Maria Ouspenskaya facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Maria Ouspenskaya
Ouspenskaya (left) and Greta Garbo in Conquest (1937)
Born	Maria Alekseyevna Ouspenskaya (1876-07-29)29 July 1876 Tula, Russian Empire
Died	3 December 1949(1949-12-03) (aged 73) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1915–1949

Maria Alekseyevna Ouspenskaya (born July 29, 1876 – died December 3, 1949) was a talented actress and acting teacher from Russia. She became famous as a stage actress when she was young in Russia. Later, as an older woman, she found great success in Hollywood movies.

Maria Ouspenskaya's Early Life and Career

Maria Ouspenskaya was born in Tula, which was part of the Russian Empire. She studied singing in Warsaw, Poland, and learned acting in Moscow. She was one of the first members of the First Studio, a special theater group connected to the world-famous Moscow Art Theatre. There, she learned from famous teachers like Konstantin Stanislavsky and his helper, Leopold Sulerzhitsky.

The Moscow Art Theatre traveled a lot around Europe. When they came to New York City in 1922, Maria Ouspenskaya decided to stay in America.

Acting and Teaching in New York

For the next ten years, Maria Ouspenskaya often performed on Broadway, which is famous for its plays and musicals. She also taught acting at the American Laboratory Theatre. In 1929, she and Richard Boleslawski, who she knew from the Moscow Art Theatre, started their own school called the School of Dramatic Art in New York City. A student at her school during this time was Anne Baxter, who later became a well-known actress.

Maria Ouspenskaya had acted in a few silent films in Russia many years before. However, she didn't work in Hollywood until her acting school had money problems. She needed to find ways to earn more money. Around this time, she also opened the Maria Ouspenskaya School of Dance in Los Angeles. One of her students there was Marge Champion, who was the model for Disney's Snow White.

Hollywood Success

Even though Maria Ouspenskaya had a strong Russian accent, she found work in Hollywood. She often played European characters from different countries. Her first Hollywood movie was Dodsworth (1936). For this role, she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. This was special because her part in the movie was very short! She received a second Oscar nomination for her role in Love Affair (1939).

Maria Ouspenskaya played Maleva, an old Gypsy fortuneteller, in the horror films The Wolf Man (1941) and Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943). She also appeared in many other movies, including:

• The Rains Came (1939)
• Waterloo Bridge (1940)
• Beyond Tomorrow (1940)
• Dance, Girl, Dance (1940)
• The Mortal Storm (1940)
• Dr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet (1940)
• Kings Row (1942)

Maria Ouspenskaya's Death

Maria Ouspenskaya passed away on December 3, 1949. She died a few days after an accident at her home. She was buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.

Famous Quote from The Wolf Man

In the movie The Wolf Man, Maria Ouspenskaya's character, Maleva the Gypsy Woman, says a very famous line as the Wolf Man is dying:

The way you walked was thorny, through no fault of your own, but as the rain enters the soil, the river enters the sea, so tears run to a predestined end. Now you will have peace for eternity.

Filmography

Maria Ouspenskaya appeared in many films during her career. Here are some of them:

Images for kids

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  Ouspenskaya as Maleva in The Wolf Man (1941)

See also

In Spanish: María Uspénskaya para niños