Valerie Varda Profile

Valerie Varda

	(Zsuzsanna Eva Vayda / Vajda)
41	is born in Budapest, Hungary, to a textile manufacturer and his wife
52 / 56 / 57	she and her parents escape from Communist Hungary
?	in Eisenstadt, Austria, the Vajdas are put into the “filthiest, dirtiest, most rotten refugee camp in the world”
?	settles with her family in Toronto, Canada
?	graduates from high school in Toronto
?	a suave French producer, Marcel Goddart, signs her for a commercial film for Canadian Airlines to be made in Mexico
?	the film becomes such a sensation that she is asked to stay in Mexico and do a television show and two further movies
?	has her television show “La Hora Nescafe” and three parts in movies with no knowledge of the language
?	while her career in Mexico is at its peak, she is offered a contract by Columbia Studios, but she turns it down
?	when her patron-discoverer, Marcel Goddart dies, reportedly a suicide, she returns to Toronto
Early 61	conceives the idea of an all-night radio show over station CKFH in Toronto, called “Overnight With Overseas,” interviewing celebrities and playing records
61	contacts agent Paul Kohner, who invites her to Hollywood, where director Henry Koster tests her for the part of the bikini girl in his Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation
	20th Century-Fox changes her name to Valerie Varda. Her measurements are 38-19-37.
May 62	will be tournament queen at the fourth annual World Entertainment Tournament at Long Beach Recreation Course on June 9 and 10
July 62	columnist Walter Winchell reports her to be "Pageant mag's addition to feminudity"
November 62	is the Hungarian girlfriend of Jacqueline Beer in "The Catspaw Caper" segment of "77 Sunset Strip"
December 62	columnist Dorothy Kilgallen tells: “Musician Ray Anthony has found himself a fresh curvaceous cutie. She's Valerie Varda, who wants to be an actress, and she and Ray absolutely adore each other...”
January 63	ballyhoos A New Kind of Love, in which she invades the Dodger Stadium press section
Mid-December 63	is in Los Angeles court on a charge of accepting unemployment insurance when she was actually employed. She says she misunderstood questions on an unemployment insurance card. The case is continued.
February 65	columnist Harrison Carroll tells: “New twosome: Valerie Varda and Richard Ney. I thought Valerie had been having a few quiet dates with Marlon Brando...”
March 65	columnist Louella Parsons knows: “David Hedison, who used to be Maria Cooper’s favorite Hollywood escort, has bought George Peppard’s former house. And he has a new girlfriend, Valerie Varda, who is under contract to 20th...”
?	meets Los Angeles attorney Erwin Sobel across a card table at the home of friends
29 August 71	as Valerie S. Escandon, she marries Sobel at the Bel Air Hotel in Los Angeles. He’s 33; she’s 30.
?	becomes an interior decorator
3 October 75	her son, André Jennings, is born in Los Angeles
17 December 78	her daughter, Simone Louise, is born in Los Angeles
?	the Sobels reside in Carlsbad, California
12 January 95	her son dies at age 19 in San Diego from a brain tumor
4 January 96	becomes the widow of Sobel, who dies at age 57 in California
?	founds the André Sobel River of Life Foundation, which will provide financial assistance to single caregivers of children with life-threatening illnesses
08	as Valerie Varda Sobel, she resides in Beverly Hills

Sources: Manitowoc Herald-Times, Chronicle-Telegram, The News, Nevada State Journal, Oakland Tribune, Parade, Independent Star-News, The San Antonio Light, Long Beach Independent, The Lowell Sun, New Castle News, Classic Images, www.Ancestry.com
Recommended Books:
Links: Filmography Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation