Patricia Ziegfeld Stephenson

Patricia Ziegfeld Stephenson
Patricia Ziegfeld (center) with her parents
in 1930
Born
Patricia Burke Ziegfeld

(1916-10-23)October 23, 1916
New York City, U.S.
DiedApril 11, 2008(2008-04-11) (aged 91)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
OccupationAuthor
Spouse
William Robert Stephenson
​
​
(m. 1939; died 2007)​
Children4
Parent(s)Florenz Ziegfeld
Billie Burke

Patricia Burke Ziegfeld Stephenson (October 23, 1916 – April 11, 2008) was an American author.[1][2] She was known for her 1963 autobiography The Ziegfelds' Girl: Confessions of an Abnormally Happy Childhood. Born in New York City, she spent her early years in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, later moving to California where she lived until her death at age 91.

Early life and education

Portrait photograph of Patricia Ziegfeld, 1919

Patricia Ziegfeld was born in New York City in 1916 to Florenz Ziegfeld, a Broadway impresario, and Billie Burke, an actress best known for playing Glinda the Good Witch in The Wizard of Oz.[2] She grew up in Hastings-on-Hudson in Westchester County, New York. She also lived at the family's home in Palm Beach, Florida.[1]

Her father died in 1932 and she moved to California with her mother. She attended UCLA then did some acting and writing for newspapers.[1][2]

Adulthood

She married William Robert Stephenson, Sr. (1912–2007) on June 11, 1939.[3][4][5] She met Stephenson while he was working as a dance instructor at the Beverly Hills Hotel.[1] He designed homes including the General Electric show home for Ronald Reagan and Nancy Reagan.[1] They had four children: Cecilia Duncan Stephenson (born 1942), Florenz Crossley Stephenson, Susan Plemons Stephenson (1950–2021), and William Robert Stephenson, Jr (born 1947).[1][2]

In 1963, she published an autobiography, The Ziegfelds' Girl: Confessions of an Abnormally Happy Childhood. She also wrote the introduction for a biography of her father, The Ziegfeld Touch: The Life and Times of Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr., which was written by her cousins, Richard and Paulette Ziegfeld.[1]

She died of congestive heart failure at her home in Los Angeles at the age of 91. She had nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, at the time of her death.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Patricia Ziegfeld Stephenson, Daughter of Legendary Broadway Impresario". Jazz News. April 25, 2008. Archived from the original on April 29, 2008. Retrieved 2008-05-11.
  2. ^ a b c d e Robert Simonson (April 27, 2008). "Patricia Ziegfeld Stephenson, Daughter of Famous Broadway Showman, Dies". Playbill. Archived from the original on February 18, 2013. Retrieved 2011-12-24. Patricia Ziegfeld Stephenson, the only daughter of legendary Broadway impresario Florenz Ziegfeld and actress Billie Burke, died of congestive heart failure April 11 at her home in Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Times reported. She was 91. ...
  3. ^ "Engaged". Time. April 24, 1939. Archived from the original on December 14, 2008. Retrieved 2008-07-28. Patricia Ziegfeld, 22, only daughter of Cinemactress Billie Burke and the late Florenz Ziegfeld; to William Stephenson, 26, dance instructor; in Hollywood.
  4. ^ "Patricia Ziegfeld To Wed. Late Producer's Daughter to Be Bride of William Stephenson". Associated Press in New York Times. April 15, 1939. Retrieved 2008-07-28. Miss Patricia Ziegfeld, daughter of the late Florenz Ziegfeld and of Billie Burke. Mr. Stephenson is a native of Norfolk, Va.
  5. ^ "Patricia Ziegfeld Wed". New York Times. April 15, 1939. Retrieved 2008-07-28. Patricia Ziegfeld, daughter Billie Burke, motion-picture actress, and the late Florenz Ziegfeld, producer, was married today to William Robert Stephenson, ...