Biographies: Eleanor Roosevelt - Actor

Biographies

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Eleanor Roosevelt was an influential American political figure. She was also the First Lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945, as she was married to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and also played a prominent role as a civil rights advocate. She was a member of the eminent American Roosevelt and Livingston families and a niece of President Theodore Roosevelt. Her childhood was sad, as she lost her parents and one of her brothers at an early age. At the age of fifteen, she attended Allenswood Boarding Academy in London. On her return to the United States, she married her fifth cousin Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1905, and she convinced him to stay in politics after he was afflicted with a paralytic illness in 1921. After Franklin's election as Governor of New York in 1928, and during the remainder of his public service in government, Eleanor made regular public appearances on his behalf, and as First Lady, during her husband's tenure as President, she redefined the role of the first lady considerably. Even though Eleanor was widely respected in her later years, she was a controversial first lady due to her outspokenness, especially on civil rights for African Americans. After her husband's death in 1945, Eleanor remained active in politics for the remaining seventeen years of her life. She urged the United States to join and support the United Nations, becoming its first representative. She was the first head of the UN Commission on Human Rights and oversaw the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. She later headed the John F. Kennedy administration's Presidential Commission on the Status of Women. By the time of her passing, Eleanor was considered "one of the most esteemed women in the world", and was called "the object of almost universal respect" by The New York Times. Eleanor Roosevelt appeared as herself in Front Page Challenge (1958), The Colgate Comedy Hour (1950), and Sunday Showcase (1959).

20 September 2022
Dalia Saad