Christine Norden
Encyclopedia
Christine Norden was a British
actress.
Norden gained experience of singing and dancing while performing in wartime ENSA
concerts and variety shows as a teenager. One claim to fame was that she was the first entertainer to land on Normandy beaches after D-Day. At the age of 20 she was "discovered" in a cinema queue and given a screen test by Sir Alexander Korda
. Her screen debut was as a nightclub singer in the 1947 film Night Beat
. In an interview with the Sunderland Echo on June 3, 1952, she said: "Please don't refer to me as the girl who was discovered in a cinema queue. I'm so tired of that tag. You see, nobody believes it, and it aggravates me so much because it happens to be true." Her best-known appearances were in An Ideal Husband
, Mine Own Executioner
and the 1949 film Saints and Sinners. She won a British National Film Award in 1949 for that performance.
After appearing in ten films within five years, Norden left Britain for America in 1952, where she settled in New York and married her third husband, US Air Force sergeant Mitchell Dodge. She went on to become an American citizen in 1960, starring on Broadway
in the musical Tenderloin
at around the same time. She also caused a sensation in 1967, when she became the first actress to appear topless on Broadway, in the comedy Scuba Duba.
The actress returned to London
in the 1970s, to work on stage, screen, and television, but retained an apartment in New York - where she held several exhibitions of her paintings in Manhattan
.
film director
Jack Clayton
and musician Herbert Hect. Her 1977 biography, The Champagne Days Are Over, also detailed other romantic links.
, aged 63, from pneumonia
following heart bypass surgery. Her widower was George Heselden, a retired mathematician who used to work for the Ministry of Defence
. Actress June Mitchell (1933–2009) was Norden's sister. Following her death, part of the planet Venus
was named after her in 1988, as a tribute to her reputation of Britain's first postwar sex symbol.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
actress.
Career
Born Mary Lydia Thornton in Mowbray Terrace, Sunderland, she was the daughter of a bus driver. Her childhood home was in Chester Road, Sunderland, and she was educated at Chester Road Primary School and Havelock School.Norden gained experience of singing and dancing while performing in wartime ENSA
ENSA
ENSA may refer to:* ENSA, the Entertainments National Service Association* ENSA * École Nationale des Sciences Appliquées d'Oujda, an engineering school in Morocco* EC-Council Network Security Administrator...
concerts and variety shows as a teenager. One claim to fame was that she was the first entertainer to land on Normandy beaches after D-Day. At the age of 20 she was "discovered" in a cinema queue and given a screen test by Sir Alexander Korda
Alexander Korda
Sir Alexander Korda was a Hungarian-born British producer and film director. He was a leading figure in the British film industry, the founder of London Films and the owner of British Lion Films, a film distributing company.-Life and career:The elder brother of filmmakers Zoltán Korda and Vincent...
. Her screen debut was as a nightclub singer in the 1947 film Night Beat
Night Beat (1947 film)
Night Beat is a 1947 British crime drama film directed by Harold Huth and starring Anne Crawford, Maxwell Reed, Ronald Howard, Christine Norden and Sid James. Following the Second World War two comrades go their separate ways one joining the Metropolitan police while the other becomes a racketeer...
. In an interview with the Sunderland Echo on June 3, 1952, she said: "Please don't refer to me as the girl who was discovered in a cinema queue. I'm so tired of that tag. You see, nobody believes it, and it aggravates me so much because it happens to be true." Her best-known appearances were in An Ideal Husband
An Ideal Husband (1947 film)
An Ideal Husband, also known as Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband, is a 1947 film adaptation of the play by Oscar Wilde. It was made by London Film Productions and distributed by British Lion Films and Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation . It was produced and directed by Alexander Korda from a...
, Mine Own Executioner
Mine Own Executioner
Mine Own Executioner is a 1947 British drama film directed by Anthony Kimmins. It was entered into the 1947 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Burgess Meredith - Felix Milne* Dulcie Gray - Patricia Milne* Michael Shepley - Peter Edge...
and the 1949 film Saints and Sinners. She won a British National Film Award in 1949 for that performance.
