Gloria Dea

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Gloria Dea
Dea in a promotional image for King of the Congo, 1952
Born
Gloria Metzner

(1922-08-25)August 25, 1922
Alameda, California, U.S.
DiedMarch 18, 2023(2023-03-18) (aged 100)
Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Occupations
  • Actress
  • magician
  • dancer
Spouses
  • Jack Statham
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1944; div. 1945)​
  • Hal Borne
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1946, divorced)​
  • Jack Shulem
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1955, divorced)​
  • Sam Anzalone
    ​
    (died 2022)​

Gloria Metzner (August 25, 1922 – March 18, 2023), better known by the stage name of Gloria Dea /ˈdeɪ/ DAY,[1] was an American actress, dancer, artist, and magician. Dea is noted for being the first magician to have performed in Las Vegas,[2] as well as appearing in films during the Golden Age of Hollywood.

Life and career[edit]

Gloria Metzner performs at age 11, in 1934

Early life and work as magician[edit]

Gloria Metzner was born in Oakland, California, United States, on August 25, 1922,[3][4][5] to Martha (née Heyman) and Leo Metzner.[6] In World War I, Leo Metzner served in the 363rd Infantry Regiment of the 91st Division, then returned home to become a paint salesman and owner of a chain of paint stores.[6] He had also performed as a magician in local circles under the stage name of "The Great Leo".[7]

Gloria Metzner started performing tricks at the age of four[5] and, by the age of seven, was noted as being "the youngest working magician in the world".[8] She specialized in the hat trick, from which she pulled her two pet guinea pigs and a pigeon.[9] At the age of 11, she was one of the youngest members of the Pacific Coast Association of Magicians,[9] and at age 12 won an award from the association for best work with livestock in competition.[10] Metzner performed as a magician at El Rancho Vegas on May 14, 1941, making her the first magician to have performed on the Las Vegas Strip.[5]

Film and art career[edit]

Husband Jack Shulem, left, with Gloria Dea Shulem, bottom, in 1956

As her career in show magic came to an end, she moved to Southern California and became an actress in Hollywood films from the mid-1940s to late 1950s, adopting the stage name Gloria Dea.[3] For much of this time, Dea was contracted with Columbia Pictures.[11] During the filming of 1944's Delightfully Dangerous, in which Dea performed as a dancer, producer Charles R. Rogers paused filming for twenty minutes so that Dea could marry her fiancé, orchestra leader Jack Statham. The couple had been unable to marry previously due to time clashes with their work schedules.[12] By March 1945, Dea and Statham had separated.[13] Dea's second marriage was to Hal Borne, noted for being the rehearsal pianist of Fred Astaire.[14] They were married in Los Angeles in April 1946.[15] In 1952, Dea took on her most prominent role, playing the lead of native girl Princess Pha in the 1952 film King of the Congo, in which she starred opposite Buster Crabbe.[16] Her other film credits include Mexicana (1945) and Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957).[5]

Mother Martha Day, left, and Gloria Dea, at a costume party to benefit Hadassah in 1952

In 1954, Dea represented the American Guild of Variety Artists as a founding board member of the San Fernando Labor Co-ordinating Council, a united San Fernando Valley area labor union group that predated the merger of the AFL-CIO.[17] Credit for the Council's founding was given to Jack Shulem, from the International Typographical Union.[17] By 1956, they had married, and she was using the name Gloria Dea Shulem while continuing on the Council board.[18]

The couple lived in Burbank, California, in a house which Dea decorated with Greek gods which she drew using charcoal, oil paint, and gold leaf,[19] and curtains that she had received national coverage for, decorated with drawings and glued-on beads.[20][21] Besides labor and art, Dea was active in Burbank community organizations, being chair of the Hobby Show, and member of the Women's Council, B'nai Brith, Beautiful Committee, and Hadassah, often accompanying her mother.[19] Dea was elected president of the Burbank Hadassah in 1957,[22] and won a Women's Council service award in 1964.[23]

Later life[edit]

After leaving the entertainment industry, Dea sold insurance, and then new and used cars for a Chevrolet dealership in the San Fernando Valley. She later moved back to Las Vegas in 1980, residing in the Paradise Palms community with her husband, Sam Anzalone, a fellow auto dealer she met at the Chevrolet dealership. Anzalone died in January 2022,[5] and Dea turned 100 in August.[2] She celebrated the event at the Westgate Las Vegas with other magicians, including David Copperfield.[5] Dea occasionally performed magic tricks at the assisted-living residence in Las Vegas where she lived.[2]

