Trivia of Rhonda Fleming

 Trivia of Rhonda Fleming (10 August 1923 - 14 October 2020)

*A lyric soprano, Fleming took lessons in light opera since ten years old. She was trained by her aunt and entered singing contests.

*Signed her first contract for 20th Century-Fox under the professional name of Marilyn Lane but it was later changed to Rhonda at the suggestion of Hollywood agent Henry Wilson and producer David O. Selznick.

*She received her first substantial role in the thriller Spellbound (1945) starred Gregory Peck and Ingrid Bergman, produced by Selznick and directed by Alfred Hitchcock. She later said, "Hitchcock told me I was going to play a nymphomaniac. I remember rushing home to look it up in the dictionary and being quite shocked." Another shocked facts from this movie was Gregory Peck and Ingrid Bergman had brief affair during filming.

*Fleming auditioned for the female lead in the Bing Crosby film in A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1949), a musical loosely based on the story by Mark Twain. Fleming exhibited her singing ability, dueting with Crosby on "Once and For Always" and soloing with "When Is Sometime". They recorded the songs for a three-disc, 78-rpm Decca album conducted by Victor Young, who wrote the film's orchestral score. Fleming's vocal coach Harriet Lee praised her "lovely voice", saying, "she could be a musical comedy queen."The film was Fleming's first in Technicolor.

*Her fair complexion and bright red hair photographed exceptionally well.She was one of four actresses to be nicknamed "Queen of Technicolor" . The other three were Maria Montez, Maureen O'Hara, and Yvonne De Carlo.

*Her idol as a youngster was Deanna Durbin: when Durbin opted out of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1949) in favor of retirement (at age 27), Fleming replaced her in the film.

*Fleming appeared with Ronald Reagan in four films: The Last Outpost (1951), Hong Kong (1952) Tropic Zone (1953) and Tennessee's Partner (1955).

*She, Jane Russell, Connie Haines and Beryl Davis were once part of a traveling gospel quartet at their church called "The Four Girls" and made an album called "Make a Joyful Noise" that sold over a million copies.