Linda Christian

Short Biography

Linda ChristianFilm actressLinda Christian was a Mexican film actress, who appeared in Mexican and Hollywood films. Her career reached its peak in the 1940s and 1950s. She played Mara in the last Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan film, Tarzan and the Mermaids. WikipediaBorn: November 13, 1923, Tampico, MexicoDied: July 22, 2011, Palm Desert, CASpouse: Edmund Purdom (m. 1962–1963), Tyrone Power (m. 1949–1956)Children: Romina Power, Taryn PowerGrandchildren: Ylenia Carrisi, Cristel Carrisi, MorePALM DESERT, Calif. — Linda Christian, a Hollywood starlet of the 1940s and ’50s who was in Johnny Weissmuller’s last Tarzan movie and the first adaptation of a James Bond novel, but who was probably best known for her marriage to her fellow heartthrob Tyrone Power, died here on Friday. She was 87.The cause was colon cancer, her daughter Romina Power said.Born Blanca Rosa Welter (some sources say Blanca Rosa Henrietta Stella Welter Vorhauer) in Mexico on Nov. 13, 1923, Ms. Christian pursued an acting career in Los Angeles and eventually signed a contract with MGM. Her stunning figure led Life magazine to nickname her the “anatomic bomb.” She made her film debut alongside Danny Kaye in the 1944 musical comedy “Up in Arms.”Ms. Christian married Power, one of Hollywood’s most popular leading men, in 1949, a year after appearing in “Tarzan and the Mermaids.” Their wedding was held in the Santa Francesca Romana church in Rome, near the Colosseum, and they were later received by Pope Pius XII.The marriage ended in divorce in 1956. Ms. Christian later married another actor, Edmund Purdom.In 1954, eight years before the first James Bond movie, “Dr. No, ” she starred as James Bond’s love interest in the television adaptation of “Casino Royale.” Barry Nelson played Bond.In addition to her daughter, Ms. Christian is survived by another daughter, Taryn Power, and eight grandchildren.A version of this article appears in print on July 28, 2011, on page A27 of the New York edition with the headline: Linda Christian, 87, Early Bond Girl. Order Reprints| Today's Paper|Subscribe