Thursday,
February 22,
Henry Fonda - His Italian Connection
The
ANNOTICO Report
I
often wondered why Henry Fonda, and his progeny Peter
and Jane seemed so "Americanized", and never made any references to
their Italian heritage.
I
supposed that it was because Henry was born and raised in Nebraska, where you
are not apt to find too many Italians, and he was raised in the Christian Science
faith, where again you might not find too many Italians.
But
Henry was interested enough that he apparently researched his genealogy and in
his autobiography he wrote:
That
the Fondas can trace their ancestry to
The
deliberate and systematic reaction instigated from Rome; the bull of
The
Reformation while starting in
The
Fondas intermarried with Dutch burghers'
daughters, picked up the first names of the
In
the 1600's the Fondas followed Pieter Stuyvesant
to
Of
course, in time Stuyvesant surrendered Nieuw
Amsterdam to the English which they renamed
The
Fonda family emigrated westward from
Henry
was a Broadway roomate of Jimmy Stewart, and life
long friend. Fonda's relationship with Jimmy Stewart survived their
disagreements over politicsFonda was a liberal Democrat, and Stewart a
conservative Republican. After a heated argument, they avoided talking politics
with each other. In 1970, Fonda and Stewart costarred in the western The
Cheyenne Social Club, a minor film in which the two humorously argued
politics.
In
looking for recent bits of "Italian" connection; they are hard to
find:
Henry Fonda was
married five times. His marriage to Margaret Brooke Sullavan
in 1931 soon ended in separation. In 1936, he married Frances Ford Seymour.
They had two children: Peter and Jane. In 1950,
He appeared
against type as the villain "Frank" in 1968's Once Upon a Time in
the West. . After turning down the role, he was talked into it by director Sergio Leone, who flew from
The 1970s were
the time of " disaster" movies. The
first of these came in 1977 with the Italian
killer octopus thriller Tentacoli
(Tentacles) [RAA: I think I'm glad I missed
that one:)]
Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 August 12, 1982) was a highly acclaimed
American film, stage and television actor, best known for his roles as
plain-speaking idealists. Fonda's subtle, naturalistic acting style preceded by
many years the popularization of Method acting. He was the patriarch of a
family of famous actors, including son Peter Fonda, daughter Jane Fonda,
granddaughter Bridget Fonda and grandson Troy Garity.
Fonda was born to
William Brace Fonda and Herberta Jaynes.
From his humble upbringing in a Nebraskan Christian Scientist family, Fonda
made his mark early as a Broadway actor, and made his
Later in his
life, Fonda moved both toward more challenging and lighter roles in such epics
as Once Upon a Time in the West and family comedies like Yours,
Mine and Ours. He earned a Tony nomination for his role in 1974's Clarence
Darrow (having previously won a Tony in Mister Roberts in
1948), and finished his career with a critically-acclaimed performance in On
Golden Pond in 1981, for which he won the Academy Award for Best
Actor. Fonda was also honored with "Lifetime Achievement" Academy
Awards, Golden Globes and Tony Awards. He died in 1982, leaving behind a legacy
of classic performances, many of which are considered the finest examples of
the "Golden Age of Hollywood."
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