Fay Elinora Lanphier (December 12, 1905 – June 21, 1959)[1] was an American model and actress most noted for winning the title of Miss Santa Cruz in 1924 and then Miss California and Miss America in 1925.[2]
Fay Lanphier | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Lanphier in 1926 | |
| Born | Fay Elinora Lanphier December 12, 1905 |
| Died | June 21, 1959 (aged 53) Orinda, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Mountain View Cemetery |
| Other names | Fay Daniels |
| Education | Oakland High School |
| Title | 1925 Rose Queen Miss Santa Cruz 1924 Miss California 1925 Miss America 1925 |
| Predecessor | Ruth Malcomson |
| Successor | Norma Smallwood |
| Spouses | Sidney M. Spiegel
(m. 1928; div. 1929)Winfield Daniels
(m. 1931–1959) |
| Children | 2 |
Early life
editLanphier was born in El Dorado, California, the eldest child of six born to Percival Caspar Lanphier and Emily Elenora Olson.[3][4] Her family later moved to Alameda, California.[4] Lanphier's father died before she was a teenager.[4] She graduated from Oakland High School in 1924 and was saving money to go to business college.[4] In December 1924, Lanphier signed a contract with Max Graf to star in a series of shorts produced on the San Francisco Peninsula.[4]
Career
editPageantry
editShe was the 1925 Rose Queen.[5] To date, she is the only person to hold both titles at the same time. She is also the first Miss California to become Miss America.[6] Before she was Miss California, she was Miss Santa Cruz 1924. Lanphier won Miss America in 1925 on a vote of 12–3.[4]
Film career
editLanphier appeared in the Paramount Pictures film The American Venus (1926) which featured a beauty contest, and co-starred Louise Brooks,[7] and performed for a short time on stage in San Francisco with the Henry Duffy Players.[8]
Personal life
editOn June 8, 1928, Lanphier married Sidney M. Spiegel, son of Joseph Spiegel, in Chicago.[9] They divorced after six months of marriage.[10][11]
In 1931, she married high-school sweetheart Winfield Daniels, with whom she had two daughters.[12] They remained married until her death in 1959.[13]
Later years and death
editAfter her second marriage, Lanphier largely retired from public life and became a housewife and mother.[13] She lived in the Oakland, California suburb of Orinda until her death from hepatitis and viral pneumonia at age 53 on June 21, 1959.[14][15]
On June 24, 1959, Lanphier was interred at the Outdoor Mausoleum at the Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, California.[15]
References
edit- ^ California Death Index
- ^ "Miss America's Smile Her Greatest Asset". The Pittsburgh Press. September 23, 1925. p. 6.
- ^ 1920 US Federal Census
- ^ a b c d e f "The American Venus: Fay Lanphier's controversial career as Miss America · SCPL Local History". history.santacruzpl.org. Retrieved July 6, 2021.
- ^ "East-West Grid Game Stage Set". Berkeley Daily Gazette. December 31, 1925. p. 7.
- ^ "Miss California History". Miss California. Archived from the original on October 13, 2018. Retrieved August 21, 2014.
- ^ "Jesse L. Lasky Tells How "The American Venus" Was Selected At Atlantic City". The Palm Beach Post. October 4, 1925.
- ^ "Radio Technique Is Studied For Remote Control". San Jose News. November 11, 1929. p. 6.
- ^ "Fay Lanphier Weds Sidney Spiegel, Jr". Lancaster Daily Intelligencer Journal. Lancaster, Pennsylvania: LNP Media Group. June 8, 1928. p. 19.
- ^ "Beauty Queen To Wed". Sunday Morning Star. June 10, 1928. p. 23.
- ^ "Fay Lamphier Divorced". San Jose News. March 9, 1929. p. 9.
- ^ "Fay Lanphier Weds Schoolmate". The New York Times. July 22, 1931. p. 19.
- ^ a b "Fay Lanphier Dies; East Bay Housewife". The San Francisco Examiner. San Francisco, California: by San Francisco Media Company LLC. June 23, 1959. p. 3.
- ^ "Miss America : 1925". Archived from the original on March 30, 2010. Retrieved April 13, 2012.
- ^ a b Wilson, Scott (206). Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons (3 ed.). McFarland. p. 425. ISBN 0-786-47992-2.
External links
edit
Media related to Fay Lanphier at Wikimedia Commons
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