Dorothy Lamour | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Lamour in 1945 | |
| Born | Mary Leta Dorothy Slaton (1914-12-10)December 10, 1914 New Orleans,Louisiana, U.S. |
| Died | September 22, 1996(1996-09-22) (aged 81) Los Angeles,California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1933–1995 |
| Known for | |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2 |
Dorothy Lamour (bornMary Leta Dorothy Slaton; December 10, 1914 – September 22, 1996) was an American actress and singer. She is best remembered for having appeared in theRoad to... movies, a series of successful comedies starringBing Crosby andBob Hope.[1]
Lamour began her career in the 1930s as abig band singer. In 1936, she moved to Hollywood, where she signed withParamount Pictures. Her appearance as Ulah inThe Jungle Princess (1936) brought her fame and marked the beginning of her image as the "Sarong Queen".
In 1940, Lamour made her firstRoad series comedy filmRoad to Singapore. TheRoad series films were popular during the 1940s. The sixth film in the series,Road to Bali, was released in 1952. By this time, Lamour's screen career had begun to wane, and she focused on stage and television work. In 1961, Crosby and Hope teamed up forThe Road to Hong Kong, but actressJoan Collins was cast as the female lead. Lamour made a brief appearance and sang a song near the end of that film.
In the 1970s, Lamour revived her nightclub act, and in 1980, released her autobiographyMy Side of the Road. She made her final movie appearance in 1987.
Lamour married her second husband, William Ross Howard III, in 1943. They had two sons and remained married until Howard's death in 1978. Lamour died at her home in 1996 at the age of 81.
Mary Leta Dorothy Slaton[2] was born on December 10, 1914, at Charity ward at New Orleans East Hospital inNew Orleans,[3][4] the daughter of Carmen Louise (née LaPorte) and John Watson Slaton,[i] both of whom were restaurant servers.[5] Lamour was of Spanish descent, with some English, French and possibly also distant Irish as well. Her parents' marriage lasted only a few years. Her mother married for the second time to Clarence Lambour, whose surname Dorothy later adopted and modified as her stage name.[6] That marriage also ended in divorce when Dorothy was a teenager.
Lamour quit school at age 14. After taking a business course, she worked as a secretary to support herself and her mother. She began entering beauty pageants, was crowned Miss New Orleans in 1931, and went on to compete in Galveston's Pageant of Pulchritude.[7] Miss Lamour was close friends with Dorothy Dell, who was in theZiegfeld Follies. Lamour used the prize money to support herself while she worked in a stock theatre company. She and her mother later moved to Chicago. Lamour found a job working atMarshall Field's department store, working as an elevator operator at the age of 16. Her boss, Douglas Singleterry, referred to her as "Dolly Face"; he also recalled that she spent a lot of her time auditioning around Chicago. She was discovered by orchestra leaderHerbie Kay when he spotted her in performance at a Chicago talent show held at the Hotel Morrison. She had an audition the next day; Kay hired her as a singer for his orchestra and, in 1935, Lamour went on tour with him. Her work with Kay eventually led Lamour tovaudeville and work in radio.[3] In 1935, she had her own 15-minute weekly musical program onNBC Radio. Lamour also sang on the popularRudy Vallée radio show andThe Chase and Sanborn Hour. On January 30, 1944, Lamour starred in "For This We Live", an episode ofSilver Theater on CBS radio.[8]
In 1936, Lamour moved to Hollywood. Around that time, Carmen married her third husband, Ollie Castleberry, and the family lived in Los Angeles.[9] That same year, she did ascreen test forParamount Pictures and signed a contract with them.[10]
Lamour made her first film for Paramount,College Holiday (1936), in which she has a bit part as an uncredited dancer.
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Her second film for Paramount,The Jungle Princess (1936) withRay Milland, solidified her fame. In the film, Lamour plays the role of "Ulah", a jungle native who wore anEdith Head-designedsarong throughout the film.The Jungle Princess was a big hit for the studio and Lamour would be associated with sarongs for the rest of her career. It also gave her a hit song, "Moonlight and Shadows".[11]
She followed it with a support role in aCarole Lombard–Fred MacMurray musicalSwing High, Swing Low (1937) where she got to sing "Panamania". She was top billed inThe Last Train from Madrid (1937).
