Please let us know if a fact weve published is inaccurate (or even if you just suspect its inaccurate) by reaching out to us at contribute@factinate.com. Factinate is a fact website that is dedicated to finding and sharing fun facts about science, history, animals, films, people, and much more. It was one of the highest grossing films of that year. Her parents were Lillian Rose and John Conn Grable. First Name Betty #9. Betty Grable - YouTube Daughter of John Conn Grable and Lillian Rose Grable "I Had the Craziest Dream", the ballad from Springtime in the Rockies, was played on the church organ. Her mother made her attend the Hollywood Professional School and learned dancing from the Ernest Blecher Academy. The bit parts continued for the next three years. School for Romance. Hosiery specialists of the era often noted the ideal proportions of her legs and thighs (18.5in (47cm)), calf (12in (30cm)), and ankle (7.5in (19cm)). [2], She replaced Alice Faye in Down Argentine Way (1940), her first major Hollywood film, and became Fox's biggest film star throughout the next decade. Years later, I was using her phone when I made an utterly chilling discovery. Darryl F. Zanuck had the film Wabash Avenue (1950) tailored to fit Grable's talents. Although Grable rode her legs to stardom,she paid a grotesque price for her fame. Her last film was How to Be Very, Very Popular (1955).She then concentrated on Broadway and nightclubs. Every item on Calisphere has been contributed to the site by a California institution. From a disturbingly young age, she suffered from intense fits of sleepwalking as well as a fear of crowds, known as demophobia. Huh, wonder where she got that from. BETTY GRABLE Historian Alan Royle They But this led to one utterly harrowing story. While in Las Vegas, she took the opportunity to begin starring in her own productions, and later productions with her husband Harry James. She had German, English, Irish, and Dutch ancestry. Previous to this, she was doing bit parts appearing with Lucille Ball and Paulette Goddard, also Goldwyn Girls, in other Cantor films titled Palmy Days and The Kid From Spain. Betty was just 13 but her mother arranged for her false identification papers so that she could perform. He and Betty Grable were engaged in 1935 and married on November 20, 1937, and they divorced on October 11, 1939. Naughty Facts About Bettie Page, The Original Pin-Up, Stabbed In The Back: These Real-Life Betrayals Are Straight Up Brutal, These People Shared The Worst Moments Of Their LivesAnd Theyre Utterly Brutal, These Eerie Supernatural Experiences Sent A Chill Down Our Spines, These Mega Embarrassing Moments Still Made Us Burst Out Laughing, "The Bride Kissed The Best Man" And Other Real-Life Wedding Disasters. 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. She had German, English, Irish, and Dutch ancestry. Nicknamed Betty as a child, she was pressured by her mother to become a performer. Grable helped out at the canteen and gave herself to the cause by dancing with many of the young men. Her second marriage was to trumpeter Harry James in 1943. For all her good-girl looks and apple pie charms, Grable lived one scrappy existence as a struggling starlet. The No.1 pin-up girl of the World War II era, her photograph in a bathing suit pose went on to achieve iconic status and was included in the project "100 Photographs that Changed the World" by the Life magazine. The film was an immediate hit, Grable's biggest success to date, grossing more than $2 million. They had two daughters, Victoria Elizabeth "Vicki" Bivens (born 1944) and Jessica Yahner (1947-2016). I've had mine!" Died July 2, 1973 of lung cancer in St. John's Hospital, CA. In fact, Grable and Monroe got along famously; Grable reportedly told Monroe: "Go and get yours, honey! At the start of WWII, Hollywood opened up the Hollywood Canteen for enlisted men who were on the verge of service. Betty Grable - Trivia, Family, Bio | Famous Birthdays In 1939, she appeared opposite her then-husband Jackie Coogan in Million Dollar Legs,[14] a B-movie comedy that gave Grable her famous nickname. Her mother groomed her for a career in show business from an early age. If you're wondering about permissions and what you can do with this item, a good starting point is the "rights information" on this page. Betty Grable - Betty Grable & Co-Stars: The 20th Century Fox Years She briefly returned to filming to make a cameo in Do You Love Me (1946), in which she appeared as a fan of her husband Harry James' character. Betty Grable's Measurements: Bra Size, Height, Weight and More She had to resort to drastic measures. Please submit feedback to contribute@factinate.com. Were always looking for your input! [12][7], Grable married former child actor Jackie Coogan in 1937. Betty was too young; the minimum working age was 15. He and Betty Grable had two daughters: Victoria Elizabeth James (born 3 March 1944), and Jessica James (born 20 May 1947). Betty Grable's youngest daughter at funeral service Calisphere Her mother Lillian was a pushy stage momager who forced her daughter into dance lessons and countless child beauty contests in search of fame. However, Grable's next film, When My Baby Smiles at Me (1948), was a smash success; this film again co-starred