From Constance DeCastro's Obituary - the Skaneateles Press (Skaneateles, NY) - August 5, 2019

Born in Modesto, California to Walter and Christine DeCastro on September 23, 1919, Constance Elizabeth DeCastro began her career acting in local shows at the historic State Theatre.  Performing in productions of Shakespeare’s plays as a teenager, Constance’s portrayal of Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream was called “vital and lively” by the Modesto Bee on April 1, 1938.

In 1940, Constance followed her dreams to Los Angeles where she was found escorting a friend to an audition, stumbling into her first starring role in the film The Price of Pride.  While the film itself was poorly received both critically and commercially, Constance made a strong enough impression to attract the attention of the producers at Paradigm Pictures, where she went on to make a string of successful films, winning the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award in 1942 for playing the wounded femme fatale Nancy Callahan in director Neville Turnbald’s film noir classic Malicious.  Winning the award over her sister, Rita DeCastro who was nominated the same year for the comedy Sunset Kiss.

In 1947, Constance was called before congress to testify to the House Un-American Activities Committee.  Her refusal to appear before the committee resulted in a charge of contempt of congress, which added her name to the infamous Hollywood Blacklist, making it almost impossible for her to continue working in the film industry for over a decade.

During this exile, Constance was able to focus on the stage, working almost exclusively with her husband as to stay together as much as possible.  Thanks to Broadway's refusal to acknowledge the Blacklist, they became one of the stage's most famous and influential working couples.

With the birth of their daughter Dierdre in 1953, Constance stepped away from performing, choosing instead to focus on motherhood and the slower pace of life in the country.  Purchasing a house in the small town of Skaneateles, Constance relished the opportunity to fade away into relative obscurity, becoming more known in the community as an active patron of local arts and occasionally hosting revival screenings of her old films at the Colonial Theatre.

From Rita DeCastro's Obituary - the Acorn (Agoura Hills, CA) - May 19, 2017

Margaret Carolyn DeCastro was born on May 9, 1921, in Modesto, CA to her father Walter, and mother.  Rita was bitten by the acting bug at an early age, speaking at length about her love of the old vaudeville shows her father would take her to as a child. 

This love would follow her from her parents’ farm to Los Angeles, where she moved in 1938 when she was seventeen.  Initially toiling as a background player, Rita finally received her big break in 1941 playing the damsel in distress opposite Nelson Harris in the swashbuckling adventure ’Til the Sun Rises in the West.  While both critically and commercially successful, Rita was displeased with the idea of playing women she viewed as constantly needing male intervention to solve their problems.

1942 saw her playing one of her most iconic roles; comedic heroine Barbara Stanley in Sunset Kiss, for which she would be nominated for her first of seven Academy Awards.  Rita would speak in later interviews how the part empowered her to take more direct control of her career from that point forward.  Though it would go on to be a struggle for a of the rest of her career, it was a fight she never shied away from.

When WWII started, there was a call on those in the entertainment industry to serve or support in any way possible, and for Rita DeCastro, that meant joining the USO in 1943.  During a very well received tour with Bob Hope in the South Pacific in 1944, Rita would meet James Branson.  They would later marry in 1946, settling into a quiet life outside Taos.

Facing ostracization in Hollywood after a contentious hearing with the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1947, Rita relocated to Paris and discovered a newfound love of painting, gaining rapturous notice and acclaim for her dreamlike renderings of the city as a desert oasis at twilight.  

Returning to the United States in 1953 after the passing of her husband, Rita returned to Taos to care for her son and continue her love of painting.  An exhibition of her work was later put on permanent display at the New Mexico Museum of Art in 1981.  Despite this new avenue of creativity, Rita’s first love would always be performance.  She returned to Los Angeles in 1962, though she maintained strong ties to New Mexico.

After her re-emergence as a performer, Rita enjoyed a consistent and long-lived run as an enduring talent on stage, screen, and television, the latter of which would become her preferred medium of performance as she felt it gave her the greatest breadth of opportunity to explore her range as an artist.