Hedda Hopper

Hedda Hopper, born Elda Furry, was an American gossip columnist and actress. In 1915 Elda Furry Hopper moved from New York to Hollywood with her husband De Wolf and son William. Adopting the name Hedda Hopper, she had a short and undistinguished film career. Hopper tried her hand at hosting a radio show in 1936. When it failed, she used her insider status to become a saucy gossip columnist, competing with Louella Parsons. She and Parsons maintained a literary feud that lasted for years and kept newspaper circulations high. Hopper wrote two autobiographies: From Under My Hat (1952) and The Whole Truth and Nothing But (1963).