Liesl Karlstadt (1892 - 1960)

Actress. She was part of the “Karl Valentin & Liesl Karlstadt” ensemble. She played in most of the sketches created by Karl Valentin. She also played the male roles. (bio by: JSesto) Cause of death: Stroke

Lil Dagover (1887 - 1980)

Actress. She was born as Maria Antonia Siegelinde Martha Lilitt Seubert in Java. She began her film career in 1918. In 1919, she worked for first time with Fritz Lang in his movie “Die Spinnen” (1919). Her second movie with Lang called “Harakiri” (1919) was followed by the leading role in the successful movie “Das […]

Lila Kedrova (2024 - 2000)

Kedrova claimed to have been born in 1918, in Petrograd, Russia, although the year is impossible to ascertain. Her parents were Russian opera singers. Her father, Nikolay, was a singer and composer, a creator of the first Russian male quartet to perform liturgical chants. Her mother, Sofia Gladkaya (ru: Софья Николаевна Гладкая) (1875–1965), was a […]

Lila Lee (1901 - 1973)

Lila Lee was born Augusta Wilhelmena Fredericka Appel in Union Hill, New Jersey (now part of Union City) into a middle-class family of German immigrants who relocated to New York City when Lila was quite young. Searching for a hobby for their gregarious young daughter, the Appels enrolled Lila in Gus Edwards’ kiddie review shows […]

Lili Álvarez (1905 - 1998)

Pioneer Sportswoman, Writer. She was born in Rome of Spanish parents as Elía María González-Álvarez y López-Chicheri. At the age of eleven, she got her first trophy in ice skating and at the age of 14, her first tennis championship. She was in the finals of Wimbledon during 1926, 1927 and 1928. In 1929, she […]

Lili Damita (1904 - 1994)

Born Liliane Marie-Madeleine Carré in Blaye, France, she was educated in convents and ballet schools in several European countries, including France, Spain and Portugal. At 14, she was enrolled as a dancer at the Opera de Paris. As a teenager, she was performing in popular music halls, eventually appearing in the Revue at the Casino de […]

Lili Murati (1912 - 2003)

Actress. She was born in Szeged, Hungary. She began her career on stage in the 1920s, but soon she moved to the cinema, where debuted in 1935 with the film “A Csùnya Làny.” In her country, also she worked in “120-as Tempó” (1937), “Végre!” (1941), “Házasság” (1942) and “Kesó” (1943), among others. In 1948, she […]

Lili St Cyr (1918 - 1999)

Burlesque Dancer.  Born Marie Van Schaack, she took ballet lessons, and soon began dancing as a chorus line girl in Hollywood.  Lili begged her manager to allow her to do a solo act.  This led to a better job at a club called “The Music Box.”  Her stripping debut there was in an Ivan Fehnova […]

Lilia Prado (1928 - 2006)

Actress. She was born in Michoacán, Mexico. She performed in Mexican cinema appearing in more than 100 films such as “Han Matado a Tongelete” (1948), “Confidencias de un Ruletero” (1949), “Te Besaré en la Boca” (1950), “Subida al Cielo” (1951), “La Ilusión Viaja en Tranvía” (1953) and “Talpa” (1956). Also she is fondly remembered for […]

Lilia Silvi (1921 - 2013)

Actress. Born Silvana Musitelli, she will be best remembered as an symbol actress of Italian cinema of the 30s and 40s. Silvi starred in such films as “Il signor Max” (1937), “Assenza ingiustificata” (1939), “Giorni Felici” (1942). In 1935, she made her debut in the film industry in the film “Il cantico della terra” directed […]

Lilia Skala (1896 - 1994)

Skala was born Lilia Sofer in Vienna, Austria. Her mother, Katharina Skala, was Catholic, and her father, Julius Sofer, was Jewish and worked as a manufacturers representative for the Waldes Koh-i-noor Company. Skala was one of the first women to graduate in architecture and engineering from the University of Dresden, before practicing architecture professionally in […]

Lilian Bond (1908 - 1991)

Actress. Appeared in motion pictures, and is best known for her role of ‘Lily Langtry’ in the film “The Westerner” (1940).

Lilian Decima Moore Guggisberg (1871 - 1964)

British stage actress of the late Victorian and the Edwardian Era. Also known as Decima Moore, Lady Guggisberg, Lady Decima Moore-Guggisberg. She was born the 10th child child to Edward Henry Moore, a chemist (pharmacist) in Brighton, East Sussex. Her theatrical debut was in 1889 at the Savoy Theatre in London as “Casilda” in the […]

Lilian Harvey (1906 - 1968)

Helene Lilian Muriel Pape was born in 1906, in Hornsey, North London. Her mother, Ethel Marion (Laughton), was English, and her father, Walter Bruno Pape, was a German businessman. At the beginning of World War I the family found itself in Magdeburg, and as they were unwilling and unable to return to England, Lilian Harvey […]

Lilian Jackson Braun (1913 - 2011)

Author. A respected Detroit journalist, she is remembered for her 29 best-selling “The Cat Who…” mystery novels. Raised in a variety of places before settling in Michigan, she began working for the “Detroit News” and as a department store advertising copywriter while in her teens. Eventually Braun joined the “Detroit Free Press” where she was […]

Liliana Castagnola (1895 - 1930)

