Ava Gardner became one of Hollywood’s top actresses in the golden age of movies. She has received nominations for both the Academy Awards and the BAFTA Awards for her performances. She is also known for her many loves and relationships.
Gardner was born in 1922 in a small farming community of North Carolina and was the youngest of seven children. In 1941, Gardner visited her sister in New York, where her brother in law – a professional photographer – offered to take a picture of her. So pleased with the results, he hung the finished product in his studio on fifth avenue. It was here that a Loews Theatre clerk saw the photo and made the comment that her information should be sent to MGM. And that’s what her sister and brother in law did. Shortly afterwards, Gardner was signed to a standard MGM contract and was set up with a voice coach to tame her thick Carolina drawl.
Her first initial parts were just one liners or bit parts due to her having no experience acting. In 1946, MGM loaned her to Universal Studios for the movie, “The Killers” with Burt Lancaster, based on a story by Ernest Hemmingway. Gardner made mediocre films for MGM, who had her under contract and used her popularity to sell these pictures. However, her talents would be coaxed by directors who could clearly see it, like John Ford who directed her in “Mogambo” in 1953. This would net Gardner her first Academy Award nomination. The next year, Gardner would star with Humphrey Bogart in “The Barefoot Contessa” , a movie that many claim is her signature role.
Gardner had a string of marriages and relationships, including marriages to fellow actor Mickey Rooney, jazz clarinetist Artie Shaw, and a bullfighter named Luis Miguel Dominguin. Her most famous relationship was her third marriage with singer and actor Frank Sinatra, whom she considered the love of her life. This relationship would make headlines, as Sinatra left his wife for Gardner, causing his popularity to suffered, while Gardner’s seemed to soar, painting her image as a screen siren. She would use this power in Hollywood to get her husband a role in “From Here to Eternity” which revitalized Sinatra’s singing and acting career and netted him an Oscar. The two remained good friends after their divorce and until Gardner’s death.
Gardner was also linked to Howard Hughes, who proposed to her numerous times. Gardner never considered him a romantic interest due to his eccentric personality, however they shared a close relationship through the 1950s.
Gardner died in 1990 from pneumonia after years of declining health. She is buried in her home state of North Carolina next to her brothers and parents. The town of Smithfield has an Ava Gardner Museum in her honor.
Franck Benedittini
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