Dorothy Hale

About Dorothy Hale

Born Dorothy Anderson Donovan on January 11, 1905, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Dorothy Hale’s father, James P. Donovan, was a prosperous real estate agent. After receiving her education at a convent and attending drama school, a teenage Hale left home with aspirations of an acting career. Her professional debut occurred in 1924 on Broadway in the musical Lady Be Good. She was also part of the Ziegfeld Follies but departed after an injury from a fall down stairs. Subsequently, she relocated to France to pursue artistic studies.

In 1925, Hale wed millionaire stockbroker Gaillard Thomas, though the marriage ended in divorce a few years later. She married artist Gardner Hale in 1929. Their lives were shared between residences in Paris and New York. Hale became a prominent figure in society, recognized as one of the nation's most fashionably dressed women. Tragically, Gardner Hale died in an automobile accident on December 28, 1931.

The following year, at a dinner party, she encountered producer Samuel Goldwyn, who proclaimed her a "great movie find" and intended for her to star in Cynara. However, Kay Francis ultimately took the role, and Hale appeared in a minor capacity in the film. She later featured in a 1934 drama. Her friend Claire Booth Luce cast her in the play Abide By Me, a production that ultimately failed, and Hale's performance was critically panned. By 1937, her acting career had concluded, and she faced near financial ruin.

The suicide of her close friend Rosamond Pinchot profoundly affected Hale. During the spring of 1938, she began a relationship with Harry Hopkins, an advisor to President Roosevelt. His refusal to marry her led to a severe bout of depression. On October 20, 1938, she hosted a small gathering at her Manhattan apartment and attended the theater with companions. Upon returning, she dedicated several hours to writing farewell messages. Sadly, at 5:15 AM on October 21, the thirty-three-year-old ended her life by jumping from her sixteenth-floor window, still attired in a black evening gown and a floral corsage. Dorothy Hale was cremated, and her ashes were interred at Fresh Pond Crematory and Columbarium in Middle Village, New York. Artist Frieda Kahlo later depicted her in the painting "The Suicide Of Dorothy Hale." Her marriages were to Gaillard Thomas from 1925 to 1928, ending in divorce, and Gardner Hale from December 18, 1929, until his death in 1931.