Vera-Ellen

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Birth Name: Vera Ellen Westmeier Rohe

Born: 6 February 1921 Died: 30 August 1981

Country of origin: United States

Height: 5' 4"

Lists

207 votes

Premature Deaths (Actors and Actresses) (133 items)
list by xolmis

Published 11 years, 9 months ago

31 comments

156 votes

My Favourite Old Hollywood Hairstyles (519 items)
list by Blue Pineapple

Published 16 years, 1 month ago

15 comments

94 votes

Nothin' But (Vintage) Net! (85 items)
list by TrekMedic

Published 13 years, 1 month ago

1 comment

84 votes

Tribute to Glamorous Actresses of the Yesterday (257 items)
list by xolmis

Published 10 years, 8 months ago

3 comments

55 votes

Famous People With Dogs (136 items)
list by Blue Pineapple

Published 16 years, 5 months ago

6 comments

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Vera-Ellen Videos

Vera & Gene in "Slaughter On Tenth Avenue"

127 Views, 1 votes

Added 13 years ago

Vera-Ellen performs in "Naughty But Nice"

293 Views

Added 13 years ago

Vera & Donald in "It's A Lovely Day Today"

188 Views

Added 16 years ago

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Photos

18 votes

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9 votes

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Description: Vera-Ellen (February 16, 1921 – August 30, 1981) was an American actress and dancer, principally celebrated for her filmed dance partnerships with Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Danny Kaye, and Donald O'Connor. Vera Ellen Westmeier Rohe was born in Norwood, Ohio, a suburb of Cincinnati, to Martin Rohe and Alma Catherine Westmeier, both descended from German immigrants. She began dancing at age 10 and quickly became very proficient. At 16 she was a winner on the Major Bowes Amateur Hour and embarked upon a professional career. In 1939, she made her Broadway debut in the Jerome Kern/Oscar Hammerstein musical Very Warm for May. Vera-Ellen (February 16, 1921 – August 30, 1981) was an American actress and dancer, principally celebrated for her filmed dance partnerships with Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Danny Kaye, and Donald O'Connor.

Vera Ellen Westmeier Rohe was born in Norwood, Ohio, a suburb of Cincinnati, to Martin Rohe and Alma Catherine Westmeier, both descended from German immigrants. She began dancing at age 10 and quickly became very proficient. At 16 she was a winner on the Major Bowes Amateur Hour and embarked upon a professional career.

In 1939, she made her Broadway debut in the Jerome Kern/Oscar Hammerstein musical Very Warm for May. She became one of the youngest Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall, although she was only 5'4". This led to roles on Broadway in Panama Hattie, By Jupiter, and A Connecticut Yankee, where she was spotted by Samuel Goldwyn, who cast her opposite Danny Kaye and Virginia Mayo in the 1945 film Wonder Man.

She danced with Gene Kelly in the Hollywood musicals Words and Music and On the Town, while also appearing in the last Marx Brothers film, Love Happy. She received top billing alongside Fred Astaire in the musicals Three Little Words and The Belle of New York. She had a co-starring role with Donald O'Connor in the Ethel Merman vehicle, Call Me Madam. Vera-Ellen's second to last film role was the 1954 blockbuster hit White Christmas, co-starring with Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye and Rosemary Clooney. She starred in only one more film, the 1957 British production Let's Be Happy. Her last performances were on a November 1958 television episode of The Perry Como Show and a February 1959 broadcast of the The Dinah Shore Show.

She was married twice. Her first husband was a fellow dancer, Robert Hightower, from February 1941 to November 1946.

Her second husband, from 1954 to their 1966 divorce, was millionaire Victor Rothschild. While married to Rothschild, she gave birth to a daughter, Victoria Ellen, who died at three months of age from SIDS in 1963. Following the death of her only child, she withdrew from public life.

Vera-Ellen died of cancer in Los Angeles, California, on August 30, 1981, aged 60. She was interred at Glen Haven Memorial Park in Sylmar, California. ... (more)