Stars and Siamese

Anna Pavlova

Yeichi Nimura

Cat Tails by Billie Bancroft -1952
The world's most talented tenants seem to occupy Carnegie Hall—and no phonies allowed—rent varies from fifty to five hundred dollars per month—there are poets from Paris, musicians from Milan, writers from London—artists in many walks of life—and most distinguished—and strikingly spectacular are a pair of pedigreed Siamese belonging to Yeichi Nimura. The Spirit of the Lotus and Blue Flame, gamble across the 3,000-square foot studio rented by the Ballet Arts School. I have an appointment to interview Lotus and Blue Flame—I'll tell you more of them later.

Ava Gardner 

with Artie Shaw's Siamese

Vivian Leigh

Vivian Leigh loved Siamese cats. It is said that she had more then a dozen cats in her various homes.

Poo Jones, her Siamese, was with her when she passed away.

Carole Lombard

Olivia de Havilland

1952 -"When Olivia de Havilland was appearing in Pittsburgh on tour as the heroine of George Bernard Shaw's Candida, CATS Magazine learned that one of Miss de Havilland's most devoted travelling companions was Catherine, her Siamese cat.
Due to an unfortunate set of circumstances, we were not able to get in touch with Miss de Havilland until the next-to-last day of her Pittsburgh appearance, and since she was scheduled to depart right after the closing here of the play, an interview was virtually impossible. However, in lieu of an interview, we received the following letter which is reprinted exactly as received except for beginning and final paragraphs expressing regret that an interview had not been possible. We publish the letter thinking many of our readers will like the intimate portrait of a Siamese contained therein, as well as the fleeting and very pleasant glimpse of Miss de Havilland herself, caught between words.
The letter follows:

Catherine poses with her traveling Companion, Olivia de Havilland, during their recent appearance in Pittsburgh.

    You expressed an interest in knowing something about my Siamese cat "Catherine." She was given to me while I was filming "The Heiress," by one of the technicians on the picture, who raises Siamese cats. The role I was playing in the movie was Catherine Sloper, and so I named my new pet "Catherine." I had never been fond of cats, but this little creature, being Siamese and having all the remarkable traits of that breed, inspired my affection and admiration almost at once. She was extremely shy at first, almost neurotically timid, but we gave her a great deal of affection, and very quickly she developed into a really autocratic, domineering, and thoroughly engaging, personality.
    My husband and I, a few months after she joined our household, made an automobile trip from California to Canada. We had decided to leave our Airedale and Catherine behind at the veterinarian's. When we took Catherine down to what we thought was to be her temporary home, she clung to us so desperately that we found we could not bear to leave her behind. We got back into the car, taking Catherine with us. On our way up the Coast we stopped at a hardware store and my husband was able to secure an enamel pan there and two little bowls which fitted into a wire frame, for her food and water. We found she was an ideal companion and since that time has been with us everywhere.
On the one time we did leave her behind, we learned that we could actually make no choice about whether or not she would be with us in the future. Mr. Goodrich and I made a trip to San Antonio, Texas, soon after our return from Canada. This time we went by train, and since we did not know it is permissible to take an animal with one on board, providing one has a carrier for it, we left Catherine at the veterinarian's. We returned five days later to find that she had developed pneumonia. The veterinarian explained that this was induced by her emotional state and he recommended that she remain with us at home all during her illness and convalescence. He made two house calls a day, administered penicillin, and she pulled through.
    She is devoted to my son, who is 29 months old, and allows him numerous privileges she would not permit me. One day he walked into my room carrying her upside down; she dangled perfectly limp and docile in his arms, though I can assure you her reaction to my handling her in this way would hardly be the same. She eats beef, horse meat, shrimp, mackerel and salmon. She can not bear milk, and she seems to need very little water. She knows when I leave the elevator on my return from the theatre at night, and though I may not be saying a word coming down the hall, she is so sure that it is I, that she is already scolding me from the other side of the door, as I approach my room.

With all good wishes,

Yours sincerely,
Olivia de Havilland

Patricia Medina

With Champion Hollywood Champagne bred by Irene Bjerring

Jayne Mansfield

The Siamese Jayne is posing with belonged to her good friend,columnist, May Mann. 

She was filmed holding May's Siamese in the low budget film "The Las Vegas Hillbillies"

Hettie Gray Baker 

The author's blue point boy Mike

Lilli Palmer

with Pyewacket

Appearing on Broadway in "Bell Book and Candle 1951

More about Pyewacket, Lilli and Rex Harrison in these articles.

Kim Novak

with Pyewacket

James Stewart

from Bell, Book, and Candle 1958

Elizabeth Taylor

Liz Taylor is  well known for her love of animals. She had several Siamese over the years. It is said she gave James Dean a Siamese as a gift.

Haley Mills

with Syn from "That Darn Cat"

Dean Jones

from Disney movie "That Darn Cat" 1965

James Mason

Sadie and Flower Face

James mason talked about his Siamese in his book The Cats In Our Lives (1949) 

He also provided artwork of his cats for the illustrations in the book.

Anna May Wong

Elizabeth Montgomery

  Sophia Loren         Claudette Sorel

Frank Zappa

Presidential Siamese

Susan Ford                                         Amy Carter 

                    with Shan Shein                                                with Misty Malarky Ying Yang

        Daughter of President Gerald Ford                              Daughter of President Jimmy Carter

President  Rutherford B. Hayes also owned a Siamese that was named Siam.

Siam was the first Siamese to enter America. Read more about this historic cat 

on The Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center website.

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