Esther Williams

About Esther Williams

Esther Jane Williams, born August 8, 1921, and passing on June 6, 2013, transcended the worlds of competitive swimming and Hollywood stardom. In her youth, she was a formidable force in the water, setting both regional and national swimming records as a member of the Los Angeles Athletic Club swim team. The 1940 Summer Olympics, a dream deferred by the shadow of World War II, instead led her to the vibrant splash of Billy Rose's Aquacade. There, she stepped into a role previously held by Eleanor Holm when the show relocated from New York to San Francisco. During her time in the city by the bay, she spent five months sharing the water with Johnny Weissmuller, the Olympic champion and screen's iconic Tarzan.

Her aquatic prowess and striking presence did not go unnoticed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer scouts at the Aquacade. After a series of smaller roles, including an appearance in an Andy Hardy film alongside Mickey Rooney and a turn with Van Johnson in A Guy Named Joe, Williams cemented her legacy with a string of popular "aquamusicals" in the 1940s and early 1950s. These films were celebrated for their elaborate synchronized swimming and diving sequences. Her box office appeal was undeniable, with at least one of her films consistently ranking among the top twenty highest-grossing films of the year from 1945 to 1949.

In 1952, Williams took on her sole biographical role as the pioneering Australian swimmer Annette Kellerman in Million Dollar Mermaid, a film that would ultimately bestow her with her enduring MGM moniker. She departed from MGM in 1956, venturing into a few less successful feature films before finding renewed success in popular water-themed television specials, including one filmed at Florida's Cypress Gardens.

Beyond her screen career, Williams proved to be a savvy businesswoman. Prior to her retirement from acting, she diversified her investments, venturing into a service station, a metal products plant, a swimwear manufacturing company, various properties, and a successful restaurant chain named Trails. Her name became synonymous with aquatic ventures, adorning a line of swimming pools, retro swimwear, and instructional videos for children. Later in life, she contributed her expertise as a commentator for synchronized swimming at the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.

Williams' personal life was marked by four marriages. Her first husband, Leonard Kovner, was a fellow student at Los Angeles City College. They wed on June 27, 1940, in Los Altos, California, but divorced on September 12, 1944. She then married singer and actor Ben Gage on November 25, 1945. Their union produced three children: Benjamin Stanton, born August 6, 1949; Kimball Austin, born October