In 1953, Grable returned to the silver screen for The Farmer Takes a Wife, with Dale Robertson and Thelma Ritter. My mom never told me how her best friend died. In the James household, every holiday is a special day for the children. Among the luminaries attending her funeral were her ex-husband Harry James, Dorothy Lamour, Shirley Booth, Mitzi Gaynor, Johnnie Ray, Don Ameche, Cesar Romero, George Raft, Alice Faye and Dan Dailey. Walter Sanders The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock Betty Grable getting cold cream applied to her legs by LIFE photographer Walter Sanders as he prepares her for a photo session at studio. View our statement on digital primary resources. She tied the knot with actor Jackie Coogan in 1937 and divorced him in 1939. Rich, famous, beautiful, and talented, Betty Grable and Harry James were a Hollywood superstar couple. Grables pose in her iconic pin-up photo is now a classic, and she looks over one shoulder, back to camera, in a revealing white bathing suit. But behind closed doors, they hid dark secrets. We recommend you include the following information in your citation. She made nationwide headlines when it was revealed she was working in a rectory. Well, Raft quickly proved just how tough he was: He beat Grable, who fled from the relationship. Her funeral was held two days later and was attended by ex-husbands Jackie Coogan and Harry James as well as Hollywood stars Dorothy Lamour, Shirley Booth, Mitzi Gaynor, Don Ameche, Cesar Romero, George Raft, Alice Faye, Johnnie Ray and Dan Dailey. Our credibility is the turbo-charged engine of our success. [2] She had contracts with RKO and Paramount Pictures during the 1930s, and appeared in a string of B movies, mostly portraying college students. In 1939, Grable appeared with her then husband, Jackie Coogan (married in 1937), in Million Dollar Legs, a low-budget B-movie. Her parents were Lillian Rose and John Conn Grable. How many 5 letter words can you make from Cat in the Hat? Zanuck, who had been impressed by Grable's performance in DuBarry Was a Lady, was, at the time, in the midst of casting the female lead in the musical film Down Argentine Way (1940). As stated before, Betty Grable's life was short. Walter Sanders The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock Original caption: "Betty poses the legs for a still shot on a studio beach set. So, are the people in It enjoyed reasonable success at the box office, particularly overseas. Elizabeth Ruth "Betty" Grable ( 18. joulukuuta 1916 Saint Louis, Missouri - 2. heinkuuta 1973 Santa Monica, Kalifornia) oli yhdysvaltalainen laulaja, malli, nyttelij ja tanssija. Grable quickly became an acting, singing and dancing triple threat. 2011. Betty Grable, byname of Ruth Elizabeth Grable, (born December 18, 1916, St. Louis, Mo., U.S.died July 2, 1973, Santa Monica, Calif.), American film actress and dancer who was one of the leading box office draws of the 1940s. When Lillian couldnt find any new dance class or pageant to enrol Betty in, she turned to her own friends to get her fame fix. Betty had two siblings, Marjorie Lucille Grable and John Karl 'Jackie' Grable. What happened to Betty Grable's daughters? She made her film debut at the age of 12 as a chorus girl in the film Happy Days. Lorry is a bit of a compulsive liar. Only 13 years old, Grable lied about her age and landed chorus girl parts in several Hollywood musicals. She opted to play the role of Miss Adelaide, but was passed over in favor of Vivian Blaine, who had played the role on Broadway. [4] Two of her bigger film successes were the musical Mother Wore Tights (1947) and the comedy How to Marry a Millionaire (1953), one of her later films. She played Cynthia Pilgrim, a college student who graduated at the top of her typewriting class during the first year of the Packard Business College. If you are experiencing technical issues, we'd request that you contact Calisphere directly. Grable appeared in her first film made away from Fox in over 15 years Three for the Show (1955) for Columbia Pictures, and the movie featured up-and-coming talents Jack Lemmon and Marge and Gower Champion. [14], In 1943, she married trumpeter Harry James. Betty Grable was a beloved Hollywood actress that became the highest-paid star of her time after working her way up for years in the entertainment industry.Contents of this video00:00 - Intro00:32 - Body06:56 - OutroLike this content? Grable appeared in several smash-hit musical films in the 1940s like, Down Argentine Way (1940), Moon Over Miami (1941), Springtime in the Rockies (1942), Coney Island (1943), Pin Up Girl (1944), and The Dolly Sisters (1945). http://173.196.26.125/cdm/ref/collection/photos/id/30816, Betty Grable's youngest daughter at funeral service. Born in 1916 #15. This led to a heartbreaking habit. With her mother's guidance, Betty studied ballet and tap dancing.Betty and her mother set out for California with the hopes of stardom. Learn more about the collections in Calisphere. In the 1960s, Grable found herself broke and out of the Hollywood studio system that had once rocketed her to fame. Critics, though, were not as accepting of the film. Betty decorates the dinner table to suit the occasion, whether it is a birthday or Valentine's Day. As a child, her