Birthname: Vera Helena Hruba
| Sign | Cancer |
| Born |
Jul 12, 1920
Prague, Czechoslovakia (now Czech Republic) |
| Died |
Feb 9, 2003
Santa Barbara, CA |
| Age | Died at 82 |
Vera Ralston |
|
| Job | Actress |
| Top Roles | Sandy Poli, Lynne Tilton, Ilona Vance, Fleurette De Marchand, Kim Kim |
| Top Genres | Drama, Western, Romance, Adventure, Crime, Action |
| Top Topics | Detectives |
| Top Collaborators | Joseph Kane (Director), Grant Withers, Chuck Roberson, Roy Barcroft, Tom London, Hank Worden, Paul Fix, Don Haggerty |
| Also Born on July 12 | |
| Also Born in 1920 | |
| Also a Cancer | |
Vera Ralston Overview:
Legendary actress, Vera Ralston, was born Vera Helena Hruba on Jul 12, 1920 in Prague, Czechoslovakia (now Czech Republic). Ralston died at the age of 82 on Feb 9, 2003 in Santa Barbara, CA .
MINI BIO:
Fair-haired (later dark) champion ice-skater from Czechoslovakia, with very Slavic looks - thick lips and even thicker accent - who became an actress and might have done well in sinister roles had she not fallen under the influence of Republic chief Herbert J. Yates, who was determined to groom her as a leading lady (very much a W.R. Hearst-Marion Davies parallel) and eventually married her in 1952. Thus, she was frequently miscast. (Source: available at Amazon Quinlan's Film Stars).HONORS and AWARDS:
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She was honored with one star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the category of Motion Pictures. Ralston was never nominated for an Academy Award.
Vera Ralston BlogHub Articles:
Olympics to Hollywood: Vera Ralston
Vera Hrubá Ralston Ice skaters who competed in the 1936 Winter Olympics seemed to have been attracted to Hollywood. The best known is Norwegian Sonja Henie, who starred in 20th Century Fox musical comedies in the 1930s. Then English Belita, who entered films in 1944, skated in a few musicals before... Read full article
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Vera Ralston Quotes:
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Vera Ralston Facts
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A beautiful young actress came to Hollywood but was forced to change her name because, even though she was born Vera Ralston, she couldn't use her own name because this Vera Ralston had used it first. So she changed her name and became known as Vera Miles.
Escaped her native Czechoslovakia on the last plane out before the Nazis closed the borders.
An accomplished figure skater.
Interviewed by Johnny Carson on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" (1962), Maureen Stapleton was asked what she did to make herself feel better when she knew she'd given a bad performance. "I look through the TV Guide and try to find a Vera Hruba Ralston picture to watch," said Stapleton, "because I know, no matter how bad a performance I may have given, I could NEVER be as bad as she was!".
Much like the Susan Foster Kane character in Citizen Kane (1941), Ralston is generally conceded to owe what stardom she had to her position as "protege" of Republic Pictures studio head Herbert J. Yates. Most of her films lost money, because audiences just never took to her (John Wayne, after having made a few films with her, refused to make any more as he believed that being identified as appearing in any more of her flops would damage his career). She and Yates were married in 1952. Significantly, she "retired" from the screen in 1958, the year Yates was deposed as head of the studio--mainly because of his insistence in starring her in expensive films even though they invariably lost money but also because of his refusal to sell Republic's films for TV broadcasting. Yates and Ralston remained married until Yates' death in 1966, at which point Ralston inherited half of his $10-million estate.