Early Life
She was born Elda Furry in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, the daughter of David D. (born 1857) and Margaret Miller (born 1856) Furry, members of the German Baptist Brethren. Her siblings included Dora Furry (born 1880); Sherman Furry (born 1882); Cameron Furry (born 1887); Edgar Furry (1889–1975); Frank M. Furry (born 1891); and Margaret Furry (born 1897).
The family moved to Altoona when Elda was three. Her father was a butcher who owned a shop. She eventually ran away to New York and began her career in the chorus on the Broadway stage. Hopper was not successful in this venture, even getting the axe by the renowned Shubert Brothers. Florenz Ziegfeld called the aspiring starlet a "clumsy cow" and brushed off her pleas for a slot in the Follies. After a few years, she joined the theater company of matinee idol DeWolf Hopper, whom she called "Wolfie."
In her words, "Dancing came easy to me. And in singing, what my voice lacked in quality it made up for in volume." Thus, she remained in the chorus and they toured the country from one end to the other. While in the Hopper company, she realized that chorus and understudy jobs were not acting. She wanted to act, and she knew she would have to prove herself before she could hope to get anywhere in the theater. Hearing that Edgar Selwyn was casting his play The Country Boy for a road tour, she went to his office and talked him into letting her audition for the lead. She was given the role and the show toured for thirty-five weeks through forty-eight states.
She studied singing during the summer and, in the fall, went out with The Quaker Girl in the second lead, the prima donna role. The show closed in Albany.
She was the fifth wife of De Wolf Hopper, whose previous wives were named Ella, Ida, Edna and Nella. The similarity in names caused some friction, as he would not always call Elda by her proper name but rather by the names of one of his previous wives. Consequently, Elda Hopper paid a numerologist $10 to tell her what name she should use, and the answer was Hedda.
Read more about this topic: Hedda Hopper
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