Vera-Ellen

Vera Ellen Westmeyer Rohe, her name while growing up in Norwood, became Vera-Ellen, movie star and dancer. She was born February 16, 1921 in Norwood (some accounts say she was born in the Oakley neighborhood of Cincinnati, just outside the Norwood corporation line) to Martin and Alma Rohe, and died August 31, 1981. Her home was at 2218 Cathedral Avenue.

She left Norwood to go to New York and did not graduated from Norwood High School. She performed on Broadway and in the movies. Her first Broadway show was "Very Warm for May" in 1939, her first movie was "Wonder Man" in 1945, and her last film "Let's Be Happy" in 1957. She made 14 films, including "White Christmas" with Bing Crosby and "On the Town" with Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra. She married oilman Victor Rothschild in 1954, and divorced in 1966. They had one child, Victoria Ellen, who died as an infant in 1963.

Although she was performing in New York and elsewhere, she still maintained her Norwood address, as show in this clipping from the 1940 Williams Hamilton County Directory.



While promoting her latest movie, she returned to Norwood and Cincinnati in February 1952. She received a warm reception at the Norwood High School (now Middle School) auditorium and Norwood View Elementary (both of which she attended) on the Friday afternoon of February 15. There she posed for photographs, including some with the Norwood majorettes, a position she held while attending the school. This was the day before her 31st birthday.