Joan Crawford Birth Year and Verified Age
Joan Crawford was born Lucille Fay LeSueur on March 23, 1904, in San Antonio, Texas, according to biographical records and studio documentation. Her official birth year is consistently cited as 1904 in public records, although some early publicity materials suggested alternate dates. The most widely accepted age at death was 72 years old, based on her passing on May 10, 1977. Public databases and film history sources list her age as 72 when she died in New York City. The 1904 birth year is supported by census data, studio contracts, and biographical entries maintained by major film reference institutions. For more details on her early life, see the entry on Joan Crawford at Britannica.
Public records show that Joan Crawford's age was frequently adjusted in early press materials to appear younger, a common studio practice in Hollywood's Golden Age. Despite these adjustments, her verified birth year of 1904 places her age at key career moments in clear chronological context. For example, she was 24 when she signed a long-term contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in the mid-1920s. Age verification for Crawford relies on studio archives, census documents, and later interviews with family members. These sources collectively confirm that her official age aligned with a 1904 birth year throughout most of her public career.
Age at Major Career Milestones and Studio Contracts
Joan Crawford was approximately 25 years old when she won her first Academy Award for Best Actress for the film "Possessed" at the 1930 ceremony. She was 31 when she starred in "Mildred Pierce" in 1945, a role that revitalized her career and earned her a second Oscar. By the time she was 40, she had already appeared in more than 80 films and was one of the highest-paid actresses in the United States. Her age at these milestones is well documented in studio publicity materials and contemporary trade publications. These figures are consistent across multiple film reference databases and biographical sources.
During her time at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Joan Crawford was marketed as a younger star, with studio materials often listing an age several years below her actual birth year. Despite this, her professional timeline shows that she was in her late 20s and early 30s during the peak of her MGM fame in the late 1920s and early 1930s. By the mid-1940s, she was in her early 40s when she signed with Warner Bros. and delivered several of her most acclaimed performances. Later in her career, she continued working into her 50s and early 60s, appearing in films and television into the early 1970s. For more on her studio transitions, see the profile at Forbes.
Later Life, Death, and Age at Final Public Appearances
Joan Crawford was 72 years old when she died on May 10, 1977, at her home in New York City. Her final film appearance was in "Trog" in 1970, when she was 66 years old. In her last years, she made occasional public appearances and maintained ties to the film industry through personal connections and estate matters. Her age at death is consistently reported as 72 in obitu