ZaSu Pitts

Let me begin by telling you that ZaSu's name is pronounced "say zoo ". ZaSu Pitts was born on January 3, 1898 in Parsons, Kansas. She began her movie career in the mid-1910s playing small roles. To learn a little more about ZaSu's life and also about how she obtained her very unusual first name, read an article about her by grandson Rolf Reynolds. I first knew of ZaSu as Gale Storm's friend from the early television sitcoms, " Oh, Susana! " and " The Gale Storm Show ". As my interest in early Hollywood developed I learned she had been a friend to both Thelma Todd, whose mysterious death in 1935, still remains one of Hollywood's unsolved homicides, and Barbara LaMarr, the tragic actress who really was " The Girl Too Beautiful ". After Barbara's early death, ZaSu became the adoptive mother of Barbara's son.

ZaSu was a wonderfully gifted actress and comedienne who appeared in approximately 200 movies spanning six decades. One of her most famous roles was that of miser " Trina " in the renowned silent movie " Greed ". ZaSu appeared with Nancy Carroll is the following movies : " Honey ", " Broken Lullaby " AKA " The Man I Killed ", and " The Devil's Holiday". Not only did ZaSu have a successful silent and talkies career, she also met with great success in what was then, the relatively new media of television. This popular and much loved actress died in Hollywood, California on June 7, 1963 of cancer.

To see a variety of ZaSu Pitts photographs please visit Silent Ladies and to learn more about her career, visit Classic Films and to view a complete listing of her film work, visit Internet Movie Database

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