Marion Davies (January 3, 1897 – September 22, 1961) was an American film actress, best known for her relationship with newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst.
Davies was already building a reputation as a popular film comedienne when Hearst took over her career, promoting her heavily through his newspapers, and pressuring the studios to cast her in historical dramas to which she was not suited. For this reason, she is better remembered as Hearst's mistress and hostess at many lavish events for the Hollywood elite. In particular, her name is linked with the 1924 scandal aboard Hearst's yacht when one of his guests, film producer Thomas Ince, is rumored to have been shot dead by Hearst in a rage when he caught Davies embracing an unidentified male figure. This version assumes that Hearst's wealth put him above the law.
In the film Citizen Kane, the character of his wife - an untalented singer whom he tries to promote - was widely assumed to be based on Davies. But many commentators, including Orson Welles himself, have defended Davies' record as a genuinely gifted actress, to whom Hearst's patronage did more harm than good.
Davies provided both emotional and financial support to Hearst in his declining years, and married soon after his death. For the sake of respectability, her one child by Hearst was passed-off as her niece.
Read more about Marion Davies: Early Life, Early Career, Hearst and Cosmopolitan Pictures, Talking Pictures, Marriage, Death, Portrayals of Davies, Filmography
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“Few people can see genius in someone who has offended them.”
—Robertson Davies (b. 1913)