Andrea Leeds (born Antoinette Lees, August 18, 1913Andrea Leeds Howard, "California Death Index, 1940-1997"
/ref> – May 21, 1984) was an American film actress. A popular supporting player of the late 1930s, Leeds was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in ''

Stage Door ''Stage Door'' is a 1937 RKO film directed by Gregory La Cava. Adapted from the play of the same name, it tells the story of several would-be actresses who live together in a boarding house at 158 West 58th Street in New York City. The film s ...

'' (1937). As she began progressing to more prominent roles, Leeds retired after marrying, and later became a successful horse breeder.

Early life

Leeds was born on August 18, 1913, in Butte, Montana, the only child of Charles and Lina (née Deoviddio) Lees. Charles was a mining engineer; his mining interests led to Leeds living most of her younger life in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. Initially planning to be a writer, Leeds earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Career

Leeds began her film career in 1933, playing bit parts and using her given name Andrea Lees. Under the name Andrea Lee''d''s, she played her first substantial role in the film '' Come and Get It'' (1936) and achieved another success with her next film '' It Could Happen to You'' (1937). As part of an ensemble cast that included

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...

Ginger Rogers Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starri ...

and

Lucille Ball Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American actress, comedienne and producer. She was nominated for 13 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning five times, and was the recipient of several other accolades, such as the Golden ...

, Leeds was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as an aspiring actress in ''

'' (1937). Her wholesome quality led to her being cast in ''

The Goldwyn Follies ''The Goldwyn Follies'' is a 1938 Technicolor film written by Ben Hecht, Sid Kuller, Sam Perrin and Arthur Phillips, with music by George Gershwin, Vernon Duke, and Ray Golden, and lyrics by Ira Gershwin and Sid Kuller. Some sources credit Kurt We ...

'' (1938) playing Miss Humanity, a woman considered by a jaded Hollywood executive to represent the ideal American woman. However, the film was a critical and commercial failure. In 1938, Leeds also read for the role of and did screen tests for the role of

Melanie Melanie is a feminine given name derived from the Greek μελανία (melania), "blackness" and that from μέλας (melas), meaning "dark".Gone with the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Wind may also refer to: Music * ''Gone with the Wind'' ...

''; however the role was given to

Olivia de Havilland Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland (; July 1, 1916July 26, 2020) was a British-American actress. The major works of her cinematic career spanned from 1935 to 1988. She appeared in 49 feature films and was one of the leading actresses of her time. ...

. She next appeared in two films opposite

Joel McCrea Joel Albert McCrea (November 5, 1905 – October 20, 1990) was an American actor whose career spanned a wide variety of genres over almost five decades, including comedy, drama, romance, thrillers, adventures, and Westerns, for which he beca ...

(who earlier played her brother in ''Come and Get It''), ''

Youth Takes a Fling ''Youth Takes a Fling'' is a 1938 American comedy film directed by Archie Mayo and starring Joel McCrea. McCrea plays Joe Meadows, whose only ambition as a Kansas farm boy was a life at sea. He moves to New York to try to get a job as a sailo ...

'' (1938) and ''

They Shall Have Music ''They Shall Have Music'' is a 1939 musical film directed by Archie Mayo and starring famed violinist Jascha Heifetz (as himself), Joel McCrea, Andrea Leeds, and Gene Reynolds. The screenplay concerns a young runaway finds his purpose in life aft ...

'' (1939), for the first time playing the lead female role. She continued to play the romantic female lead in an adventure film '' The Real Glory'', opposite

Gary Cooper Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, a ...

and

David Niven James David Graham Niven (; 1 March 1910 – 29 July 1983) was a British actor, soldier, memoirist, and novelist. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as Major Pollock in ''Separate Tables'' (1958). Niven's other roles ...

, and opposite

Don Ameche Don Ameche (; born Dominic Felix Amici; May 31, 1908 – December 6, 1993) was an American actor, comedian and vaudevillian. After playing in college shows, stock, and vaudeville, he became a major radio star in the early 1930s, which l ...

in '' Swanee River'' (1939), the first

Technicolor Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...

biography of

Stephen Foster Stephen Collins Foster (July 4, 1826January 13, 1864), known also as "the father of American music", was an American composer known primarily for his parlour music, parlour and Minstrel show, minstrel music during the Romantic music, Romantic ...

. Her final film ''

Earthbound ''EarthBound'', released in Japan as is a role-playing video game developed by Creatures (company), Ape Inc. and HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. The second entry in the Mother (video game s ...

'' (1940) was a fantasy murder mystery in which her character is aided by the ghost of her late husband to solve his murder. Although her films were successful and she remained a popular actress, Leeds retired in late 1939 after marrying.

Personal life

On October 25, 1939, Leeds married Robert Stewart Howard, son of California businessman and racehorse owner

Charles S. Howard Charles Stewart Howard (February 28, 1877 – June 6, 1950) was an American businessman. He made his fortune as an automobile dealer and became a prominent thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse owner. Biography Howard was dubbed one of the most s ...

. Together, they had two children, Robert Jr. and Leann, who died of cancer in 1971. The elder Howard owned and raced

Seabiscuit Seabiscuit (May 23, 1933 – May 17, 1947) was a champion thoroughbred racehorse in the United States who became the top money-winning racehorse up to the 1940s. He beat the 1937 Triple Crown winner, War Admiral, by four lengths in a two-horse ...

, and with her husband, Leeds became a successful horse owner/breeder. The couple also owned the Howard Manor in

Palm Springs Palm Springs (Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Riverside County by land ...

, a hotel originally built as the Colonial House by Las Vegas casino owner and Purple Gang member Al Wertheimer. The hotel currently operates as the

Colony Palms Hotel The Colony Palms Hotel is located in Palm Springs, California. The hotel has 57 rooms and suites. It re-opened after a 2007 renovation, and features the "Winner's Circle Suite" in honor of previous owners, Robert S. and Andrea Leeds Howard (owners ...

, and features the Winner's Circle Suite in honor of Seabiscuit and the Howards. After her husband's death in 1962, Leeds ran a jewelry business.

Death

Leeds died from cancer at age 70 on May 21, 1984, in

Riverside, California Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States, in the Inland Empire metropolitan area. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. It is the most populous city in the Inland Empire an ...

. She was interred in

Desert Memorial Park Desert Memorial Park is a cemetery in Cathedral City, California, United States, near Palm Springs. Opening in 1956 and receiving its first interment in 1957,The Palm Springs Cemetery District itself was covers 504 square miles, including Palm Spr ...

in Cathedral City, California. In 1994, Leeds received a Golden Palm Star on the

Palm Springs Walk of Stars The Palm Springs Walk of Stars is a walk of fame in downtown Palm Springs, California, where "Golden Palm Stars", honoring various people who have lived in the greater Palm Springs area, are embedded in the sidewalk pavement. The walk includes po ...

Filmography

Notes

References

External links

*
Andrea Leeds
at

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasti ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leeds, Andrea 1913 births 1984 deaths 20th-century American actresses American film actresses American racehorse owners and breeders Actresses from Montana Actresses from Butte, Montana Deaths from cancer in California Burials at Desert Memorial Park