Hedda Hopper
Birth Name:
Elda Furry
Birth Place:
Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, United States
Profession
Actress, Soundtrack
Fast Facts
- Studied singing at the Carter Conservatory of Music in Pittsburgh
- Made her screen acting debut in the film "The Battle of Hearts" in 1916
- Started out as a chorus girl and amateur theater actress before making her Broadway debut in "The Motor Girl" in 1909
- Began writing a gossip column for the Esquire Feature Syndicate in 1937 and moved what would become the hugely successful "Hedda Hopper's Hollywood" to the Los Angeles Times a year later
- Best known as a Hollywood gossip columnist and silent film actress
- Changed her name from Elda to Hedda, a name allegedly chosen for her by a numerologist, in 1919
- Shared a longtime rivalry with another gossip columnist, Louella Parsons, although many favored Hopper because her acting experience gave her an insider's perspective
- Wrote two bestselling books titled "From Under My Hat" and "The Whole Truth and Nothing But․"