Movie director King W. Vidor (pronounced vee-dor) and his second wife, Eleanor Boardman, welcomed their first child together in November of 1927. They had a name picked out for a boy — “Boardman Vidor” — but didn’t have anything ready for a girl.
So, of course, it was a girl. :)
According to news reports, the baby remained nameless until at least April, when she was named Joyce.
But while the couple was abroad promoting Vidor’s latest film, The Crowd, she was renamed Antonia. They announced the change in early July, on the day they returned to the U.S. aboard the SS De Grasse.
Which of the two names do you like more, Joyce or Antonia?
Sources:
- Overview for Eleanor Boardman – TCM
- “Vidor Baby Nameless.” Pittsburgh Press 15 Apr. 1928: 2, Theatrical and Photoplay Section.
I don’t have any real preference between Joyce vs Antonia, but I am very definitely glad that they didn’t have a boy and stick him with the name Boardman.