Dea died from coronary artery disease at her Las Vegas residence on March 18, 2023, at age 100.[24][25]

Filmography[edit]

Gloria Dea filmography
Year Title Role
1944 The Story of Dr. Wassell[26] Javanese Nurse
1945 Delightfully Dangerous[12] Clown dancer
Mexicana[5] Speciality dancer
1952 King of the Congo[27][5] Princess Pha
Something to Live For[28] Slave girl
1955 The Prodigal[29] Faradine
The Sea Chase[30] Señorita
1956 Around the World in 80 Days[14] Extra
1957 Plan 9 from Outer Space[5] Girl

References[edit]

  1. ^ "UNLV inducts Gloria Dea into the Hall of Fame posthumously". FOX5 Las Vegas. March 22, 2023. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "Gloria Dea, 100, Continues To Bring Glory To Magic, Las Vegas". Casino.org. August 26, 2022. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  3. ^ a b "Gloria – The Magician". Braunhart Mania. May 7, 2012. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  4. ^ "Newsletter, February 2022" (PDF). Oakland Magic Circle. p. 4. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Katsilometes, John (August 24, 2022). "Las Vegas Strip's first magician turning 100". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  6. ^ a b "Fifty Years Just a Beginning". San Fernando Valley Times. June 20, 1971. p. 24. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  7. ^ DeGroot, Barbara (November 11, 1983). "It was a different army then, and an adventure for some". Las Vegas Sun.
  8. ^ "Abracadabra Miss". Oakland Tribune. November 5, 1929. p. 3. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  9. ^ a b Mavity, Nancy Barr (August 1, 1934). "11-Year-Old Daughter of Magician is Tricky Herself". Oakland Tribune. Newspapers.com. p. 4. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  10. ^ "Local Young Magician Wins Honor At Convention". The Sacramento Bee. Newspapers.com. August 1, 1935. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  11. ^ Cline, William C. (December 1997). In the Nick of Time: Motion Picture Sound Serials. McFarland. p. 92. ISBN 9780786404711. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  12. ^ a b "Star Dust". The Garland Times. November 17, 1944. p. 4. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  13. ^ "Jason-Galbraith Wedding Highlight of Actors Doings". Sun Herald. March 26, 1945. p. 9. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  14. ^ a b "The Entertainers in the Family". Braunhart Mania. January 31, 2009. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  15. ^ "Musician to Wed Actress". The Buffalo News. April 9, 1946. p. 22. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  16. ^ "Actress to Go Native". The Los Angeles Times. October 21, 1951. p. 114. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  17. ^ a b Maher, Jerry (October 1, 1954). "Labor". Los Angeles Mirror. Newspapers.com. p. 30.
  18. ^ "Install Labor Council Execs". San Fernando Valley Times. Newspapers.com. May 10, 1956. p. 40. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  19. ^ a b Wolff, Carol (June 22, 1963). "Greek Gods Share Burbank Home". San Fernando Valley Times. Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ Churchill, Reba; Churchill, Bonnie (May 23, 1954). "Method of Beading Fabric Without Using Needle or Thread". The Boston Globe. Newspapers.com. p. 124.
  21. ^ Churchill, Reba; Churchill, Bonnie (May 23, 1954). "Beading Without Bother". The Salt Lake Tribune. Newspapers.com. p. 101.
  22. ^ "Burbank Unit Sets Date of Installation". San Fernando Valley Times. Newspapers.com. September 25, 1957. p. 8.
  23. ^ "Four To Get Civic Service Awards". The Los Angeles Times. April 5, 1964. p. 179.
  24. ^ "Gloria Dea, the Strip's first magician, dies at 100". Las Vegas Review-Journal. March 18, 2023. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  25. ^ "Gloria Dea, 1st magician on Las Vegas Strip, dies at age 100". ABC News. March 19, 2023. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  26. ^ Reid, John Howard (June 2006). Success in the Cinema Money-Making Movies. Lulu Enterprises Incorporated. p. 224. ISBN 9781847280886. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  27. ^ Rainey, Buck (2005). Serial Film Stars: A Biographical Dictionary, 1912–1956. McFarland. p. 381. ISBN 9780786420100. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  28. ^ Bowers, Ronald L. (1976). The Selznick Players. A. S. Barnes. p. 135. ISBN 9780498013751. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  29. ^ "Gloria Dea". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on October 17, 2022. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  30. ^ Landesman, Fred (August 13, 2015). The John Wayne Filmography. McFarland. p. 308. ISBN 9781476609225. Retrieved October 17, 2022.

External links[edit]

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