Unheard-of facts about the family of Lithuanian-born Hollywood actress Ruta Lee have come to light

“Ruta from Hollywood” is an inspiring story about the life and career journey of legendary Lithuanian-born actress Rūta Kilimonytė-Lee, which led her to the heights of Hollywood and her footprint on the Walk of Fame. The two-part documentary opens the door to the bright life of the actress, her close ties with world leaders, and at the same time shows the sensitive soul of Dzuk. Ruta Lee’s personality is revealed through the stories of herself, her closest friends, stage colleagues and even a long-time plastic surgeon, who testify to an intriguing and heart-pounding story.

In the two-part documentary “Ruta from Hollywood” by director Edvards Žičkaus, which has just been shown on Go3 TV, it is revealed that Ruta’s mother married the talented tailor Juoz Kilmonis, whose father’s house still remains near the chapel of Vladas Miron, the signatory of the February 16th Act of Independence, all that unwillingly When many bridegrooms had already been escorted through the gate of the yard, Marytė’s father told her: “You will marry the one who will come and propose.” And after a few days, Juozas Kilmonis was the first to arrive. Beautiful Marytė no longer had the strength to resist. Although he could not see the way through the tears, his father’s words were the last. The newlyweds soon swore an eternal vow to each other in Daugai church.

Although the church books of that time have not survived, the relatives still remember that Ruta’s parents got married around 1925-1926, as Ona Miklusienė, the cousin of the famous actress of Lithuanian origin, told the makers of the documentary film. Ruta was born about ten years after her parents’ wedding, that is, in 1935. However, Ruta was not born in Lithuania, but in Montreal, Canada, because Mr. Kilmonis, leaving his young wife, went to look for “happiness and more money” across the Atlantic. He did not get a visa to his dream of America, so he decided to go to Canada.

Marytė Kamandulytė-Kilmonienė had already lost hope that her husband would send a “ship card” from overseas to go to him, but Mr. Kilmonis kept his man’s word – he sent his wife money for a trip to Canada. As R. Lee’s other cousin, Vanda Ciūnienė, who lives in Daugai, “Aunt Marytė, or Merė in American terms” said, even after leaving Atlantic Lithuania, she did not forget Dzūkija and her relatives who remained there: “Whenever she could, she sent parcels and money. He really wanted his remaining relatives in Lithuania to leave for America.”

Due to the efforts of Ms. Kamandulytė-Kilmonienė, the family came to America, to be precise sunny Los Angeles, from cold Canada, when Ruta was already grown up, her cousin Ona Katilius and her niece Marytė arrived. The latter still lives in Los Angeles. Ruta considers her her daughter and regrets very much that she missed the opportunity to adopt, because she never had her own children…

V. Ciūnienė, in whose arms Ruta Lee’s mother died in Los Angeles, remembers her aunt as a woman with an extremely good, broad heart. The house where Ruta still lives after the death of her husband Webb does not close its doors to guests – almost every month someone comes from Lithuania – both distant and close relatives, Ruta’s fans, Lithuanian politicians and famous people. Ruta does not break the traditions of her parents, and especially her mother – everyone is welcomed, invited to the table and fed.

With a rich voice, in a charming dialect, the actress invites everyone to her home, which recalls the days of old Hollywood.

“My parents didn’t teach me otherwise. My parents have been talking all their lives, and so am I. Maybe my language is ancient, rustic, I don’t know anything else,” Ruta always openly admits when she is asked what helped to preserve the singing so beautifully. She also does not hide that speaking Lithuanian is not easy for her, because she thinks in English, so she has to translate everything in her mind into Lithuanian.

When Ruta married Webbster Lowe, whom everyone called simply Webb, he also liked the tradition of her parents’ home to welcome guests with a big heart and the biggest smile. Being a kitchen virtuoso, he cooked extremely deliciously and in abundance. To have enough for everyone.

“Webb was a wonderful man. I have not heard that he and Ruta ever had a fight or a fight. And what a singer he was! It seems to me that Ruta was very happy with him”, recalled V. Ciūnienė.

Both she and O.Miklusienė, and Marytė, who helps Ruta as her daughter, and Ona Katilius, who is called the general of the house, who still lives with Ruta in Los Angeles, will testify in the documentary “Ruta from Hollywood” that the legendary actress is not only a person with a big heart, but also the most sincere Lithuanian patriot.

Two-part documentary “Ruta from Hollywood” – from April 24. only on Go3 TV.