While pregnant with Antoinette Daria Cassini, her mother Gene Tierney contacted rubella (German measles]. Daria was born prematurely in Washington, D.C., weighing three pounds, two ounces and requiring a total blood transfusion. The rubella had caused genetic damage: Daria was found to be deaf, partially blind with cataracts, and had severe mental retardation. She later was institutionalized for much of her life.