After appearing in ten films within five years, Norden left Britain for America in 1952, where she settled in New York and married her third husband, US Air Force sergeant Mitchell Dodge. She went on to become an American citizen in 1960, starring on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
in the musical Tenderloin
Tenderloin (musical)
Tenderloin is a musical with a book by George Abbott and Jerome Weidman, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and music by Jerry Bock, their follow-up to the highly successful Pulitzer Prize-winning Fiorello! a year earlier. The musical is based on a 1959 novel by Samuel Hopkins Adams...
at around the same time. She also caused a sensation in 1967, when she became the first actress to appear topless on Broadway, in the comedy Scuba Duba.
The actress returned to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in the 1970s, to work on stage, screen, and television, but retained an apartment in New York - where she held several exhibitions of her paintings in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
.
Family
Norden married five times, the first to bandleader Norman Cole, by whom she had a son, Michael. Her other husbands included BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
Jack Clayton
Jack Clayton
Jack Clayton was a British film director who specialised in bringing literary works to the screen.-Career:A native of East Sussex, Clayton started his career as a child actor on the 1929 film Dark Red Roses...
and musician Herbert Hect. Her 1977 biography, The Champagne Days Are Over, also detailed other romantic links.
Death
She died in MiddlesexMiddlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
, aged 63, from pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
following heart bypass surgery. Her widower was George Heselden, a retired mathematician who used to work for the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
. Actress June Mitchell (1933–2009) was Norden's sister. Following her death, part of the planet Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...
was named after her in 1988, as a tribute to her reputation of Britain's first postwar sex symbol.
Filmography
- Mine Own ExecutionerMine Own ExecutionerMine Own Executioner is a 1947 British drama film directed by Anthony Kimmins. It was entered into the 1947 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Burgess Meredith - Felix Milne* Dulcie Gray - Patricia Milne* Michael Shepley - Peter Edge...
(1947) - An Ideal HusbandAn Ideal Husband (1947 film)An Ideal Husband, also known as Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband, is a 1947 film adaptation of the play by Oscar Wilde. It was made by London Film Productions and distributed by British Lion Films and Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation . It was produced and directed by Alexander Korda from a...
(1947) - Night BeatNight Beat (1947 film)Night Beat is a 1947 British crime drama film directed by Harold Huth and starring Anne Crawford, Maxwell Reed, Ronald Howard, Christine Norden and Sid James. Following the Second World War two comrades go their separate ways one joining the Metropolitan police while the other becomes a racketeer...
(1947) - The Idol of ParisThe Idol of ParisThe Idol of Paris was a 1948 film based on the novel Paiva, Queen of Love by Alfred Schirokauer, about a mid-19th century French courtesan Theresa who sleeps her way from poverty to the top of Second Empire society.-Cast:*Beryl Baxter - Theresa...
(1948) - Saints and SinnersSaints and Sinners (1949 film)Saints and Sinners is a 1949 British comedy drama film directed by Leslie Arliss and starring Kieron Moore, Christine Norden and Sheila Manahan...
(1949) - The Interrupted JourneyThe Interrupted JourneyThe Interrupted Journey is a 1949 British thriller film directed by Daniel Birt and Valerie Hobson, Richard Todd, Christine Norden and Tom Walls. A man fleeing with his mistress narrowly escapes a train crash after he pulls the emergency chord and is wracked with guilt...
(1949) - The Black WidowThe Black Widow (1951 film)The Black Widow is a 1951 British thriller, directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Christine Norden and Robert Ayres. The film was a B-movie production by Hammer Film Productions and was based on a radio serial entitled Return from Darkness.-Plot:...
(1951) - Reluctant HeroesReluctant HeroesReluctant Heroes is a 1951 British, Technicolor, comedy film, directed by Jack Raymond and starring Ronald Shiner as Sergeant Bell or as Sergeant Able It was produced by Henry Halsted and Byron Film.-Plot summary:...
(1951) - A Case for PC 49 (1951)