Acquanetta

[COP11]

Acquanetta (July 17, 1921 – August 16, 2004), nicknamed "The Venezuelan Volcano," was a B-movie actress known for her exotic beauty.

She was born Burnu Acquanetta in Cheyenne, Wyoming, and raised in Norristown, Pennsylvania as Mildred Davenport after she was given up by her biological parents. Burnu means "burning fire, deep water".

Acquanetta started her career as a model in New York City with Harry Conover. She signed with Universal Studios in 1942 and acted mostly in B-movies, including Tarzan and the Leopard Woman, Arabian Nights, The Sword of Monte Cristo, and Captive Wild Woman, in which Universal attempted to create a female monster movie franchise with Acquanetta as an ape.

She retired from movies in the 1950s after marrying Jack Ross, a car dealer. They settled in Mesa, Arizona, and she returned to a degree of celebrity by appearing with Ross in his local television advertisements, and also by hosting a local television show called Acqua's Corner that accompanied the Friday late-night movies. She and Ross had four children, and divorced in the 1980s.

Acquanetta also authored a book of poetry, The Audible Silence, illustrated by Emilie Touraine (Flagstaff, AZ): Northland Press, 1974. In 1987, the all-girl band The Aquanettas adopted (and adapted) their name from hers.

Acquanetta succumbed to complications of Alzheimer's disease shortly after 4 a.m. on August 16, 2004, at Hawthorn Court in Ahwatukee, Arizona. She was 83.