materialistic mother put her under intense pressure to become a performer. The Farmer Takes a Wife. Grable was voted the number-one box-office draw by American movie exhibitors in 1943; she outranked Bob Hope, Gary Cooper, Greer Garson, Humphrey Bogart, and Clark Gable in popularity. Madame de Pompadour was the alluring chief mistress of King Louis XV, but few people know her dark historyor the chilling secret shared by her and Louis. In 1943, she married trumpeter Harry James. Grable's last mainstream success for Fox was in How to Marry a Millionaire (1953), with Marilyn Monroe and Lauren Bacall. In 1943 Grable married jazz trumpeter and band leader Harry James. After 1939, the 23-year-old Grable felt so washed up, she tried to retire from films altogether. [24] The play was an instant critical and audience success, and Grable was branded a newfound star. [38], Grable had been placed in the "Top Ten Money Making Stars Poll" every year, beginning in 1942. As a result, the studio prepared a film called Pin Up Girl for her. Yet again, rumors swirled about the set environment during the shoot, with many whispering that the two sparring starlets detested each other. Although Grable rode her legs to stardom,she paid a grotesque price for her fame. Try our quiz and enter to win $500!Click below to check the trivia question Betty Grable had been pushed into performing by her mother and started performing as a chorus girl at the age of just 13 due to her mother lying about her age. The book A House Full of Daughters has a plot set in a small To hide her baby hump, she turned her back to the camera, and a legend was born. The Shocking Miss Pilgrim (1947) was her first film back at Fox. She requested a higher salary and the option to make only those films she wanted to do. Granted, beautiful Betty won most of the pageants, but Lillian didnt stop there. Elizabeth, who later became Betty, was enrolled in Clark's Dancing School at the age of three. Uh. Betty Grable had "million-dollar legs" and million-dollar taste as evinced by her beautiful, classic Hollywood home in Bel-Air. Betty White has three step-children, two step daughters and a step son. Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? She was entombed at Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California. Despite their lack of quality, Grable's movies were immensely popular and Fox regularly channeled the profits it received from Grable's movies into their more prestigious movies. So, how much is Betty Grable worth at the age of 57 years old? While Grable was on Broadway, studio head Darryl F. Zanuck saw her perform and knew that not only was she destined to be a star; she already was a star. Years later, I was using her phone when I made an utterly chilling discovery. (1942) by Libbie Block.. Pin Up Girl capitalized on Grable's . AfterPigskin Parade, she suddenly found herself typecast as a naive college student, starring in a series of humdrum roles and even duller films. The purchase of two pintos put the Jameses in the ranch business. Has Calisphere helped you advance your research, complete a project, or find something meaningful? On July 2, 1973, at age 56, she died of lung cancer. Instead of taking a step back and saying Hmm, maybe I shouldnt force my daughter into child labor, Lillian just grew more unhinged and determined. The play was an instant success for the first time in Grables life, and she used it to get back at the studios that had wronged her. The two hit it off, marrying a year later. Later, she starred in big Las Vegas stage productions such as Hello, Dolly. It was, however, a box-office hit, earning more than $3.7 million. She appeared in a number of B-movies like Pigskin Parade (1936), This Way Please (1937), College Swing (1938). Most of Grable's immediate ancestors were American, but her distant heritage was of Dutch, Irish, German and English stock. [21], In 1930, at age 13, Grable (under the pseudonym Frances Dean) signed with producer Samuel Goldwyn; she thereby became one of the original Goldwyn Girls, along with Ann Sothern, Virginia Bruce, Claire Dodd and Paulette Goddard. But there was good reason for this particular set-up. One of Grables first adult relationships really couldnt have gone worse. Copyright 2023 by Factinate.com. Grable finally obtained a role as a 'Goldwyn Girl' in Whoopee! So, how much is Betty Grable worth at the age of 57 years old? The film was a commercial super hit and earned more than $5 million at the box office. When they were together, they starred in the comedic picture Million Dollars Legs. Half sister of Jerin Timothyray James and Jeffrey James. Her mother soon gave her a make-over which included dyeing her hair platinum blonde. Fox became concerned that Grable might be becoming regarded as pass. When she was 12, she played an adult chorus girl in the film Happy Days - a feat. When the couple had their first-born daughter, they named her Victoria Elizabeth, after Grables character in the film Springtime in the Rockies. In 1941, she was cast in the Technicolor musical Moon Over Miami, again with Don Ameche, her co-star in Down Argentine Way. They Although critics acknowledged that the film "momentarily achieved" brilliance, they also felt that the movie's music was like "sticky