- Born
- Died
- Birth nameSophie Kirshnerman
- Suzanne Kaaren was born on March 21, 1912 in Brooklyn, New York. When she was a teenager she won a high-jumping contest. She wanted to compete in the Olympics but her parents wouldn't let her. Suzanne started modeling and was hired to be one of the original Rockettes. She signed a contract with 20th Century Fox in 1933. Suzanne was given small roles in The Great Ziegfeld (1936) and Strangers All (1935). Her biggest success came when she began working with the Three Stooges. She appeared in several of their comedy shorts including What's the Matador? (1942) and Disorder in the Court (1936). Suzanne became known for displaying her long legs and as a publicity stunt, they were insured for one million dollars. In 1940 she costarred with Bela Lugosi in the horror film The Devil Bat (1940). Unfortunately, her career stalled and she found herself stuck making B-movies. She married actor Sidney Blackmer in 1943. Suzanne was supposed to play Judy Garland's sister in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944), but when Louis B. Mayer found out she had gotten married he gave the role to another actress. She and Sidney had a turbulent marriage and they separated several times. They had two sons and starred in several plays together. Suzanne continued to act on the stage and starred in the Broadway show Chicken Every Sunday. She and Sidney remained together until his death in 1973. After a fire burned down her North Carolina home, Suzanne moved to a rent-controlled apartment in Manhattan. When real estate developer Donald Trump wanted to tear down her building, she refused to move. In 1984, she had a small role in the film The Cotton Club (1984). Suzanne died on August 27, 2004 from pneumonia. She is buried at Chestnut Hill Cemetery in Salisbury, North Carolina.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Elizabeth Ann
- SpouseSidney Blackmer(June 13, 1943 - October 6, 1973) (his death, 2 children)
- ParentsPhilip KirshnermanHelene Rosenzweig
- Made news in the 1980s when she refused to move from her apartment building after it was purchased by Donald Trump. He wanted to evict her in order to tear down the building, but after going to court, she was allowed to stay. In 1998, it was ruled that Trump could turn the apartments into condos, and she was, therefore, given $750,000 compensation.
- The actress, whose legs were once insured for $1 million, appeared decoratively in a few of The Three Stooges shorts, including What's the Matador? (1942), Yes, We Have No Bonanza (1939) and Disorder in the Court (1936).
- Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. offered her a part as one of the Ziegfeld Follies at the age of 15, but her parents refused him.
- The second wife of Sidney Blackmer, she lived in his family home in Salisbury, NC, after his death in 1973 and stayed there until it was ravaged in a fire (by a rolled-out log she had burning in a fireplace) in 1984. She later deeded the burned-out home to her son Jonathan, a Washington attorney. Her second son is named Brewster.
- Was one of The Radio City Rockettes at New York City's famed Radio City Music Hall.
- [on working with The Three Stooges in Disorder in the Court (1936)] What fun! "Disorder in the Court" is the biggest moneymaker of all the Stooge comedies. I only did it as a lark--I had a little time when Jules White saw me dancing and said, "With those legs, you've gotta do it".
- [on working with Bela Lugosi in The Devil Bat (1940)] What a gentleman. He always kissed my hand goodnight. He took the film . . . very seriously. What a distinguished man.
- [on first meeting John Wayne] I was in some little club down in Mexico with a group of people--and Wayne, who could drink with the best of them--came up and stated he wanted to dance with me. A Mexican general I was with told him, "No". A big fight ensued, and the police came and took Duke away!
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