Actress. Born Eugenia Castagnola, she is also remembered for her relationship with the actor Antonio De Curtis, know as “Totò”. During her successful career throughout Europe, she gained a reputation as femme fatale because of some tempestuous love affairs with important men of that time. After performing in Paris, she returned to Italy at the […]

Liliuokalani (1838 - 1917)

Liliuokalani (Hawaiian pronunciation: [liliˌʔuokəˈlɐni]; born Lydia Lili‘u Loloku Walania Wewehi Kamaka‘eha (September 2, 1838 – November 11, 1917) was a composer of Hawaiian music, author and the last reigning monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaii. She reigned from January 29, 1891 until the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii on January 17, 1893. She was born […]

Lilli Palmer (1914 - 1986)

Actress. Born Lilli Marie Peiser in Poznan, Germany, she made her screen debut in the British film ”Crime Unlimited”(1935). In 1945, she married actor Rex Harrison, moved to Hollywood and appeared on Broadway in the play ”Bell, Book and Candle”, where she co-starred with Harrison. For feature films, she was most noted for staring in […]

Lillian Anderson (1911 - 1962)

Actress.  Family links:  Parents:  William H. Richardson (1867 – 1923)  Mary Ann Poole Richardson (1877 – 1964)  Spouse:  Edward V. Anderson (1914 – 1976)  Siblings:  Wyatt Rawlston Richardson (1896 – 1990)*  Hyrum Doyle Richardson (1899 – 1989)*  Mary Ethyl Richardson (1901 – 1901)*  Wendell H Richardson (1906 – 1964)*  Vendla Richardson Duffin (1909 – 1992)* […]

Lillian Brennard Tonge (1970 - 1970)

Stage and film actress, she appeared in the film “The Laughing Lady” (1929). Some of the original stage productions she appeared in were “Meet the Prince” (1929). “The Good Companions” (1931), “The Distaff Side” (1934) and “Call It a Day” (1936). (bio by: Ginny M)  Family links:  Spouse:  Ashton Tonge (1872 – 1927)*  Children:  Philip […]

Lillian Fontaine (1886 - 1975)

Actress. She appeared in seven films between 1945 and 1953, most notably “The Lost Weekend.” She also taught drama at San Jose State and later Stanford University. She was the mother of Joan Fontaine and Olivia de Havilland. Her ashes were scattered by her daughters in the woods near Villa Montalvo, a community theater in […]

Lillian Gertrud Asplund (1906 - 2006)

RMS Titanic Disaster Survivor.  At her death, she was the last American survivor of the sinking of the famed “RMS Titanic”. Throughout her life, she staved off its accompanying publicity. She was only five years old when the ship went down in the North Atlantic. Her father, Carl, a Worcester laborer, had returned the family […]

Lillian Gilbreth (1878 - 1972)

Lillian Gilbreth was born in Oakland, California on May 24, 1878. She was the second of eleven children of William Moller, a builder’s supply merchant, and Annie Delger. Both parents were of German descent. She was educated at home until she was nine years old, when her formal schooling began at a public elementary school, […]

Lillian Gish (1893 - 1993)

Gish was born in Springfield, Ohio, to Mary Robinson McConnell (1875-1948) (an Episcopalian) and James Leigh Gish (1872-1912) (who was of German Lutheran descent). She had a younger sister, Dorothy.  The first several generations of Gishes were Dunkard ministers. Her great-great-great-grandfather came to America on the ship Pennsylvania Merchant in 1733 and received a land […]

Lillian Hall-Davis (1898 - 1933)

Actress. Hall-Davis became well known to a wide public with her roles in Hitchcock’s early movies “The Ring” and “The Farmer’s Wife.” She committed suicide in 1933. (bio by: MC)

Lillian Harmer Kaeber (1883 - 1946)

Actor. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, she made her big screen debut in “A Harp in Hock” (1927), followed by “Mother’s Millions” (1931). A veteran of 60 films, her credits include “A Shriek in the Night” (1933), “Lady by Chance” (1934), “Three Kids and a Queen” (1935), “A Star is Born” (1937) and “The Buccaneer” (1938). […]

Lillian Hellman (1905 - 1984)

Lillian Florence Hellman (June 20, 1905 – June 30, 1984) was an American dramatist and screenwriter known for her success as a playwright on Broadway, as well as her left-wing sympathies and political activism. She was blacklisted after her appearance before the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) at the height of the anti-communist campaigns […]

Lillian Hughes Prince (1970 - 1970)

Actress. She starred in many theatre productions in the Northeast and The North Carolina area before joining the Schubert Touring Company and performing in Howard Richardson’s “Dark of the Moon” in the 1940s. In her later years, she became well known for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth in Paul Green’s play “The Lost Colony.” She […]

Lillian Kemble-Cooper (1892 - 1977)

Actress, Entertainer. A member of the British theatrical family, Cooper began her career as a singer on Broadway during the 1920s & 1930s.   Sister of actress Violet Kemble-Cooper, Lillian was married to actor/writer Charles Mackay and actor Guy Bates Post.  Actress – 19 films. (bio by: TLS)  Family links:  Spouse:  Guy Bates Post (1875 […]

Lillian Lawrence (1868 - 1926)

Actress. Mother of actress Ethel Grey Terry, Lawrence was a leading lady at the Castle Square Theatre in Boston. Lawrence appeared in 20 films. (bio by: TLS)  Family links:  Children:  Ethel Grey Terry (1882 – 1931)* *Calculated relationship