toothpaste being squeezed out of a tube". For all her good-girl looks and apple pie charms, Grable lived one scrappy existence as a struggling starlet. Many Hollywood stars came to the funeral as well. Grable came back to the spotlight with the 1947 film,The Shocking Miss Pilgrim, but the film was overshawdowed by her succeeding project Mother Wore Tights, with one of her most frequent co-stars Dan Dailey. After Lubitsch's death early in production, Otto Preminger took over. She played Ruby Summers in the Wabash Avenue in 1950. Her mother enrolled her from an early age in dance and music classes and in 1929 moved with her to Hollywood, California. One way to cheer up the servicemen was through pin-up photographs of famous actresses, which they made into posters and shipped overseas. After Grable left Fox, the studio moved Monroe into her old dressing room, which still had her name on the door. In was in 1940 that she landed her first leading roleshe was chosen to play Glenda Crawfordin the musical film Down Argentine Way which also had Don Ameche, Charlotte Greenwood and Carmen Miranda in the star cast. By 1930, she had worked as a chorus girl before signing with legendary Hollywood producer Samuel Goldwyn. In fact, Grable and Monroe got along famously; Grable reportedly told Monroe: "Go and get yours, honey! Her funeral was held July 5, 1973, 30 years to the day after her marriage to Harry James who, in turn, died on what would have been his and Grable's 40th anniversary, July 5, 1983. Gangster actor George Raft never quite let her go, and when he found out she had taken up with the bandleader, he had one of his cronies tail the pair when they went home together. Despite her success, she suffered from a fear of crowds and sleepwalking. She was entered in multiple beauty contests, many of which she won or for which she achieved considerable attention. The Grable children were of Dutch, English, German, Swiss German, and Irish ancestry. Her last film was How to Be Very, Very Popular (1955).She then concentrated on Broadway and nightclubs. In 1949, although she still placed in the top 10, she slipped from second to seventh place in popularity. It proved to be Grable's final film appearance. Betty Grable was an entertainer for her entire life. Pin Up Girl received poor reviews but was a tremendous box-office success. Besides the insatiable womanizing, Grables second husband Harry James had other horrific qualities to round out his nomination for Worst Husband Ever. The exhausted starlet took up on Broadway instead in the musical DuBarry Was a Lady. "[46] How to Marry a Millionaire was a box-office triumph when released, grossing an estimated $8 million. The movie was a big commercial hit. Her two daughters Victoria and Jessica were brought up by anyone available. In actuality, though Betty Grable and Alice Faye had never even met each other before shooting began on Tin Pan Alley, the actresses got along famously almost immediately after encountering each other on set. Despite the similarities, it had new songs written and dances choreographed to modernize the film. Wearing a white one-piece bathing . Go get yours. Los Angeles Public Library Photo Collection. One particular pose showed Grable's back to the camera as she playfully smiled looking over her right shoulder, with the pose chosen because she was several months pregnant with her first child. Its your turn now.. 2006. She was born as Elizabeth Ruth Grable to John Conn Grable and Lillian Rose Hofmann. The movie was about a Broadway actress who is so successful that her husband considers her more of an asset than a wife. The film offered Grable her second teaming with Carole Landis, and it co-starred Victor Mature. But just before she left, she got the best revenge. While working on How to Marry a Millionaire, Grable was under no illusions that her star was fading, or that Monroe and her ample bosom were about to replace her and her legs in the public consciousness. This went even more horrifically than you might think. In a 1940 interview, Grable stated she was "sick and tired" of show business and that she was considering retirement. She continued to be popular until the mid-1950s, when musicals went into a decline. [6] Her bathing suit poster made her the number-one pin-up girl of World War II, surpassing Rita Hayworth. What are the 4 major sources of law in Zimbabwe? In 1946-1947, the Treasury Department noted that she was the highest paid woman in America, receiving $300,000 a year. [28] Over the years, rumors have circulated that a rivalry existed between Grable and Faye during filming, but this has been said to be entirely untrueboth actresses denied all accusations of a feud, and each often expressed their admiration for the other. However, she is best noted for her 1947 film Mother Wore Tights. In case it isnt clear just how much Betty Grable influenced American culture, get a load of this. Down Argentine Way. Thisdid not go how she planned. Grable entered into a relationship with a dancer, Bob Remick, several years her junior. [22], In 1932, she signed a contract with RKO Radio Pictures, and she was assigned to a succession of acting, singing, and dancing classes at the studio's drama school.

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