Theda Bara – silent film star
Theda Bara was an American actress, silent film star and sex symbol of the late 1910s. She was one of the most popular actresses of her time and one of the first cinema sex symbols. She was nicknamed The Vamp.
Theda Bara was born on July 29, 1885 in Cincinnati, Ohio to Polish Jewish émigré Bernard Goodman and his Swiss wife Pauline Louise. Her father worked as a cutter in the studio, and her mother made wigs. Theda was the eldest child in the family, her brother Mark was born in 1888, and her sister Esther was born in 1897.
In 1903, the girl entered the University of Cincinnati and performed on the stage at the same time. Two years later she was expelled from the university. She left Cincinnati in search of fame. On August 18, 1908 the girl under the pseudonym Theo de Coppet made her debut in the play The Devil in New York. She played in the theater for nine years.
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