Ruth Roman

 Ruth Roman, born Norma Roman, December 22nd, 1922 - September 9, 1999, was an American actress. She started her career on the east coast as a stage actor and then moved to Hollywood to make a name for herself in films. She appeared in several uncredited bit parts before she was cast as the leading lady of the western Harmony Trail (1944) and in the title role in the film serial Jungle Queen (1945), her first credit-worthy film performances.Roman was first seen in the title role in the film Belle Starr's Daughter (1948).She had her first major success in the role of The Window (1949) and the following year was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year - Actress for her performance in Champion (1949). In the early 1950s, she was under contract with Warner Bros., where she was a star in a number of films which included the Alfred Hitchcock thriller Strangers on a Train (1951).In the late 1950s, after quitting Warner Bros., Roman continued to appear in films and began appearing in the roles of guest stars in TV series. Roman also made films in Spain, Italy, and England. She was also a passenger on the SS Andrea Doria when it collided with another ship and was sunk in 1956. In 1959, she was awarded the Sarah Siddons Award for her performance in the play Two for the Seesaw. She was a TV star who was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her numerous television appearances.Norma Roman was born to Lithuanian Jewish parents Mary Pauline (nee Gold), and Abraham "Anthony” Roman in Lynn, Massachusetts. Her name was changed to "Ruth" after the fortune-teller advised her mother that "Norma" was a bad name. Her mother was a professional dancer and her father worked as a barker for a carnival sideshow they owned in Revere Beach. She had two older sisters: Ann and Eve.