Alla Nazimova

Alla Nazimova (bahasa Rusia dan Ukraina: Алла Назимова; 3 Juni [OS 22 Mei] 1879 – 13 Juli 1945) adalah seorang aktris film dan teater Amerika, penulis skenario, dan produser film. Dia mungkin paling dikenal sebagai Nazimova, tetapi juga menggunakan nama Alia Nasimoff. Dia beremigrasi ke Amerika Serikat dari Kekaisaran Rusia. Pada tahun 1927, Nazimova menjadi warga negara Amerika Serikat yang dinaturalisasi. Dia dikontrak oleh produser Amerika Henry Miller dan memulai debutnya di Broadway di New York City, pada tahun 1906 dan meraih kesuksesan yang kritis dan populer. Dia dengan cepat menjadi sangat populer (sebuah teater dinamai menurut namanya) dan tetap menjadi bintang utama Broadway selama bertahun-tahun, sering berakting dalam drama Henrik Ibsen dan Anton Chekhov. Dorothy Parker menggambarkannya sebagai Hedda Gabler terbaik yang pernah dilihatnya. Karena ketenarannya dalam drama berdurasi 35 menit tahun 1915 berjudul War Brides, Nazimova membuat debut film bisunya pada tahun 1916 dalam versi film dari drama tersebut, yang diproduksi oleh Lewis J. Selznick. Aktor muda yang sedikit berperan dalam film tersebut adalah Richard Barthelmess yang ibunya mengajar Nazimova Bahasa Inggris. Pada tahun 1917, dia menegosiasikan kontrak dengan Metro Pictures, pendahulu MGM, yang mencakup gaji mingguan sebesar $13.000. Dia pindah dari New York ke Hollywood, di mana dia membuat sejumlah film yang sangat sukses untuk Metro yang menghasilkan banyak uang. Ia berpengaruh dalam industri film di era film bisu dan terus memainkan peran karakter hingga akhir hayatnya. Antara tahun 1917 dan 1922 Nazimova mempunyai pengaruh dan kekuasaan yang besar di Hollywood. Bagaimanapun, dia sangat murah hati kepada aktris-aktris muda yang dia lihat berbakat dan terlibat dengan setidaknya beberapa dari mereka secara romantis. Pada tahun 1925 Nazimova tidak mampu lagi berinvestasi pada lebih banyak film; dan pendukung keuangan menarik dukungan mereka. Karena tidak punya banyak pilihan, ia menyerah pada industri film, kembali tampil di Broadway, terutama berperan sebagai Natalya Petrovna dalam A Month in the Country karya Turgenev karya Rouben Mamoulian tahun 1930 di New York dan penampilan terkenal sebagai Ny. Pada awal 1940-an, ia muncul di beberapa film lagi, memerankan ibu Robert Taylor di Escape (1940) dan ibu Tyrone Power di Blood and Sand (1941). Untunglah kembalinya film bersuara yang terlambat ini melestarikan Nazimova dan karya seninya dalam film bersuara. Dia meninggal karena trombosis koroner, pada usia 66 tahun, di Rumah Sakit Good Samaritan di Los Angeles. Abunya dikebumikan di Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery di Glendale, California. Kontribusinya terhadap industri film telah diakui dengan menjadi bintang di Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Alla Nazimova (Russian and Ukrainian: Алла Назимова; 3 June [O.S. 22 May] 1879 – 13 July 1945) was an American film and theatre actress, a screenwriter, and film producer. She is perhaps best known as simply Nazimova, but also went under the name Alia Nasimoff. She emigrated to the United States from the Russian Empire. In 1927, Nazimova became a naturalized citizen of the United States. She was signed up by the American producer Henry Miller and made her Broadway debut in New York City, in 1906 to critical and popular success. She quickly became extremely popular (a theatre was named after her) and remained a major Broadway star for years, often acting in the plays of Henrik Ibsen and Anton Chekhov. Dorothy Parker described her as the finest Hedda Gabler she had ever seen. Due to her notoriety in a 35-minute 1915 play entitled War Brides, Nazimova made her silent film debut in 1916 in the filmed version of the play, which was produced by Lewis J. Selznick. A young actor with a bit part in the movie was Richard Barthelmess whose mother taught Nazimova English. In 1917, she negotiated a contract with Metro Pictures, a precursor to MGM, that included a weekly salary of $13,000. She moved from New York to Hollywood, where she made a number of highly successful films for Metro that earned her considerable money. She was influential in the film industry in the silent era and continued to play character roles until the end of her life. Between the years of 1917 and 1922 Nazimova wielded considerable influence and power in Hollywood. By all accounts she was extremely generous to young actresses in whom she saw talent and became involved with at least some of them romantically. By 1925 Nazimova could no longer afford to invest in more films; and financial backers withdrew their support. Left with few options, she gave up on the film industry, returning to perform on Broadway, notably starring as Natalya Petrovna in Rouben Mamoulian's 1930 New York production of Turgenev's A Month in the Country and an acclaimed performance as Mrs. Alving in Ibsen's Ghosts. In the early 1940s, she appeared in a few more films, playing Robert Taylor's mother in Escape (1940) and Tyrone Power's mother in Blood and Sand (1941). This late return to motion pictures fortunately preserves Nazimova and her art on sound film. She died of a coronary thrombosis, age 66, in the Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles. Her ashes were interred in Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California. Her contributions to the film industry have been recognized with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.