"I'm ready for my close up, Mr. DeMille."

American actress, born in Chicago in 1899, lived in Puerto Rico and KeyWest, Florida. Moved fromChicago to LosAngeles at the age of 15 at the urging of Essanay Studios. Said to have stolen the Oneiroswith CharlieChaplin at this time. Changed studios from Essanay to Triangle after moving to LosAngeles. Made films with Cecil B. DeMille; extravagant sets and costumes the norm. Married six times (so were Henry VIII and Liz Taylor!).

AnnabelleCairo talked about how Swanson represented both the Maiden (in her early silent film career) and the Crone (as Nora Desmond in Sunset Boulevard, the role which now overshadows all her earlier work).

Obsessed with nutrition and the body:

"Her lifelong interest in nutrition and the body began in her early years when she was introduced to Dr. Henry G. Bieler who explained to her how the body reacts to foods and the harmful effects of certain foods. It was not a commonly heard theory in those days but Gloria was interested and thus began her lifelong interest in foods and the body. She later believed that food was not only a food source but a viable part of skin care. She once commented that most of her groceries went on her face instead of her mouth. She established a line of cosmetics in the 1950's that only used natural ingredients."

Links

• http://home.hiwaay.net/~oliver/gsbiography.htm