Lamour supportedIrene Dunne andRandolph Scott inHigh, Wide and Handsome (1937), singing "The Things I Want".Sam Goldwyn borrowed her forJohn Ford'sThe Hurricane (1937), where she was back in a sarong playing an island princess alongsideJon Hall. Her swimming and diving scenes were handled by stunt doubleLila Finn, who at one point dropped the sarong and was filmed diving into a lagoon in the nude.[12] The film was a massive success and gave Lamour another hit song with "The Moon of Manakoora".
Lamour had a cameo inThrill of a Lifetime (1937) and was third billed inThe Big Broadcast of 1938 (1938) afterW.C. Fields andMartha Raye; the cast also includedBob Hope in an early appearance.
Paramount reunited her with Milland and a sarong forHer Jungle Love (1938).Tropic Holiday (1938) cast her as a Mexican alongsideBob Burns, Raye and Milland, then she supportedGeorge Raft andHenry Fonda in the adventure filmSpawn of the North (1938). Raft was meant to be Lamour's leading man inSt. Louis Blues (1939) but he turned down the part and was replaced by Lloyd Nolan.
Lamour wasJack Benny's leading lady in the musicalMan About Town (1939) then played a Chinese girl in a melodrama,Disputed Passage (1939).
In 1940, Lamour starred inRoad to Singapore, a spoof of Lamour's "sarong" films. It was originally meant to co-starFred MacMurray andJack Oakie, thenGeorge Burns andGracie Allen, before Paramount decided to useBob Hope andBing Crosby; Lamour was billed after Crosby and above Hope. The two male stars began ad-libbing during filming. "I was trying to follow the script but just couldn't get my lines out", she said later. "Finally, I realised that I should just get the general idea of a scene rather than learn the words by heart, then go along with the boys." Said Hope, "Dottie is one of the bravest gals in pictures. She stands there before the camera and ad-libs with Crosby and me knowing that the way the script is written she'll come second or third best, but she fears nothing."[13]
The movie was a solid hit and response to the team was enthusiastic.
20th Century Fox borrowed her to playTyrone Power's leading lady in the gangster filmJohnny Apollo (1940). She sang "This is the Beginning of the End" and "Dancing for Nickels and Dimes".
It was back to sarongs forTyphoon (1940). Her male co-star in the latter wasRobert Preston who was also with Lamour inMoon Over Burma (1940). Fox borrowed her again forChad Hanna (1941) withHenry Fonda.
Response toRoad to Singapore had been such that Paramount reunited Lamour, Hope and Crosby inRoad to Zanzibar (1941) which was even more successful and eventually led to a series of pictures (although from this point on Lamour was billed beneath Hope). She and Hope then didCaught in the Draft (1941) which was one of the biggest hits of the year.[14]
Lamour was reunited with her oldHurricane star, Jon Hall, inAloma of the South Seas (1941). She did a popular musical withEddie Bracken,William Holden andBetty Hutton,The Fleet's In (1942), which gave her a hit song, "I Remember You".
There was another sarong movie,Beyond the Blue Horizon (1942). Both were well liked by the public but neither was as popular as her third "Road" movie,Road to Morocco (1942).[15]
Lamour was one of many Paramount stars who did guest shots inStar Spangled Rhythm (1942). She and Hope were borrowed by Sam Goldwyn for a comedyThey Got Me Covered (1943), then she did one with Crosby without Hope,Dixie (1943), a popular biopic ofDan Emmett.
During World War II, Lamour was among the more popularpinup girls among American servicemen, along withBetty Grable,Rita Hayworth,Lana Turner, andVeronica Lake. Lamour was also known for her volunteer work, sellingwar bonds during tours in which movie stars would travel the country selling U.S. government bonds to the public. Lamour reportedly sold $300 million worth of bonds earning her the nickname "The Bond Bombshell". She also volunteered at theHollywood Canteen where she would dance and talk to soldiers. In 1965, Lamour was awarded a belated citation from the United States Department of the Treasury for her war bond sales.[1]
Lamour madeMelody Inn (1943) withDick Powell, thenAnd the Angels Sing (1944) with Fred MacMurray and Hutton, where she sang "It Could Happen to You". She made one last sarong movie,Rainbow Island (1944), co-starring Bracken.
