Profile
Louella Parsons
Gossip Columnist + Screenwriter
Female
Born
Aug 6, 1881
Hometown
Freeport, Illinois
Died
Dec 9, 1972
Death Place
Santa Monica, Cal...
Nationality
American
Other Names
Oettinger, Louell...
Louella Parsons was the first American news-writer movie columnist in the United States. She was a gossip columnist who, for many years, was an influential arbiter of Hollywood mores, often feared and hated by the individuals, mostly actors, whose careers… Read More
Romance
Check out the latest love interests for Louella Parsons.
News + Updates
Browse recent news and stories about Louella Parsons.
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Bww Reviews: The World Premiere Of For The Boys Is Good. Could It Be Better? Broadway WorldGoogle News - Aug 30, 2011
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Pat O'brien, 'Kill The Irishman' Dvd Reviews The Star Ledger Nj.ComGoogle News - Aug 26, 2011
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Walter Seltzer, Hollywood Producer And Press Agent Dead At 96 We Are Movie GeeksGoogle News - Aug 24, 2011
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Fighting The Curse Of The Bucolic Desert Inn The Desert SunGoogle News - Aug 23, 2011
Timeline
Learn about the memorable moments in the evolution of Louella Parsons.
CHILDHOOD
1881
Birth
Born on August 6, 1881.
TEENAGE
1901
19 Years Old
On June 4, 1901 at her high school graduation, Louella gave foretelling speech entitled “Great Men”.
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TWENTIES
1902
20 Years Old
In 1902, she became the first female journalist in Dixon where she gossiped about Dixon social circles making a step towards her Hollywood career.
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1905
23 Years Old
Louella was married three times. First, to real estate developer & broker John Dement Parsons, whom she married in 1905.
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THIRTIES
1912
30 Years Old
When her marriage broke up, Parsons moved to Chicago. In 1912, she had her first taste of the movie industry by selling a script for $25 to the Essanay Company, once the home of Charlie Chaplin.
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In 1914, Parsons began writing the first gossip column in the United States for the Chicago Record Herald.
1918
36 Years Old
William Randolph Hearst bought that newspaper in 1918 and Parsons was out of a job, as Hearst had not yet discovered that movies and movie personalities were news.
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FORTIES
1923
41 Years Old
In 1923, after shrewd bargaining on both sides, she signed a contract and joined the Hearst newspaper the New York American.
1925
43 Years Old
In 1925, Parsons contracted tuberculosis and was told she had six months to live.
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1926
44 Years Old
Her third marriage was with Los Angeles surgeon Henry "Harry" Watson Martin (whom she called "Docky") in 1926; served in the Army Medical Corps during World War I. In 1934, they purchased a beautiful mansion at 619 North Maple Drive in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles County, CA.
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1928
46 Years Old
Beginning in 1928, she hosted a weekly radio program featuring movie star interviews that was sponsored by SunKist.
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FIFTIES
1934
52 Years Old
In 1934, she signed a contract with the Campbell's Soup Company and began hosting a program titled Hollywood Hotel, which showcased stars in scenes from their upcoming movies.
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1937
55 Years Old
Her formidable power remained unchallenged until February 14, 1937, when Hedda Hopper, a struggling character actress since the days of silent movies, whom Parsons had been kind to and mentioned occasionally in her column, and who had returned the favor by giving Parsons information on others, was hired to be a gossip columnist by one of Hearst's rival newspapers.
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LATE ADULTHOOD
1944
62 Years Old
In 1944, she wrote her memoirs, The Gay Illiterate, published by Doubleday, Doran and Company, which became a bestseller.
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1951
69 Years Old
They remained married until her beloved husband Dr. Harry W. Martin passed away on Sunday, June 24, 1951.
1972
91 Years Old
After her retirement, Parsons lived in a nursing home where she died of arteriosclerosis on December 9, 1972, age 91.
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Original Authors of this text are noted on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louella_Parsons.
Text is made available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
Text is made available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.