- Born
- Died
- Birth nameMargaret Brooke Sullavan
- Height5′ 2″ (1.57 m)
- Born in Norfolk, Virginia to wealthy stockbroker Cornelius Hancock Sullavan and heiress Garland Council Sullavan, Margaret Brooke overcame a muscle weakness in her childhood to go on to become a rebellious teenager at posh private schools. She went on to perform with the University Players at Harvard and made her Broadway debut in Hello, Lola in 1926. Her Christmas Day marriage in 1931 to Henry Fonda lasted only 15 months, and her later marriages to director William Wyler and agent Leland Hayward were also tempestuous. Two of her three children, Bridget and Bill, would spend some time in mental institutions, and commit suicide. Friends noted that the collapse of her family life led to her breakdown. Her condition worsened over time, until she was discovered unconscious from barbiturate poisoning in a hotel room. Her death was ruled accidental by the county coroner.- IMDb Mini Biography By: <[email protected]> & MO840
- SpousesKenneth Arthur Wagg(August 30, 1950 - January 1, 1960) (her death)Leland Hayward(November 15, 1936 - April 28, 1949) (divorced, 3 children)William Wyler(November 25, 1934 - March 13, 1936) (divorced)Henry Fonda(December 25, 1931 - March 14, 1933) (divorced)
- ChildrenBridget Hayward
- ParentsCornelius Hancock SullavanGarland Brooke Council
- Husky voice
- As a child, family friend Peter Fonda had a crush on Sullavan's daughter Bridget. In adulthood, after Bridget committed suicide, he named his own daughter (Bridget Fonda) after her.
- She suffered from a congenital hearing defect, otosclerosis, that worsened as she aged, making her more and more hard of hearing. Her voice developed its distinctive throatiness because she could hear low tones better than high ones.
- Her youngest daughter, Bridget, was found dead in her Manhattan apartment on October 31, 1960, only 10 months after her mother died. It was ruled a suicide by drug overdose, like her mother's death. She was 21 years old.
- Her first husband, Henry Fonda recalled: "I never knew I had a temper until I got married. Time after time that slender girl's words stung me like a wasp. It got to the point where we didn't live on love. We were at each other constantly, screaming, arguing, fighting. It's all a big blur now. I don't know whether I stamped out in a rage or whether Sullavan threw me out. It was just hot and cold all the time. And fights... we would be in desperate fights about anything." (From the 2017 dual biography of Henry Fonda and James Stewart, Hank & Jim, by film historian Scott Eyman).
- Her son, William Hayward, also committed suicide. He died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the heart on March 8, 2008, in his trailer in Castaic, California. He was 66 years old.
- Perhaps I'll get used to this bizarre place called Hollywood, but I doubt it.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content