Barbara Stanwyck is an early-Hollywood icon. The actor overcame a challenging childhood to become a performer of remarkable range, equally praised for her work in screwball comedies, Westerns, and film noirs. Unfortunately, the Big Valley star’s personal life was as fraught as some of her more complicated characters, but her artistic legacy made her a wealthy woman and a timeless on-screen presence.
Barbara Stanwyck grew up an orphan and began working as a pre-teen
The youngest of five children, Barbara Stanwyck was born Ruby Catherine Stevens on Jul. 16, 1907, in Brooklyn, New York. Tragedy struck early in her life. Her mother, Catherine, died after a drunk passenger pushed her off a moving streetcar in 1911. Two weeks after the funeral, Stanwyck’s father, Byron, left to join a work crew digging the Panama Canal and was never seen by his family again.
Stanwyck spent the next few years being raised by her sister Laura Mildred and moving through multiple foster homes after Mildred got a job as a showgirl. The future actor dropped out of school at 14. She took various odd jobs, such as wrapping packages at a department store, filing paperwork at a telephone office, cutting dress patterns for Vogue, and working as a typist for the Jerome H. Remick Music Company.
But even at a young age, Stanwyck knew her calling was as an entertainer. She became a chorus girl at 15 and danced for several years in nightclubs and touring companies, notably as part of the Ziegfeld Follies. Her abilities earned her a role in the 1926 Broadway play The Noose.
Stanwyck chose her famous stage name by combining the names of actor Jane Stanwyck and her play Barbara Frietchie. After starring in her first leading role in 1927’s Burlesque, Stanwyck made her way to Hollywood.
Barbara Stanwyck’s net worth at her death reflected her success as a well-paid actor
Stanwyck’s first films didn’t succeed financially or creatively. Still, she established herself as a screen actor in pre-Code films (an era between the widespread adoption of sound in film and Hays Code censorship guidelines defined by movies with subversive or illicit themes) such as Ladies of Leisure, Baby Face, and The Bitter Tea of General Yen.
Stanwyck received her first Academy Award nod in 1937 for Stella Dallas. She was nominated another four times without winning in her career. Though she’s often called “the best actress who never won an Oscar” (Stanwyck was given an Honorary Oscar in 1982), her performances made her a beloved mainstream figure. She was equally comfortable playing the femme fatale in the noir classic Double Indemnity and as the co-lead in the comedy The Lady Eve.
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Stanwyck’s genius was in her versatility, but all of her best roles could be categorized as women who were more intelligent, charismatic, and tougher than many observers thought was possible at the time. And unlike many women of her time, she was well-compensated for her work. A report from the federal government confirmed that Stanwyck earned $400,000 in 1944 (about $6.8 million when adjusted for inflation), making her the highest-paid woman actor in the world.
Her movie career declined in the 1950s, but Stanwyck maintained relevance by moving to television, where she won three Emmys for The Barbara Stanwyck Show (1961), The Big Valley (1966), and The Thorn Birds (1983).
She died on Jan. 20, 1990, of congestive heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at 82. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Barbara Stanwyck’s net worth was $10 million at her death.
The ‘Big Valley’ actor didn’t mend her relationship with her son before her death
Before Stanwyck died, the actor had made it known she didn’t want a funeral. So in accordance with her wishes, she was cremated and her ashes scattered over Lone Pine, California, where she had made several Westerns. Many friends, fans, and collaborators mourned her loss. But her son likely had more awkward feelings about the matter.
Stanwyck met her first husband, Frank Fay, when they co-starred in Burlesque. They married the following year. Because she couldn’t have children, they adopted a boy they named Dion in 1932. But the couple’s relationship soon turned toxic as the two frequently argued, and Fay reportedly physically abused Stanwyck multiple times. They divorced in 1935, and Stanwyck was granted custody of Dion.
However, the relationship between mother and son grew so strained they barely spoke after Dion left home when he was 19. The reasons for their estrangement have never been publicly revealed, but the damage appeared deep. According to IMDb, Dion was reportedly given money from Stanwyck’s estate on the condition he would never speak publicly about her. He died in 2006. His cause of death was not made public.
Stanwyck’s other marriage was to Robert Taylor, an actor 23 years her junior. They wed in 1939 and divorced in 1952 but remained close friends until Taylor died in 1969 of lung cancer.
