A young Marion Davies circa 1922.

She was born Marion Cecilia Douras on January 3, 1897 in Brooklyn, the youngest of five children. Marion left school to pursue a career as a chorus girl in Broadway revues and in 1916 she was signed on as a Ziegfeld girl in the Ziegfeld Follies. She had appeared in one film, “Runaway Romany” (1917) before newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst, with whom she had begun a romantic relationship, took over management of her career. He founded Cosmopolitan Pictures to produce her films, usually historical dramas, but her real talent was in comedy. For this reason, Marion is often remembered today as Hearst’s mistress and the hostess of many lavish events for the Hollywood elite. Film credits include “When Knighthood Was In Flower (1922), “Beverly of Graustark” (1925), “The Cardboard Lover” (1928), “Show People” (1928), “Going Hollywood” (1933) and “Operator 13” (1934). She later started many charities including a children’s clinic. Marion was known to be very generous and was loved by everyone who knew her. She married for the first time at the age of 54, to Horace Brown. The union would last until she passed away from cancer on September 22, 1961 in L.A, California, aged 64 years old.