Joy Page

Joy Page (born Joy Cerrette Paige;[1] November 9, 1924 – April 18, 2008) was an American actress best known for her role as the Bulgarian refugee Annina Brandel in Casablanca (1942).[2]

Joy Page
with Robert Stack, in Bullfighter and the Lady (1951)
Born
Joy Cerrette Paige

(1924-11-09)November 9, 1924
DiedApril 18, 2008(2008-04-18) (aged 83)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting placeForest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)
OccupationActress
Years active1942–1959
Spouse(s)
(m. 1945; div. 1970)
ChildrenGregory Orr
Anthony Turney Orr
Parent(s)Don Alvarado
Ann Boyar
RelativesJack L. Warner
(stepfather)
Jack M. Warner
(stepbrother)

Life

Page was the daughter of Mexican-American silent film star Don Alvarado (born José Paige) and Ann Boyar (1908–1990), the daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants. Her parents divorced when she was eight.

In 1936, her mother married Jack L. Warner, then head of Warner Bros. studios. Warner, however, did not encourage his stepdaughter's interest in acting. Page, who initially thought the script to Casablanca was "old fashioned" and "cliched", landed the role on her own and Warner reluctantly approved. She was only seventeen and fresh out of high school. Page, along with Dooley Wilson and Humphrey Bogart, were the only American-born actors in the film.

Warner, however, refused to sign Page to a contract, and she never appeared in another Warner Bros. film. She went on to act in a number of films for other studios, usually billed as Joanne Page, and made some television appearances. In 1945, Page married actor William T. Orr. He became a Warner Bros. executive, leading to accusations of nepotism. She retired from acting after appearing in the first season of Disney's miniseries The Swamp Fox in 1959. The year before, in her final film role, she played Prairie Flower, a Sioux Indian and mother of White Bull, played by Sal Mineo, in Tonka.

Personal life/death

Page and Orr divorced in 1970. Their son, Gregory Orr, is a writer and producer.

Page died on April 18, 2008, of complications arising from a stroke and pneumonia.[3]

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1942CasablancaAnnina Brandel
1944KismetMarsinah
1948Man-Eater of KumaonLali
1950Bullfighter and the LadyAnita de la Vega
1953Conquest of CochiseConsuelo de Cordova
1953Fighter AttackNina
1955The ShrikeCharlotte Moore
1958TonkaPrairie Flower

References

  1. Joy Page obituary, The Times. April 29, 2008.
  2. Vagg, Stephen (March 15, 2020). "My Top Ten Bit Parts in Films". Filmink.
  3. "Joy Page, 83; in 'Casablanca', Bogart told her: 'Go back to Bulgaria.'", Los Angeles Times, April 24, 2008; accessed August 7, 2014.
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