{"id":88101,"date":"2026-03-23T03:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-23T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.geni.com\/blog\/?p=88101"},"modified":"2026-03-20T16:59:31","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T23:59:31","slug":"profile-of-the-day-joan-crawford","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.geni.com\/blog\/profile-of-the-day-joan-crawford-88101.html","title":{"rendered":"Profile of the Day: Joan Crawford"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Today we remember actress Joan Crawford<\/a>, who was born on March 23. The exact year of her birth is unknown, with various sources claiming she was born 1904-1908. Crawford herself claimed she was born in 1908.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Image: Joan Crawford \/ Wikimedia Commons<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Crawford was born Lucille Fay LeSueur in San Antonio, Texas to Thomas E. Le Sueur and Anna Bell Johnson. From a young age, Crawford loved to dance and had ambitions to become a dancer. She left school to pursue a dancing career, eventually dancing in the Broadway show Innocent Eyes<\/em>. She next began appearing on screen for MGM and took the stage name “Joan Crawford” following a magazine contest sponsored by the studio. She starred in a string of successful films and won an Oscar for her role in the 1945 film Mildred Pierce<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She was married four times, with three marriages to actors, including Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.<\/a>, the son of Hollywood legend Douglas Fairbanks<\/a>. In 1956, she married Alfred Steele<\/a>, the chairman of Pepsi-Cola. After his death, Crawford was elected to take his place on the board of directors, becoming the first woman to do so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Crawford died on May 10, 1977.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Explore Joan Crawford’s family tree on Geni and share how you’re connected to the star.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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View Joan Crawford’s Geni Profile<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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