"Whoever Heard Of An Ounce Of Brandy?" Or The Life And Career Of Mary Astor By Ecce Homo!
She was born Lucile Vasconcellos Langhanke, daughter of Otto Ludwig Wilhelm Langhanke (sounds like she was as German-American, as I am) in 1906. Her childhood was not happy; her parents figured out very early that she could be a money-maker for them, so they pushed her into acting and basically kept her prisoner while she was funding their lavish lifestyle. Yet all she ever wanted was to be was a classical pianist. She practiced daily and she was very talented. In 1926 she was named one of the WAMPAS (Western Association of Motion Picture Advertisers) baby stars. She was in good company. Among her fellow awardees were Fay Wray (Mrs. King Kong), Dolores Del Rio, Janet Gaynor and some little nobody named Lucille LeSueur, who'd just been given a new name by MGM, Joan Crawford. Mary was professional and popular with filmgoers, well on her way to a very successful career. Young Mary Astor (via Getty Images) In fact, when she was earning $2,500 a week, her parents graciously gave her an...