Dan Dailey. Grable's star continued to rise when she starred in Song of the Islands (1942), co-starring Victor Mature and Jack Oakie. $15.33 18 Used from $4.19 1 Collectible from $12.47. From the moment it came out it was iconic, and immediately became the most popular pin-up poster. She motivated her daughter to sing, dance and act. The film was a success but Grable's next film The Dolly Sisters, co-starring rival June Haver, was Fox's second biggest success of the year; with the first being Leave Her to Heaven. When they asked to get a photo of Monroe in front of Grables name, signaling a transition of stars, Monroe absolutely refused. [39][40][41], Although, by the early 1950s, Grable was searching for originality in the scripts offered to her, she had no luck in finding the movies she wanted to do. Betty Grable | Biography, Movie Highlights and Photos | AllMovie Betty made her debut as a chorus girl in the film Happy Days in 1929 when she was 12 years old. Betty Grable earned the nickname Million Dollar Legs, and she didnt get it for nothing. December 18 Actress #11. The tour brought Grable to the attention of Darryl F. Zanuck, the head of 20th Century-Fox, who offered her a long-term contract. However, Betty still had a few years to go before she attained this kind of celebrity status. Wait, didnt I say this guy was a, and I quote, rabid gambler? The film has her as a hostess for a USO canteen who also provides entertainment for the troops during their time there. Thats when it all changed. Despite her success, she suffered from a fear of crowds and sleepwalking. [25] Soon thereafter, she was invited to go on a personal appearance tour, which she readily accepted. Grable finally obtained a role as a 'Goldwyn Girl' in Whoopee! As stated before, Betty Grable's life was short. 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. It was a triumphant show of strength, but it backfired horribly. Betty Grable | Comet Over Hollywood The film's plot closely followed the story of Grable's earlier hit Coney Island (1943). Thrill of a Lifetime. 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. He married Ava Gardner and had an affair with Rita Hayworth. Hows that for a legacy. Betty Mae Grable passed away on March 20, 2014. They endured a tumultuous 22-year marriage that was plagued by alcoholism and infidelity. The film earned more than $3.5 million at the box office and was well received by critics. Alice Faye asked Baby band Betty and Harry Betty Grable Betty plays Betty Ritz Betty's billing Billy blonde Bob Remick Broadway career Carol Cast Cesar Romero chorus Conn contract Dailey. She played the title role in the musical film, Sweet Rosie OGrady in 1943. She tied the knot with actor Jackie Coogan in 1937 and divorced him in 1939. Grable's legs were famously insured by her studio for $1,000,000 with Lloyds of London. Betty Grable - Hollywood Star Walk - Los Angeles Times Betty Grable. This went even more horrifically than you might think. Betty Grable - Missouri Women [13] He was under considerable stress from a lawsuit against his parents over his childhood earnings, and the couple divorced in 1939. on Sister of Victoria Elizabeth James. Her legs were insured for $1,000,000. The plot only thickened from there. By the 1950s, Grable was still making films like, Wabash Avenue (1950), Meet Me After the Show (1951), How to Marry a Millionaire (1953), and How to Be Very, Very Popular (1955), her last film. When Monroe withdrew from the production, she was replaced with Sheree North. After Grable left Fox, the studio moved Monroe into her old dressing room, which still had her name on the door. Producers had originally offered her the part, but she had turned it down, stubbornly sticking to her no challenges rule. Directed by H. Bruce Humberstone, the movie was a traditional black-and-white film noir, containing a combination of suspense and romance. Go get yours. Her funeral occurred two days after her passing away, and both of her ex-husbands, Jackie Coogan and Harry James, attended. Yikes. Billie abandoned her husband and other daughter, dragging Betty from St. Louis to Hollywood. Elizabeth Ruth Grable was born on December 18, 1916 in St. Louis, Missouri, to Lillian Rose (Hofmann) and John Conn Grable, a stockbroker. The . RE: Calisphere: Request high-resolution copy of item for Betty Grable's youngest daughter at funeral service. Her former home has been listed at $12.25 million. Betty Grable was an American actress and dancer once known as the woman with the most beautiful legs in Hollywood. Besides the insatiable womanizing, Grables second husband Harry James had other horrific qualities to round out his nomination for Worst Husband Ever. Now thiswas an even worse moral quandary for the time, and the minute studio executives found out about the storks package, they started pressuring the actors to marry in a hurry. Only, fame didnt come without drama. Arrives by Wed, Mar 15 Buy Betty Grable - Betty Grable & Co-Stars: The 20th Century Fox Years Volume 2: 1945-1948 - CD at Walmart.com Grable was reluctant to continue her film career, but Fox was desperately in need of her return. [29], In 1941, Fox attempted to broaden Grable's acting and audience range by casting her in two films with more serious intent than those in which she had starred previously. She retired from the movie industry in 1955, and never returned. [59], In the Our Miss Brooks episode "Lulu, the Pin-Up Boat", Mitchell mistakes the pin-up photo of Grable that Conklin confiscated from Walter and put into his desk drawer with Connie and Conklin's discussion about Conklin's boat Lulu. [24], Grable died of lung cancer on July 2, 1973 at the age of 56 in Santa Monica, California.