Dina Merrill is ranked the richest actress in the world of all time by Forbes, Go Banking Rates, Yahoo, Wealthy Gorilla.
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According to compiled financial data, Dina sits on a net worth of $5 billion and that makes her enjoy the distinction of being the richest actress of all time.
Dina Merrill, born Nedenia Marjorie Hutton was an American actress, heiress, socialite, businesswoman, and philanthropist.
Dina was born in New York City on December 29, 1923, although for many years, her date of birth was given as December 9, 1925. She was the only child of Post Cereals heiress, Marjorie Merriweather Post, and her second husband, Edward Francis Hutton, founder of E. F. Hutton & Co.
Merill had two older half-sisters, Adelaide Breevort Close who live between July 26, 1908 – December 31, 1998, and Eleanor Post Close, December 3, 1909 – November 27, 2006, from her mother’s first marriage to Edward Bennett Close, grandfather of actress Glenn Close.
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She attended George Washington University in Washington, DC, for one term, then dropped out and enrolled at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City then studied acting at HB Studio under Uta Hagen. She received a lifetime achievement award from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in April 2005.
Acting Career
On advice from her half-sister’s then-husband, she adopted the stage name, Dina Merrill, borrowing it from Charles E. Merrill, a famous stockbroker like her father. Merrill made her debut on the stage in the play The Mermaid Singing in 1945.
During the late 1950s and 1960s, Merrill was believed to have intentionally been marketed as a replacement for Grace Kelly, and in 1959 she was proclaimed “Hollywood’s new Grace Kelly”. A platform that gave her fame back in the day and also paid well.
Dina Merrill’s Marriage
Dina Merrill married three times during her lifetime. She was with Stanley M. Rumbough Jr., 1946-1966, Cliff Robertson, 1966-1989, and finally Ted Hartley, 1989-2017.
She died on May 22, 2017, at the age of 94 years.