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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Benjamin Lee

Gloria DeHaven, star of MGM musicals, dies at 91

Gloria DeHaven starred in films such as Modern Times and Summer Holiday.
Gloria DeHaven starred in films such as Modern Times and Summer Holiday. Photograph: NBC/Getty Images

Actor and singer Gloria DeHaven has died at the age of 91.

The performer, who featured in films with Frank Sinatra, Gene Kelly and Charlie Chaplin, suffered a stroke three months ago and died in hospice care on Saturday.

DeHaven made her screen debut at the age of nine alongside Chaplin in Modern Times and soon signed a contract with MGM. She went on to feature in films such as Best Foot Forward, Summer Holiday, Two Girls and a Sailor and Scene of the Crime.

As well as acting, DeHaven also performed musical numbers in many of her films, including The Girl Rush and So This is Paris with Tony Curtis. She also portrayed her real-life mother, vaudeville star Flora Parker, in the 1950 musical Three Little Words with Fred Astaire.

DeHaven later became a TV star, featuring in soaps As the World Turns and Ryan’s Hope. Her final film appearance was in 1997’s Out at Sea, playing Jack Lemmon’s love interest.

In a 1984 interview with the Los Angeles Times, DeHaven was asked how she had managed to maintain such a long career. She replied: “As Ingrid Bergman once said ‘There are only two things you need in life to be successful: good health and a bad memory.’”

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