Sally Hansen
Sally Hansen | |
|---|---|
| Born | Sally Genevieve Finney 1908 Kansas City, Kansas, U.S. |
| Died | Error: Need valid birth date (second date): year, month, day |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, inventor, performer, author |
| Years active | 1920s–1963 |
| Known for | Founder of Sally Hansen Inc., cosmetics entrepreneur |
Sally Hansen (1908 – December 16, 1963) was a multifaceted American entrepreneur, inventor, performer, and author.
Early life
Born as Sally Genevieve Finney in 1908 in Kansas City, Kansas, she was the daughter of Thomas M. and Jennie M. Finney, proprietors of a modest cosmetics firm named La Finné. During her teenage years, she relocated to Hollywood, California, aiming to build a career in dance and acting, appearing in productions such as The Orpheus Four, Friendly Enemies, and Spring is Upon Us. Hansen was also a prominent figure within the Hollywood social circles of the Roaring Twenties.
Writer
While active in Hollywood’s entertainment industry, Hansen authored a beauty and lifestyle advice column called "Your Candid Mirror" for the Los Angeles Times, using her maiden name. Over the course of 91 installments, she motivated women to cultivate self-confidence and prioritize personal care.
House of Hollywood
Shifting away from performing arts, Hansen revitalized her family’s faltering cosmetics enterprise by rebranding it as House of Hollywood alongside her husband and brother.[1] By the early 1940s, she had grown the business into Southern California’s largest privately owned cosmetics manufacturer with a 26,000-square-foot facility. Additionally, Hansen broke new ground as the first woman to serve as president of the California Cosmetics Association.[1]
Building on this momentum, she collaborated with S. H. Kress & Co. to introduce products under the La Bonita brand.[1] Among these were Cool Off—a heat-resistant makeup—and Film Tone, which drew inspiration from professional film makeup techniques.[2]
Sally Hansen, Inc.
In 1946, Hansen departed Hollywood to found her namesake beauty company in New York City: Sally Hansen Inc., featuring a logo derived from her own signature. The company’s earliest trademarks included Hard As Nails and Mend-A-Nail. Notably, Hansen predominantly employed women in her manufacturing operations, fostering female participation in the workforce.
She sold the enterprise in 1962 to Maradel Products. The brand subsequently became the top nail care name in the United States and, by 2017, was available in more than 55 countries worldwide.
Personal life
Hansen experienced three marriages. Her first union at age 19 was with Eugene Gunther but ended in divorce by 1929 due to his excessive drinking and abusive behavior.
Her second marriage occurred in 1932 to Adolf M. Hansen, a physician and socialite; this marriage concluded in divorce in 1946 as her professional aspirations surpassed his.
Her final marriage took place in 1947 with Jack Newton, who was eleven years her junior.
Death
Hansen passed away at age 56 on December 16, 1963, following a six-month battle with lung cancer. She was interred at Rose Hills Memorial Park in Whittier, California; her gravesite remained largely unmarked until 2014.
Financial legacy
The sale of Sally Hansen, Inc. in 1962 brought Hansen approximately $11 million (adjusted for inflation to 2017). At her death the following year, her estate—estimated at roughly $4 million—was bequeathed primarily to her husband Jack Newton with smaller legacies left to close associates.