Sylvia Sidney

Exotic Sylvia Sidney as featured in the titular role of MADAME BUTTERFLY (1932). Sidney was born Sophia Kosow in the Bronx, New York on August 8, 1010. During the Depression, Sidney appeared in a string of films, often playing the girlfriend or sister of a gangster. Among her films from this period were: “An American Tragedy”, “City Streets”, and “Street Scene” (all 1931), Alfred Hitchcock's “Sabotage” and Fritz Lang's “Fury” (both 1936), “You Only Live Once” and “Dead End” (both 1937), and “The Trail of the Lonesome Pine” (1936), an early three-strip Technicolor film. At the time of making “Sabotage” with Alfred Hitchcock, Sidney was one of the highest-paid actresses in the industry, earning $10,000 per week—earning a total of $80,000 for Sabotage. During this period, she developed a reputation for being difficult to work with. In 1938, she played in "You and Me" opposite George Raft. The film critics gave it mixed reviews and because of that it didn't do well at the box-office. Afterwards the roles began to dissipate. She filmed "One Third of a Nation" in 1939 and then wasn't seen again until "The Wagons Roll at Night"(1941). There was a four year hiatus before "Blood On The Sun" (1945). In 1946, she starred in "The Searching Wind" where she played Cassie Bowman. The film was widely considered to be too serious and flopped with the movie fans. After 1947's "Love From A Stranger" she didn't appear again until "Les Miserables" in 1952. Only three more films followed that decade. There were no films throughout the 1960s. After appearing in a made for television movie, Sidney returned to the big screen in "Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams" (1973). With a few movie appearances, here and there, she appeared in several made for TV flicks. In 1988, she appeared as Juno in the mega hit “Beetlejuice” (1988) and scored renewed attention. Her last film for the silver screen was "Mars Attacks"! in 1996. In 1998 she was Clia in the TV series "Fantasy Island". Sidney passed away on July 1, 1999, of throat cancer, aged 89.

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