Zsa Zsa Gabor

Undoubtedly the woman who had come to epitomize what we recognize today as "celebrity", Zsa Zsa Gabor, is better known for her many marriages, personal appearances, her "dahlink" catchphrase, her actions, life gossip, and quotations on men, rather than her film career. Zsa Zsa Gabor was born Sári Gabor in Budapest, Hungary, to Jolie Gabor (née Janka Tilleman) and Vilmos Gabor (born Farkas Miklós Grün), a soldier. She was named after Hungarian actress Sári Fedák. Her siblings were Eva Gabor, an actress, and Magda Gabor, a socialite. Her parents were both from Jewish families. Zsa Zsa studied at a Swiss boarding school in the 1930s, and eventually followed her sister Eva to Hollywood, California.

Dated Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in 1932, when she was 15 and he was 51.

Her mother escaped from Nazi-occupied Budapest in the 1940s, also settling in the U. S. A radiant, beautiful blonde, Zsa Zsa began appearing on television series and doing odd movies.

Arrived in Hollywood in 1941 with a letter of introduction to Basil Rathbone and his wife Ouida Rathbone, who granted her admittance into the upper echelons of Hollywood society.

Gave birth to her only child at age 30, daughter Francesca Hilton on March 10, 1947. Child's father is her second husband, Conrad Hilton.

Her main period of film work was in the 1950s, with other roles in Death of a Scoundrel (1956), with Yvonne De Carlo, and The Man Who Wouldn't Talk (1958) with Anna Neagle. Again, these were supporting roles.

Her first film was at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in Lovely to Look At (1952), co-starring Kathryn Grayson and Red Skelton.

She next made a comedy called We're Not Married! (1952) at 20th Century Fox, with Ginger Rogers. It was far from a star billing for Zsa Zsa, appearing several names down the cast list as a supporting actress.

However, it was in 1952 that saw her break into movies big time occurred, with her starring role opposite José Ferrer in Moulin Rouge (1952), although it has been said that she was given a very hard time throughout the filming by director John Huston.

In the following years, Zsa Zsa slipped back into supporting roles in films such as Lili (1953) and 3 Ring Circus (1954).

Had a very public romance with Porfirio Rubirosa while married to George Sanders. Rubirosa returned to Gabor after divorcing Barbara Hutton, just 53 days after their wedding. In 1954 Gabor sported an eye patch, telling the press that Rubirosa had hit her in a fit of jealous rage.

She worked with her ex-husband George Sanders and his elder brother Tom Conway in the crime drama Death of a Scoundrel (1956).

By the 1960s, Zsa Zsa was appearing more as herself in the movies.

She now appeared to follow her own persona around, and cameo appearances were the order of the day in films such as Pepe (1960) and Jack of Diamonds (1967).

Both she and third husband George Sanders played "Special Guest Villains" on Batman (1966).

Has appeared as Minerva, the glamorous owner of a mineral spa, in the last episode, Batman: Minerva, Mayhem and Millionaires (1968), of Batman (1966).

Together with her husband Frédéric von Anhalt she adopted a few men. Among them are Marcus Eberhard Edward Prinz von Anhalt, Herzog zu Sachsen und Westfalen, Graf von Askanien (formerly known as Marcus Eberhardt, born about 1969, brothel owner, was adopted in April 2006); Prinz Oliver Leopold von Sachsen-Anhalt, Graf von Westfalen und Askanien (formerly known as Oliver Bendig, born about 1967, owner of two strip clubs in Los Angeles); Prinz Michael Maximilian von Anhalt, Herzog zu Sachsen und Westfalen, Graf von Askanien (formerly known as Michael Killer, born about 1967, owns health clubs); and a surgeon who doesn't want to be mentioned. All of them paid millions for their adoption.

This has continued throughout the 1970s decade.

Zsa Zsa Gabor was married to Jack Ryan, (from 21 January 1975 - 24 August 1976) who was an engineer and designer who formally worked for "Mattel, Inc", the toy company, where he was instrumental in the creation of the iconic "Barbie" doll as well as "Hot Wheels" and the "Chatty Cathy" doll.

Once held up an episode of The New Hollywood Squares (1986) for about 45 minutes after breaking a fingernail.

On June 14, 1989, she was arrested for slapping police officer Paul Kramer in Beverly Hills, CA. Kramer stopped her after noticing that the license tag on her automobile had expired. After a short but costly trial of $13,000 and a $12,350 fine, totaling $25,350. Eva Gabor spoke for her sister, at the trial. In September 1989 Zsa-Zsa was found guilty. She served three days in jail and was ordered to do 120 hours of community service, after her three days behind bars had expired.

She was memorable as herself in The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear (1991), in which she humorously poked fun at a 1989 incident where she was convicted of slapping a police officer (Paul Kramer) during a traffic stop. She spent three days in jail and had to do 120 hours of community service. Such infamous incidents contributed to her becoming one of the most all-time recognizable of Hollywood celebrities, and sometimes ridiculed as a result.

In 1993 she and her husband were commanded, by a judge, to pay $2 million to Elke Sommer because of false accusations that they had spoken of Elke.

She was also memorable to British television viewers on The Ruby Wax Show (1997).

In 2002, Gabor was reported to be in a coma in a Los Angeles hospital after a horrifying car accident. The 85-year-old star was injured when the car she was traveling in hit a utility pole in West Hollywood, California. The reports about her coma, eventually proved to be inaccurate.

Inducted into the B-Movie Hall of Fame on October 26, 2004.

On July 7, 2005, she suffered a stroke at her Bel-Air (CA) home and underwent emergency surgery to clear a blocked artery.

In June of 2009 she was hospitalized for six days with influenza.

In July of 2010 she was recovering from hip replacement surgery after falling from her bed and breaking her hip at her home in Bel Air, CA.

The home she shared with husband Frédéric von Anhalt was used as the location for Liberace's mansion during filming of Behind The Candelabra (2013) and as Alan Arkin's character residence in Argo (2012).

Her daughter, Francesca Hilton, died at age 67 of a massive stroke on January 5, 2015. She was cremated and her ashes were interred beside Gabor's sister, Eva Gabor, at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery. Gabor died 23 months later. Her husband never told her about her daughter's death, out of concern for her physical and emotional state.

Passed away on December 18, 2016, less than two months from what would have been her 100th birthday, on February 6, 2017.