Aleksandra Ouspenskaya was born into a family of lawyers, and her early life was marked by a passion for the arts. She began her formal education at the Warsaw Conservatory, where she honed her skills as a singer. Meanwhile, she also pursued acting at Adasheff's School of the Drama in Moscow, where she received her practical training as an actress by touring the Russian provinces.
Ouspenskaya's early career was marked by her association with the Moscow Art Theatre, where she worked under the direction of the renowned Konstantin Stanislavski. Stanislavski's "Method" had a profound impact on Ouspenskaya, and she went on to promote his techniques throughout her life.
In 1922, Ouspenskaya joined the Art Theatre's American tour, and upon their return to Moscow, she defected to the United States. She quickly established herself as a dominant force on Broadway, performing for over a decade before founding the School of Dramatic Art in New York in 1929.
To help fund her school, Ouspenskaya accepted her first Hollywood film role in "Dodsworth" (1936). This marked the beginning of a lucrative and long-lasting association with Hollywood, during which she appeared in over two dozen films.
Despite her on-screen success, Ouspenskaya was known for her demanding personality and her addiction to astrology. She maintained a close relationship with astrologer Carroll Righter, who advised her on the best times to appear on camera and when to travel. As a result, many of her co-stars and crew members found her to be overbearing and intensely difficult to work with.
Ouspenskaya's filmography includes a mix of prestigious A-pictures, such as "Love Affair" (1939) and "Waterloo Bridge" (1940),and B-movies, like "Mystery of Marie Roget" (1942) and "Tarzan and the Amazons" (1945). She is particularly notable for her appearances in the Universal horror films "The Wolf Man" (1941) and "Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man" (1943).
In her personal life, Ouspenskaya was a heavy smoker and suffered a devastating injury when she fell asleep with a lit cigarette in bed in November 1949. She died of a stroke three days later at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital.
