to the United States to appear in a Broadway production of A Farewell to Arms. She was signed to a contact by Fox Film Corporation (later 20th Century Fox) in 1931.

She played the heroine in Cecil B. De Mille's The Sign of the Cross (1932), but was overshadowed by Claudette Colbert who played the flashier role of Poppea. She was paired successfully with some of the major leading men, such as David Manners, Charles Farrell, Warner Baxter, and Ronald Colman in romantic dramas such as Body and Soul (1931) before appearing in the box office hit The Count of Monte Cristo (1934) with Robert Donat.

Her contract with Fox was abruptly cancelled in 1936 as a result of her refusal to accept a particular role. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer signed her to a contract and after a couple of romantic dramas she played the cousin of Myrna Loy in the very popular After the Thin Man (1936). After only two more films she retired, in 1943.

She became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1943, and dedicated herself to writing, producing six novels and a series of poems.

She died from cancer in Kingston, New York, and was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery in Newburyport, Massachusetts.

Elissa Landi has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contributions to Motion Pictures, at 1615 Vine St.

Description above from the Wikipedia article Elissa Landi, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Known for

Acting
1943 Corregidor Actor Dr. Royce Lee Stockman 59
Average
1937 The Thirteenth Chair Actor Helen Trent 58
Average
1937 Hollywood Party Actor Herself - the Hostess 59
Average
1936 After the Thin Man Actor Selma Forrest Landis 62
Fair
1936 Mad Holiday Actor Peter Dean 59
Average
1936 The Amateur Gentleman Actor Lady Cleone Meredith 58
Average
1935 Crimson Dynasty Actor Princess Aurore 59
Average
1935 Without Regret Actor Jennifer Gage N/A
N/A
1935 Enter Madame Actor Lisa Della Robbia 58
Average
1934 The Count of Monte Cristo Actor Mercedes 59
Average
1934 The Great Flirtation Actor Zita Marishka 58
Average
1934 Man of Two Worlds Actor Joan Pemberton 59
Average
1933 By Candlelight Actor Marie 58
Average
1933 The Masquerader Actor Eve Chilcote 58
Average
1933 I Loved You Wednesday Actor Vicki Meredith 58
Average
1933 The Warrior's Husband Actor Antiope N/A
N/A
1932 The Sign of the Cross Actor Mercia 59
Average
1932 A Passport to Hell Actor Myra Carson 58
Average
1932 The Woman in Room 13 Actor Laura Ramsey N/A
N/A
1932 Devil's Lottery Actor Evelyn Beresford N/A
N/A
1931 The Yellow Ticket Actor Marya Kalish 58
Average
1931 Wicked Actor Margot Rande N/A
N/A
1931 Always Goodbye Actor Lila Banning N/A
N/A
1931 Body and Soul Actor Carla 58
Average
1930 Children of Chance Actor Binnie N/A
N/A
1930 The Voice of Hollywood Actor N/A
N/A
1930 The Price of Things Actor Anthea Mary Dayre N/A
N/A
1930 Knowing Men Actor Korah Hurley / Collette N/A
N/A
1928 Sin Actor Kersti 59
Average
1928 Underground Actor Nell 59
Average
1928 Bolibar Actor Françoise-Marie / La Monita N/A
N/A
1927 London Actor Alice Cranston N/A
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