Tallulah Bankhead

The laugh

Desert Island Discs

Throwing some money into Salvation Army girls' tambourines: 'Here you are, dahlings! I hear it's been a terrible season for you gypsy dancers!'.

She was based on another DL fav: Cruella De Vil

She was featured on an episode of the documentary series Omnibus as was Eric Porter.

Below is the IMDB entry for the Eric Porter Omnibus episode. Both episodes were in 1968.

She is Tallulah Bankhead!

She was the funnier Margo Channing. IMO she gave the perfect reading of the character.

She's a gal who could hang out with the guys

Darling!

She called Billie Holiday a "great negro singer"

She sounded drunk at r2 yet articulate and with it.

Definitely one-of-a-kind.

R12 for sure!

At 21, she has already snorted at least a shoebox full of cocaine. Which she knows isn’t habit forming because she’s been doing it for years.

Her former personal secretary Ted Hook regaled me and a friend with Bankhead stories for an entire afternoon in circa 1991 Manhattan.

R15 Can you share any?

When I was her understudy on Broadway she mentored me in many ways.

She was fabulous in the Lucy Desi Comedy hour. Matchless

[quote] She called Billie Holiday a "great negro singer"

I don't think she meant that as an insult. Today that would be an insult. But that's what Black people were called back then. Besides, she and Billie were lovers at one time.

Bankhead was staunchly progressive.

r18 yes!

Bea Arthur said she was a cunt.

That's rich coming from Bea when she was the biggest cunt on the seat of The Golden Girls.

*set

Looped

Was it wardrobe, make-up or hairdressing?

Too bad she didn't get the film version of THE LITTLE FOXES.

No doubt she would've won the Oscar for Best Actress had she got the chance to do the film version of The Little Foxes.

Pauline Kael (a major fan of Bette Davis) saw Bankhead play Regina on stage and said she was electrifying, and Davis was too stonefaced in her performance.

Bette's Regina did look dour.

I only know the one famous anecdote about her wandering into St. Patrick's Cathedral at a Christmas Eve Midnight mass. She dropped into a pew just as the priest just as he came down the aisle waving his incense censer. She leaned over, plucked at his vestments and said, "Love the dress, but do you realize your clutch is on fire?"

[quote] I only know the one famous anecdote about her wandering into St. Patrick's Cathedral at a Christmas Eve Midnight mass.

Is there more than one famous anecdote about her wandering into St. Patrick's Cathedral...?

The one I remember most is R16, is One night, Ted came home from the bars and checked in on Tallu to say good night. She had a habit of smoking while reading. Usually wearing a sweater with small holes burned into it by her constant flicking of cig ashes rather than using an ashtray. Bankhead had a dog, Dolores, named after the actress Dolores del Rio that slept at the head of Tallulah's bed on her own pillow.

Well, Hook comes in and as he gets closer to the bed, he sees smoke rising from either Dolores. He immediately tries to awaken the sleeping actress, shaking her and loudly calling "Miss B.!" "Miss B!" "Dolores is on fire." He does this several times, at which point the perturbed actress, half-awake asks "What did you say?"

"Miss B., Dolores IS ON FIRE"

Bankhead immediately replied, "Well, for Christ'sake, PUT HER OUT!" And promptly went back to sleep.

Turns out it was the pillow, not the dog.

[quote] She was based on another DL fav: Cruella De Vil

R4, you have that backwards.

R32 you know what I mean

Precision of language!

R8, thanks for posting those links to her radio performances. Something to listen to on the drive home tonight.

Anita, DAHRLING!

Milk

She's the one who said: "My father made me promise never to touch men or liquor... too bad he never told me about women or cocaine!".

Her father was Speaker of the House.

Mentored?

Dahling, men had nothing to do with it.

Being blanked by a former lover who had his new girlfriend in tow: (loudly) 'What's the matter, dahling? Don't you recognise me with my clothes on?'

Kathleen...

A panty-flashing Tallu...

Tullulah’s last coherent words:

“Codeine . . . Bourbon . . ."

Women