Tallulah Bankhead

**Tallulah Brockman Bankhead** (January 31, 1902 – December 12, 1968) was an American actress.

Always known as just "Tallula", she was one of the most famous actresses of her time. She was born into a wealthy and influential Alabama family. Her father was a leading 'Southern Democrat', and in the 1930s became Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. She was a childhood friend of Zelda Fitzgerald, the wife of novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Tallula was an actress from the beginning to the end of her life. She acted in nearly 300 film, stage, television, and radio roles. Her personal life was wild. She struggled with alcoholism and drug addiction. She was infamous for her sex life, which included both men and women.

Tallulah  was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1972, and the Alabama Women's Hall of Fame in 1981.

In her 1932 movie _Devil and the Deep_ there were three major co-stars, with Tallulah  getting top billing over Gary Cooper, Charles Laughton, and Cary Grant. David O. Selznick, producer of _Gone with the Wind_ (1939) called her the "first choice among established stars" to play Scarlett O'Hara. According to a memo from Selznick, November 11, 1936: Bankhead is first choice among established stars – and many votes coming in for her. Although her screen test for the role in black-and-white was superb, she photographed poorly in Technicolor. Selznick also thought that at age 36, she was too old to play Scarlett, who is 16 at the beginning of the film. The role eventually went to Vivien Leigh.

Also notable was her performance in the Alfred Hitchcock film _Lifeboat_ (1943–1944). It was her best on film and won her the New York Film Critics Circle award.

Onstage, Tallula appeared in a revival of Noël Coward's _Private Lives_, taking it on tour and then to Broadway for the better part of two years. The play's run made her a fortune. On her death, she was worth $2 million, a vast sum in those days.

|Year|Award|Nominated work|Result|
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
|1928|Ten Most Remarkable Women In London|–||
|1939|_Variety_ Award for Best Actress of the Year|_The Little Foxes_||
|1942|New York Drama Critics Award for Best Actress in a Production|_The Skin of Our Teeth_||
|1942|_Variety_ Award for Best Actress of the Year|_The Skin of Our Teeth_||
|1944|New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress|_Lifeboat_||
|1950|Radio's Woman of the Year|_The Big Show_||
|1960|Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6141 Hollywood Blvd|Motion pictures||
|1961|Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play|_Midgie Purvis_||
|1972|American Theater Hall of Fame|Lifetime achievement||

## Infobox (person)

- **name**: Tallulah Bankhead
- **image**: Tallulah Bankhead 1941.JPG
- **caption**: Bankhead in 1941
- **birth name**: Tallulah Brockman Bankhead
- **birth place**: Huntsville, Alabama, U.S.
- **death place**: New York City, U.S.
- **death cause**: Pneumonia
- **resting place**: Saint Paul's Churchyard, Kent, Maryland
- **occupation**: Actress
- **years active**: 1918–1968
- **parents**: William B. Bankhead
- **relatives**: John Hollis Bankhead
<small>(paternal grandfather)</small>
John Hollis Bankhead II
<small>(paternal uncle)</small>