The star of the cult film “Pretty Woman” thought she knew everything about her immediate family, but she was convinced that she was terribly mistaken. Julia took part in an unusual experiment. She became the hero of Ancestry’s “Finding Your Roots” program to learn more about her family tree through archives, DNA and genealogy work with the help of Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr.
The actress was shocked to discover that her last name was not actually Roberts. Excavations in her family archives revealed a secret scandal. It turns out that her great-great-grandmother, Rhoda Suttle Roberts, had an affair with a married man after the death of her husband, Willis Roberts.
“We dug through the Georgia County Archives and found that sometime in the 1850s, Rhoda married a man named Willis Roberts. Julia’s last name is Willis. But Willis died in 1864, more than ten years before Rhoda gave birth to Julia’s great-grandfather John. This led to the inevitable conclusion. “When we look in the archives, Willis is not listed on the 1880 census and Julia’s great-grandfather is listed as John Pendleton Roberts,” said Dr. Gates.
The historian recounted how his team delved deep into state archives but found no further details about the identity of the actress’ great-great-grandfather. “But am I not Roberts?” exclaimed the shocked Hollywood super diva. “There’s no way Willis Roberts could be your great-great-grandfather. He was dead,” Henry replied.
The researchers then turned to DNA analysis and took samples from the actress and her cousin to see if they could match their great-grandfather’s father. “We found a group of matches that link Julia and her cousin to one man… This is Henry MacDonald Mitchell Jr,” the Daily Mail quoted an expert as saying.
“So we’re the Mitchells?” – surprised the winner of the “Oscar” award. “Yes, you are Julia Mitchell,” the professor confirmed. Henry explained that Rhoda lived only four houses from Henry’s mother, who was not single at the time of the affair.
“They really blew my roof off. It’s fascinating. It was a very unexpected turn. And yet I prefer the name Roberts, “added Julia.
Source: The Voice Mag
I am Dawid Malan, a news reporter for 24 Instant News. I specialize in celebrity and entertainment news, writing stories that capture the attention of readers from all walks of life. My work has been featured in some of the world’s leading publications and I am passionate about delivering quality content to my readers.
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