All All. Sign In. Most Beautiful Women of All Time. List activity. Gene Tierney. Actress Soundtrack Laura With prominent cheekbones, luminous skin and the most crystalline green eyes of her day, Gene Tierney's striking good looks helped propel her to stardom. Her best known role is the enigmatic murder victim in Laura She was also Oscar-nominated for Leave Her to Heaven Her acting performances were few in the s as she battled a troubled emotional life that included hospitalization and shock treatment for depression.
Her father was a successful insurance broker and her mother was a former teacher. Her childhood was lavish indeed. She also lived, at times, with her equally successful grandparents in Connecticut and New York. She was educated in the finest schools on the East Coast and at a finishing school in Switzerland.
After two years in Europe, Gene returned to the US where she completed her education. By she was performing on Broadway in What a Life! Her wealthy father set up a corporation that was only to promote her theatrical pursuits.
Her first role consisted of carrying a bucket of water across the stage, prompting one critic to announce that "Miss Tierney is, without a doubt, the most beautiful water carrier I have ever seen! Critic Richard Watts wrote "I see no reason why Miss Tierney should not have a long and interesting theatrical career, that is if the cinema does not kidnap her away.
Zanuck during a stage performance of the hit show The Male Animal , Gene was signed to a contract with 20th Century-Fox. Her first role as Barbara Hall in Hudson's Bay would be the send-off vehicle for her career. Later that year she appeared in The Return of Frank James She tried her hand at screwball comedy in Rings on Her Fingers , which was a great success. Her performances in each of these productions were masterful. Though she didn't win, it solidified her position in Hollywood society.
