Legendary Actress Carla Laemmle Celebrates 102nd Birthday and New Documentary this Fall

Steve Barton   |  

Oct 14, 2011

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In some rather remarkable news, Carla Laemmle, one of Hollywood’s last remaining silent movie stars, is about to celebrate her 102nd birthday on October 22, 2011, and it looks like she has no intention of slowing down in the career department just yet.

The iconic actress just recently wrapped on the feature film Mansion of Blood alongside other horror veterans including Gary Busey (pictured with Laemmle on the right), Robert Picardo, and Terry Moore; and it was recently announced that a documentary on her life, Among the Rugged Peaks: The Carla Laemmle Story is set to debut during the St. Louis International Film Festival on Friday, November 18, at the Tivoli Theatre.

Narrated by award-winning Actress Sally Kirkland, Among the Rugged Peaks was produced by Tom Tangen of Elusive Entertainment and features extensive interviews with many classic Hollywood stars, all while taking Carla back to the original Phantom of the Opera stage at Universal Studios to shed light on the risks and rewards of her life in both the film and dance worlds.

For those who may be unaware of Laemmle’s legacy, she is the first person to ever speak in a talking horror picture (Dracula 1931) when she delivered the opening line of the movie, “Among the rugged peaks that crown down upon the Borgo Pass, are found crumbling castles of a bygone age.” She is also the only child to ever live on the lot of Universal Pictures.

Carla, whose uncle was Universal Pictures founder Carl Laemmle, first arrived to Hollywood as a classically trained ballet dancer in 1921. Throughout her life she followed her diverse artistic passions and appeared in a wide array of films like King of Jazz in 1930 with George Gershwin, The Phantom of the Opera in 1925 with Lon Chaney, and Night and Day in 1946 with Cary Grant.

To get your tickets to the St. Louis International Film Festival or to find out more information, check out the fest’s official website.

For more on Among the Rugged Peaks: The Carla Laemmle Story, visit AmongTheRuggedPeaks.com.

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