Acquanetta

ACQUANETTA
Longtime valley icon, Acquanetta. passed away Monday morning of complications associated with Alzheimer's disease. She was 83. Known as the Queen of the "B" movies, Acquanetta was a prominent valley resident that promoted local charities and her husband's automobile business from the late 1950s through the early 1980s. Acqua, as she was known to many, was a familiar fixture on local television and radio. In addition to promoting her husband's car business, Acquanetta frequently endorsed charitable organizations and community causes in her TV segment, "Acqua's Corner." This segment was often parodied by several other well-known local television personalities, Bill Thompson, Lad Kwiatkowski, and Pat McMahon on The Wallace & Ladmo Show. Born of an Arapaho Indian mother and French-English-Cherokee father on July 17th 1921, in Fremont, Wyoming, she grew up in Pennsylvania. She moved to New York as a teenager and began a modeling career. She excelled in modeling and soon became one of the highest paid models in New York with the John Robert Powers Modeling Agency. She was introduced by Walter Winchell, a well-known newspaper columnist, to Hollywood Studio executives and was soon on her way to California with eventual contracts with MGM and later with Universal Studios. She appeared in many B-movie classics, including a starring role in Tarzan and the Leopard Women with Johnny Weissmuller. Some of her other films include Dead Mans Eyes with Lon Chaney, Lost Continent with Caesar Romero, Captive Wild Woman with John Carradine Jungle Women, Arabian Nights The Sword of Monte Cristo and more. She continued modeling, appearing in paintings and magazine covers by Henry Clive, Illustrator for William Randolph Hearst's "American Weekly" magazine. She married Jack Ross, a successful automotive executive, and moved to Arizona when they acquired a Lincoln Mercury dealership in 1956. Once in Phoenix, Acquanetta quickly became well known through her television commercials, community involvement and contributions to the success of numerous institutions, including The Heard Museum, the Phoenix Symphony, the National Conference of Christians and Jews, Stagebrush Theater, Phoenix Press Club, United Cerebral Palsy, Phoenix Indian School, Mesa Lutheran Hospital, Combined Charities, and many, many others. She was also an author having published numerous essays, poems, and most importantly her book, "The Audible Silences." Those who knew Acquanetta understood that she was a very special person who touched us all with her love, grace and kindness. She was a remarkable woman and left an indelible impression on anyone who was lucky enough to meet her. She gave extra meaning to a word with her nearly patented delivery of her greeting "Happiness." Acqua was truly special, a gift to our lives, and will be missed very much. Acquanetta was preceded in death by her son Sergio and granddaughter Jacqueline. She is survived by her ex-husband Jack Ross, four sons. Lance, Tom, Jack and Rex, and her grandchildren, Katharine, Scott, Gregory, Kelley, Jackson, Charlyn and Max. Funeral Services will be held Saturday at Ascension Lutheran Church 7100 N. Mockingbird Lane, Paradise Valley at 10:30 AM. Visitation will be Friday evening at Messinger Mortuary, 7601 E. Indian School Road in Scottsdale between 5:00 to 8:00pm. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the following charities: Alzheimer's Association, Southwest Autism Center, ANSER (Arizona Native Scholastic Enrichment & Resources) or Childhelp USA.