There are many aspects of Norma Storch’s life that we are all very aware of, like her career and relationship with Larry Storch.
However, there are also some aspects that we may not be as well aware of. Some of these include Norma’s daughter, and her death.
Norma Storch career
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Norma Storch was born in Pocatello, Idaho. She moved to Los Angeles at the age of 23.
Later, she joined the Circle Repertory Theater. In 1947, she met Larry Storch. They briefly dated. The following year, they married.
As an actress, she appeared on the Broadway stage. She also worked with Mel Blanc at Warner Bros.-Seven Arts. And she had a long career in Hollywood. She appeared in dozens of television shows and films.
As a mother, she gave away her daughter when she was four years old. She was worried that her daughter would ruin her husband’s career.
When she was nine, she and her mother reunited in Long Beach, California. But, her mother never discussed her race with her.
Later, she grew up to become a Harvard-educated television producer. And she wrote and produced an award-winning documentary about her mother’s secret. It aired on PBS in 1996.
After the death of her father in 1981, she reestablished contact with him. Several years later, she became a professor at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. During that time, she was also a TV news producer.
Norma Storch relationship with Larry Storch
In the early 1950s, Norma Storch was a Manhattan hat-check girl. She was also an aspiring actress. One day, she fell in love with Jimmy Cross, a black singer and dancer.
Although Cross’s career began to falter, he was still an endearing figure to Norma. They started a relationship in New York City. The couple had a daughter together, June, in 1954. But soon, Cross began to beat Norma. As a result, Norma left June at a friend’s house.
After a few years, Cross began using drugs. During this time, Norma had developed shingles, a painful rash. She had to move to Los Angeles, where she was able to get work in film.
However, she never returned home because racism was a serious problem in the city.
Eventually, Norma reconciled with her children. When she died, she had six grandchildren.
Norma Storch died in 2003 in New York City. Her biography is available on Wikipedia. It includes her birthdate, place of birth and other personal information.
Norma Storch daughter
There was an interesting story about Norma Storch’s daughter. She died from cancer on August 28, 2003.
Her husband, Larry Storch, survived her. They had six grandchildren. One of them is Lary May, a history professor at the University of Minnesota. Another is Candace.
This mother-daughter story, which was also featured in the documentary Secret Daughter, was about Norma Storch’s decision to give her 4-year-old daughter away to a black couple.
June was born out of wedlock. When she was born, Jimmy Cross was beating Norma, and she fled. Eventually, Norma decided to give her daughter to her friends.
A few years later, she had a second child. It turns out that Norma was pregnant with June during her relationship with Jimmy.
She and Jimmy had an affair. But Norma was worried about how it would affect her husband’s career.
She hoped that she would never have to tell her mother about the affair. So, she made a cover story of her daughter being adopted.
Then, she sent June to live with her black friends in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Norma Storch’s death
Norma Storch was an American actress. She was born in 1922. She died of cancer on August 28, 2003. Her husband was actor Larry Storch.
The couple married in 1961. Their daughter, June Cross, was born in 1954. They were separated for a short time, then reestablished a relationship.
During the 1950s, racism was commonplace. It was hard for Norma to return home because of the prejudice she faced.
But she didn’t have the courage to leave her daughter behind. So she turned her over to friends in Atlantic City, N.J.
In the 1990s, she worked as a TV news producer. Eventually, she reestablished contact with her father. However, she was still confronted by her birth daughter.
This led to a confrontation between her and Nancy Storch. A PBS Frontline documentary, Secret Daughter, was produced.
Secret Daughter was an Emmy Award-winning documentary. It featured a mother and a daughter who were forced to live in deceit for 35 years.
Despite her mother’s hesitation, Barbara Cross convinced her to appear in the documentary.
