PHOTO OF THE DAY: GINGER ROGERS

Amazing picture of Ginger Rogers ,taken in 1939 at her hilltop Beverly Hills home which she lived in from 1937 till the 1960s.

A lady with a head for heights ! But rather dangerous looking. That’s quite a drop.

A close-up of that photo.

A little safer. She is on the other side of the railing.

And a view of the house today.

My thanks to Peter Bryant for these photos. (Peter is on Twitter at @pmbryant )

I found a few other photos of this home which Ginger had built in 1937. Ginger said the view, high up in Coldwater Canyon, encompassed the entire coast down to Long Beach.

Another view.

a view of the house, showing its height.

Until recently, I didnt know Ginger had wanted to star in the film version of ANNIE GET YOUR GUN. Or that she had played ‘Annie Oakley’ on stage.

Ginger toured in the musical starting in 1960. One of her costars was Byron Palmer ( whose wife was Georgina Darcy – ‘Miss Torso’ from REAR WINDOW.)

And another poster for the show, with a modern looking Ginger.

One of the summer theatres where Ginger played ( Warwick Musical Theatre) had quite a season. Stars included James Garner, Eve Arden, Howard Keel, Gordon McCrae, Robert Horton.

13 responses »

willedare on July 22, 2021 at 3:50 pm said:

Wow. Great photos and memorabilia. And Peter Matz (!!!) was her music director on that tour of AGYG. Thank you!!!

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- Vienna on July 22, 2021 at 4:00 pm said:
  
  Glad you liked them.
  
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J P SIMPSON on July 22, 2021 at 5:38 pm said:

Ginger also toured in Bells Are Ringing, The Unsinkable Molly Brown, Tovarich, Coco and Anything Goes.

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- Vienna on July 22, 2021 at 7:17 pm said:
  
  I didn’t know she had done so many musicals other than ‘Dolly’ and ‘Mame.’
  
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J P SIMPSON on July 22, 2021 at 6:22 pm said:

Forgot to mention during the Annie tour Ginger used to stand on top of a prop motorcycle doing shooting tricks. It came off its track during one performance and she landed in the Orchestra pit!

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Bob on July 22, 2021 at 6:40 pm said:

Short clip (at 7:26) of the inside of the house in 2018.
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- Vienna on July 22, 2021 at 7:15 pm said:
  
  I’ve seen that video but this house is on Roxbury Dr. where Ginger lived with Lew Ayres . The hilltop house is on Gilcrest drive, Beverly Hills. Ginger had it built in 1937.
  The video is great for showing the lavish lifestyles of the top stars.
  
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Net on July 23, 2021 at 12:05 am said:

How cool! What an incredible star Ginger Rogers was. I love that you were able to feature the house before and after.

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- Vienna on July 23, 2021 at 8:06 am said:
  
  It looks like an amazing house. Wonder who lives there now.
  
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Han on July 23, 2021 at 2:16 am said:

This home was where she stayed while making movies. When her movie career effectively ended, around 1960 (she made a couple pictures in the 60s but they’re best forgotten), she sold it.
Meanwhile, though, in 1940 she bought a 1000 acre ranch in Oregon. She was a very active person and loved the outdoors, fishing, hunting, canoeing and camping. It was a working ranch and provided dairy products to the troops during World War II.
Here’s another terrific picture:

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- Vienna on July 23, 2021 at 8:04 am said:
  
  Thanks for the information. Ginger definitely liked the wide open spaces.
  
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Donna Walsh on July 23, 2021 at 6:48 pm said:

Thanks Vienna love the video of Roxbury Drive

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- Vienna on July 23, 2021 at 6:53 pm said:
  
  Isn’t it wonderful to see these amazing mansions,
  
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