#Fact1Was Reportedly a Candidate for the Role of Delilah in Cecil B. Demille's Samson and Delilah (1949).2Received Her First on-Screen Kiss from Tony Wager in...
#
Fact
1
Was reportedly a candidate for the role of Delilah in Cecil B. DeMille's Samson and Delilah (1949).
2
Received her first on-screen kiss from Tony Wager in Great Expectations (1946).
3
She has two roles in common with Helena Bonham Carter: (1) Simmons played Ophelia in Hamlet (1948) while Bonham Carter played her in Hamlet (1990) and (2) Simmons played Miss Havisham in Great Expectations (1989) while Bonham Carter played her in Great Expectations (2012).
4
She starred in two adaptations of Charles Dickens' 1861 novel "Great Expectations": Great Expectations (1946) and Great Expectations (1989). She played Estella in the former and Miss Havisham in the latter.
Jean Simmons passed away on January 22, 2010, only nine days before what would have been her 81st birthday on January 31.
7
Gave birth to her 2nd child at age 32, a daughter Kate Charlene Brooks, aka Kate Brooks, on July 9, 1961. Child's father is her 2nd ex-husband, Richard Brooks.
8
Gave birth to her 1st child at age 27, a daughter Tracy Stewart Granger, aka Tracy Granger, on September 10, 1956. Child's father is her 1st ex-husband, Stewart Granger.
9
She was the only guest star on the television series Murder, She Wrote (1984) to receive an Emmy Award nomination (1989).
10
According to Richard Burton's biography "And God Created Burton", Simmons had an affair with the actor when they were filming The Robe (1953) together.
Her Hamlet (1948) co-star Laurence Olivier urged the young actress to perfect her craft on the stage; instead, she decided to follow her future husband Stewart Granger to Hollywood.
13
She and Marlon Brando were originally supposed to lip-sync their songs in the musical film Guys and Dolls (1955). Samuel Goldwyn heard them during rehearsal and decided the untrained stars should do their own singing for authenticity.
14
Director Richard Brooks claimed that he wrote The Happy Ending (1969), the filmed story of an alcoholic wife (played by Simmons) as a way to tell his wife that she herself had a problem. The marriage eventually broke up due to Simmons' drinking and Brooks' workaholic tendencies.
15
Became a United States citizen in 1956.
16
Her mother was Winifred Aida Loveland. Her father, Charles Simmons, won a bronze medal in the Olympics for Great Britain in artistic gymnastics and died of an ulcer when Jean was age 16.
17
Was William Wyler's first choice for the role of Princess Ann in Roman Holiday (1953), but Howard Hughes, who owned her contract, would not loan her out to Paramount to do the film.
18
She was made a Fellow of the British Film Institute in recognition of her outstanding contribution to film culture.
In the late 1970s, she and daughter Kate Brooks lived in the Litchfield County town of New Milford, Connecticut. They later returned to their longtime California home in Santa Monica.
22
Even before her American debut, she was revered and beloved by both the British critics and filmgoers. By the end of 1950, she was the #4 box office attraction, American or British, in British cinema.
23
In 1958, she accepted the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role on behalf of Alec Guinness, who was not present at the awards ceremony.
24
In America from the early 1950s, Jean found out that RKO head Howard Hughes had purchased the remaining six months of her Rank Studio contract. When Hughes claimed that an oral agreement with Rank precluded her from being loaned out to any other studio, she sued RKO. The legal battle raged for over a year. When the suit was finally settled, RKO had a three-year contract for Jean's services, but was obligated to pay her $250,000 in addition to her legal fees. Furthermore, she won the right to work on loan to other studios at a substantial salary.
25
She was awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2003 New Year's Honours List for her services to acting.
26
Becoming depressed at the lack of quality parts being offered her, Jean became addicted to alcohol. In 1986, she sought professional treatment.
27
Turned down the role of Jean Pargetter on the British television series As Time Goes By (1992), which went to Judi Dench.
Chloe Bennett explores the intersection of pop culture, streaming entertainment, digital trends, and contemporary lifestyle. Her weekly commentary reaches thousands of culture enthusiasts.
