Olympe Bradna

Olympe Bradna was born on Aug 12, 1920 in France. Olympe Bradna's big-screen debut came with College Holiday directed by Frank Tuttle in 1936.

Brunette leading lady, signed by Paramount in 1936. She was introduced with a famous publicity campaign, which instructed prospective American audiences to pronounce her first name 'O-lamp'. She was born backstage, in between a matinée and evening performance to vaudevillians Joseph and Jeanne Bradna. Their dog act featured at the Olympia Theatre in Paris -- hence her first name. The Bradnas had been in show business for generations. Her father had been a circus rider and former ringmaster for Ringling Brothers. Likewise, her uncle Fred had been ringmaster for Barnum & Bailey. Her mother was a former operatic singer. Trained by her dad, Olympe soon joined the family business as a singer and dancer. Even before reaching her teens, she performed as an acrobatic dancer, costumed as a sailor, in a Parisian production of the Broadway musical "Hit the Deck", billed as the "tiniest sailor in France". Olympe became noted for her poise and for her ballet taps, later joining an American company of the Folies Bergere as an acrobatic dancer for Chicago's World Fair. She then performed for eight months at the French Casino in New York, where she was 'discovered' by Paramount talent scouts and discreetly signed under contract.