Lili Darvas

Hungarian-born Lili Darvas (pronounced 'Darvash') was a major star first in Budapest, then on the German stage with Max Reinhardt's theatre company during the 1920s, touring Europe with plays by Goethe, Shakespeare, Tolstoy and Shaw. She received her education at the Budapest Lyceum and made her acting debut at the age of 20 as Juliet in "Romeo and Juliet".In 1926, she married playwright Ferenc Moln��r who wrote several plays for her, including "Olympia" and "Delilah". The following year she made her Broadway debut as Titania in "A Midsummer Night's Dream". The union was childless but happy, and lasted until Molnar's death in 1952.Lili was of Jewish background and was forced to flee Europe after the German annexation of Austria in 1938, using her Hungarian passport to escape to Switzerland. Later, on the advice of actor Walter Slezak, she hired a tutor to perfect her English language skills. Although she was known for her fine acting range she never lost her Hungarian accent ... [Details Intro]