Mary Astor

Actress. Born Lucile Vasconcellos Langhanke, in Quincy, Illinois to a German immigrant father, Otto Ludwig Langhanke, and an American mother from Illinois, Helen Marie Vasconcellos, of Portuguese and Irish ancestry. Her parents were very ambitious for her, they began with placing Mary into various beauty contests. In one contest that came to the attention of Hollywood moguls, they signed her at the age of 14. Her first movie was a bit part in The Scarecrow in 1920. Throughout 1921 to 1923 she continued her career with bit or minor roles in a number of motion pictures. In 1924, Mary landed a plum assignment with a role as Lady Margery Alvaney opposite the great John Barrymore in the film Beau Brummel in 1924. He would become her mentor and lover. By the end of the twenties, the sound revolution had taken a strong hold on the industry and Mary was one of those lucky actresses who made the successful transition to “talkies” because of her voice and strong screen presence. Mary’s career took off to greater heights. In 1941, she won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role of Sandra Kovac in The Great Lie in 1941. That same year she appeared in the celebrated film The Maltese Falcon also in 1941, but her star soon began to fall.  Because of her three divorces, the death of her first husband, Kenneth Hawks who died in a plane crash, the divorce of her second husband Franklin Thorpe, whom she had a daughter with, and her third husband Manuel del Campo, and her final husband Thomas Gordon Wheelock, her alcoholism, a suicide attempt, and a persistent heart condition, Mary got smaller roles in movies. Her final silver screen was as Jewell Mayhew in Hush…Hush, Sweet Charlotte in 1964. Even though this was her final film, she had appeared in 123 motion pictures. Mary lived out her remaining days confined to the Motion Picture Country Home where she died of a heart attack at the age of 81. (bio by: Shock)  Family links:  Parents:  Otto Ludwig Langhanke (1871 – 1943)  Helen Vasconcellos Langhanke (1881 – 1947)  Spouse:  Kenneth Neil Hawks (1898 – 1930)* *Calculated relationshipCause of death: Heart attack