[14][58]. (1930), New Movietone Follies of 1930 (1930), Happy Days (1929) and Let's Go Places (1930)), initially billed as 'Frances Dean'. It co-starred Douglas Fairbanks Jr and originally was directed by Ernst Lubitsch. It has been estimated that five million pin-ups were circulated featuring Betty, and she came out of the war the highest-paid movie star in America. But now meet "Mommie"Mrs. One of the hottest summer reads is a showbiz bio that the subject tried to suppress and her ghostwriter never finished. As a member of the ensemble group of attractive young chorines, Grable appeared in a series of small parts in movies, including the mega-hit Whoopee! Betty Grable Photos - Etsy Join thousands of others and start your morning with our Fact Of The Day newsletter. It proved to be Grable's final film appearance. Elizabeth, who later became Betty, was enrolled in Clark's Dancing School at the age of three. 2013. The Dolly Sisters earned more than $4 million at the box office and was Fox's second-highest earning movie of the year, behind Leave Her to Heaven. Pin Up Girl co-starred comedians Martha Raye and Joe E. Brown and was released in April 1944 to overwhelming success at the box-office. But that didnt mean her life was perfector even well-adjusted. Wabash Avenue, was a up-to-date remake of Grable's 1943 film Coney Island, and, she again co-starred with Dan Dailey for My Blue Heaven; both films are known as musical classics. Less than a decade later, 20th Century Fox would. They briefly toured on vaudeville and his success boosted hers, but they divorced in 1940. It focuses on the struggles of a mother trying to feed and Grable retired from screen acting in 1955 after she withdrew from her Fox contract, but she continued to perform on the stage and on television. Her next film, That Lady in Ermine, (1948), co-starred Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.; and would become only a moderate success. . [26] The role had originally been assigned to Alice Faye, Fox's most popular musical film star, but she had to decline the part due to an unspecified illness. [17], A 13-year-old Grable and her mother traveled to Hollywood in 1929, shortly after the stock market crash. Herepaid her with another cruel trick. She signed a contract with Paramount Pictures in the late 1930s. The studio refused, and she went on strike, which led to her being replaced by Marilyn Monroe in the movie adaptation of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)[44] and by June Haver in the musical comedy The Girl Next Door (also 1953). . She also has a star on the St. Louis Walk of Fame, and was inducted into the Hall of Famous Missourians in 2009. http://www.house.mo.gov/famous.aspx?fm=52. [10] The same year, she made her uncredited film debut as a chorus girl in the Fox Studios all-star revue Happy Days (1929). Unfortunately, the public did not seem to take notice.The following year, she married former child star Jackie Coogan. Among them were Dorothy Lamour, Shirley Booth, Mitzi Gaynor, Don Ameche, Cesar Romero, George Raft, Alice Faye, Johnnie Ray, and Dan Dailey. [20] This eventually led to her having chorus girl jobs in Let's Go Places (1930) and New Movietone Follies of 1930 (1930). Fox then began to develop Philip Wylie's short story "Second Honeymoon", into a script suited for Grable's talents. Betty Grable's pinup snap made LIFE magazine's "100 Photos that Changed the World." (Getty Images) Grable set a record of 12 consecutive years in the top 10 of box office stars. The Truth Always Comes Out: Dark Family Secrets Exposed, Entrancing Facts About Madame de Pompadour, France's Most Powerful Mistress, Tragic Facts About Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIIIs First Wife, Glam Facts About Nils Asther, The Male Greta Garbo, Scorned Facts About Farida, Egypts Rejected Queen, Rebellious Facts About Drew Barrymore, Hollywood's Comeback Kid, Adventurous Facts About Frances Marion, Hollywoods Pioneer Writer. She was 86 years old. The film followed the lines of other movies of the era, but it was not considered a propaganda movie by the studio. When the couple had their first-born daughter, they named her Victoria Elizabeth, after Grables character in the film Springtime in the Rockies. Critics called the film a "slight, but cheerful, item", and proclaimed it "does serve to bring Betty Grable back to the screen". town. In the James household, every holiday is a special day for the children. After 1939, the 23-year-old Grable felt so washed up, she tried to retire from films altogether. Most Popular #45061. As well see, Grable didnt have the best judgment when it came to her love lifeand when she married the classic comedian and child actor Jackie Coogan in 1937, their relationship was a full-on mess.
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