Goddard, Paulette (1911-1990)

Goddard, Paulette

ACTOR (FRANCE)

BORN 3 Jun 1911, New York City, New York: Whitestone Landing, Queens - DIED 23 Apr 1990, Ronco sopra Ascona, Ticino
BIRTH NAME Levy, Pauline Marion
CAUSE OF DEATH heart failure
GRAVE LOCATION Ronco sopra Ascona, Ticino: Cimitero di Ronco sopra Ascona

Paulette goddard was the daughter of J.R. Levy (1881-1954), who was the son of a rich Jewish cigar manufacturer from Salt Lake City. Her mother was Alta Mae Goddard (1887-1983). Her parents had married in 1908 and separated when Paulette was still very young. She was raised by her mother and worked as a model from an early age. Her uncle Charles Goddard, who owned the American Druggist Syndicate, introduced her to Florenz Ziegfield. In 1926 she debuted as a dancer for Ziegfeld. In 1927 she married Edgard James, the president of the Southern Lumber Company, but they divorced in 1929 and she received $375,000.

In 1929 she appeared uncredited in the Laurel and Hardy film "Berth Marks". In 1930 she signed with producer Samuel Goldwyn and appeared in several movies. In 1932 she switched to Hal Roach studios and appeared uncredited in several films. She started dating Charlie Chaplin around that time and in 1936 he gave her a leading part in "Modern Times" (1936). They married in 1936, but they didn't comment publicly on their marriage. She was successful in "The Women" (1939) and she nearly missed the part of Scarlet O'Hara in "Gone with the Wind". In 1940 she was in Chaplin's movie "The Great Dictator". They split soon afterwards and were divorced in 1942. She was in Cecil B. Demille's "Reap the Wild Wind" in 1942.

In 1943 she was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her part in "So Proudly We Hail!", but she lost to Katina Paxinou. In 1944 she married Burgess Meredith. This marriage would last until 1949. Together they performed in "The Diary of a Chambermaid" (1946), directed by Jean Renoir. Many more movies followed and her last big part was "A Stranger Came Home" (1954).

In 1958 she married the author Erich Maria Remarque and she lived with him in Ronco di Soprona in Switzerland. She retired from acting, although she appeared in a supporting role in "Gli indifferenti" ("Time of Indifference", 1964). Remarque died in 1970 and in 1972 she played a small part in the television production "The Snoop Sisters" (1972). Her marriage to Remarque had brought her further wealth and during the 1980s she was often in New York, where she was a close friend of Andy Warhol. She died at home in Switzerland in 1990.

Family
• Husband: Chaplin, Charly (1936-1942, Canton (China))
• Husband: Remarque, Erich Maria (1958-1970)

Images
The grave of Erich Maria Remarque and Paulette Goddard at the Cimitero di Ronco sopra Ascona, Ticino. Picture by Androom (16 Feb 2019)	The grave of Paulette Goddard at the Cimitero di Ronco sopra Ascona, Ticino. Picture by Androom (16 Feb 2019)