Image: Wikimedia Commons

Anna Held

French-American stage performer (1872–1918)

PersonDied aged 53humanQ454030

Also known as Helene Anna Held

Born: March 18, 1865
1
Sources
1.Stated in American National Biography Online
View statement on Wikidata ↗
, March 19, 1872
1
Sources
1.Stated in SNACRetrieved 2017-10-09
View statement on Wikidata ↗
, September 19, 1878
1
Sources
1.Stated in American Jewish Year Book 1905
View statement on Wikidata ↗
Died: August 12, 1918
4
Sources
1.Stated in IMDbRetrieved 2015-10-16
2.Stated in SNACRetrieved 2017-10-09
3.Stated in Internet Broadway DatabaseRetrieved 2017-10-09
4.Stated in Find a GraveRetrieved 2017-10-09
View statement on Wikidata ↗
Birthplace: Warsaw
Place of death: New York City
Citizenship: Russian Empire
, France
, United States
Occupation: actor
, singer
, stage actor
+1 more
Spouse: Maximo Carrera
Languages spoken, written or signed: English
1
Sources
1.Stated in BnF authoritiesRetrieved 2015-10-10
View statement on Wikidata ↗

Overview

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · Read full article · Text CC BY-SA 4.0

Helene Anna Held was a Polish-born French stage performer of Jewish origin on Broadway. While appearing in London, she was spotted by impresario Florenz Ziegfeld, who brought her to America as his common-law wife. From 1896 through 1910, she was one of Broadway's most celebrated leading ladies, presented in a succession of musicals as a charming, coquettish Parisian singer and comedienne, with an hourglass figure and an off-stage reputation for exotic behavior, such as bathing in 40 gallons of milk a day to maintain her complexion. Detractors implied that her fame owed more to Ziegfeld's promotional flair than to any intrinsic talent, but her audience allure was undeniable for over a decade, with several of her shows setting house attendance records for their time. Her uninhibited style also inspired the long-running series of popular revues, the Ziegfeld Follies.

Overview

Appears in

1 linked to Anna Held in Wikidata

Madame la Presidente1916 · 1916 film by Frank Lloyd

All data

74 statements · 18% with external sources · numbers in brackets are citations

Given name: Anna
Helene
Cause of death: multiple myeloma
Place of burial: Gate of Heaven Cemetery
Unmarried partner: Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr.
Manner of death: natural causes
Family name: Held
Sex or gender: female
2
Sources
1.Stated in Virtual International Authority FileRetrieved 2018-11-04
2.Stated in BnF authoritiesRetrieved 2015-10-10
View statement on Wikidata ↗
Name in native language: Anna Held
Instrument: voice
Child: Liane Carrera
Native language: English
Writing language: English
Archives at: New York Public Library for the Performing Arts collection: Billy Rose Theatre Division · title: Anna Held Museum papers · inventory number: *T-Mss 1990-010
1
Sources
1.archives.nypl.org/the/21243Retrieved 2024-10-24
View statement on Wikidata ↗
Different from: Anna Held

On other databases

42 identifiers linking Anna Held across the web's reference databases

Data quality

statements

18%

externally sourced

Source last edited October 19, 2026. AIDb refreshes this page daily.

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AIDb. (2026). Anna Held (Q454030). Retrieved from https://aidb.si/e/anna-held-Q454030