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She would've turned 100: the inimitable Zsa Zsa Gabor

Courtney Tenz
February 6, 2017

Zsa Zsa Gabor is a movie star for the ages. A refugee from the Nazis, the former Miss Hungary embodied the ultimate diva in both big and small roles. She died just a few weeks before her 100th birthday on February 6.

Zsa Zsa Gabor
Image: picture-alliance/ZUMAPRESS/Keystone

Born on February 6, 1917, the inimitable Zsa Zsa Gabor didn't get to become a centenarian, as she died on December 18, 2016 - just a few weeks before her 100th birthday. 

A movie star for the ages, the former Miss Hungary fled her country just before World War II, joining her first husband, Turkish diplomat Burhan Belge, in London in June 1939.

Later moving to Los Angeles, the child of a prosperous family embodied a fur-and-diamonds lifestyle that became something of a trademark, along with her thick Eastern European accent. The original diva, she began starring in movies in 1950s Hollywood, taking on roles in "Lovely to Look At," "Moulin Rouge," "Lili," Orson Welles' "Touch of Evil" and even the camp classic "Queen of Outer Space."

Everybody's darling

Known for her trademark Eastern European accent and habit of calling everyone "Darling," Gabor continued her career making television appearances until well into her 70s. She appeared in character on shows like "Batman" and "Bonanza" before making cameo appearances on the television series "The Facts of Life" and "Fresh Prince of Bel Air" as her fame grew.  

Gabor was well-known in the US for her personal life. She had numerous affairs in the public spotlight and married at least eight times.

"A girl must marry for love, and keep on marrying until she finds it," Gabor once said. Hotel heir Conrad Hilton, great-grandfather to Paris Hilton, was her second husband and the father of her only child, Francesca.

She also had a short-lived marriage to businessman John W. Ryan, who was credited with the creation of Barbie dolls. At the time of her death from a heart attack, Gabor had been with her husband Frederic von Anhalt for 26 years. 

"Everybody was there. She didn't die alone," an emotional von Anhalt told AFP by phone.

Click through the gallery above for a look back at the career.

 

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