Lamour played a Mexican inA Medal for Benny (1945), based on a story byJohn Steinbeck, co-starringArturo de Córdova. She was one of many Paramount stars to cameo inDuffy's Tavern (1945), then did a fourth "Road",Road to Utopia (1945), thenMasquerade in Mexico (1945) with de Cordova.
She was in three big hits in a row:My Favorite Brunette (1947), a comedy with Hope;Wild Harvest (1947), a melodrama withAlan Ladd and Preston; andRoad to Rio (1947). She also sang a duet with Ladd inVariety Girl (1947). Then she left Paramount.
Lamour emceedFront and Center, a 1947 variety comedy show, as a summer replacement forThe Fred Allen Show, with the Army Air Force recruiting as sponsors.[3] The show changed toThe Sealtest[16]Variety Theater in September[17] 1948.
After leaving Paramount, Lamour made a series of films for producerBenedict Bogeaus: the all-star comedyOn Our Merry Way (1948);Lulu Belle (1948), a melodrama withGeorge Montgomery; andThe Girl from Manhattan (1948), also with Montgomery.
She tried two comedies:The Lucky Stiff (1949), produced by Jack Benny co-starringBrian Donlevy, thenSlightly French (1949) withDon Ameche.Manhandled (1950) was a film noir withDan Duryea forPine-Thomas. None of these films were particularly popular.
Lamour played a successful season at the London Palladium in 1950 then was in two big hits:The Greatest Show on Earth (1952),Cecil B. De Mille's circus epic, andRoad to Bali (1952). However this did not seem to lead to better film offers, and Lamour began concentrating on being a nightclub entertainer and a stage actress.
She also began working on television, guest starring onDamon Runyon Theater and was on Broadway inOh Captain! (1958).
Lamour returned to movies with a cameo in the final "Road" film,The Road to Hong Kong (1962); she was replaced as a love interest byJoan Collins because Bing Crosby wanted a younger actress. However, Bob Hope would not do the film without Lamour, so she appeared in an extended cameo.
She had a bigger part inJohn Ford'sDonovan's Reef (1963) withJohn Wayne andLee Marvin, and made guest appearances on shows likeBurke's Law,I Spy andThe Name of the Game, and films such asPajama Party (1964) andThe Phynx (1970).
Lamour moved to Baltimore with her family, where she appeared on TV and worked on the city's cultural commission. ThenDavid Merrick offered her the chance to headline a road company ofHello Dolly! which she did for over a year near the end of the decade.[18]
Lamour starred in a number of movie musicals and sang in many of her comedies and dramatic films as well. For several years beginning in the late 1930s,Harriet Lee was hervoice teacher.[19] Lamour introduced a number of standards, including "The Moon of Manakoora", "I Remember You", "It Could Happen to You", "Personality", and "But Beautiful".
In the 1970s, Lamour was a popular draw at dinner theatres and in shows such asAnything Goes.[20]
She guest starred on shows such asMarcus Welby, M.D. andThe Love Boat and films likeWon Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood (1976) andDeath at Love House (1976). In 1977, she toured in the playPersonal Appearance.[21]
Her husband died in 1978, but she continued to work for "therapy".[22]
In 1980, Lamour published her autobiographyMy Side of the Road and revived her nightclub act.[23]
During the remainder of the decade, she performed in plays and television shows such asHart to Hart,Crazy Like a Fox,Remington Steele, andMurder, She Wrote.
In 1984, she toured in a production ofBarefoot in the Park.
In 1986 she said "I'm still as busy at 71 as I was when I was just a slip of a girl. I do concerts, television and a lot of dinner theatre, where I sing old songs and talk about Bob and Bing and starting out at Paramount at $200 a week and working myself up to $450,000 a picture...I feel wonderful. Age is only in the mind and I'm grateful that God has taken care of me. And I'm very grateful for that sarong. It did a lot for me! But to be truthful, the sarong was never my favorite wearing apparel."[22]
In 1987, she made her last big-screen appearance in the movieCreepshow 2, appearing withGeorge Kennedy as an aging couple who are killed during a robbery. The wooden, Native American statue in front of their general store comes to life to avenge their death. The 72-year-old Lamour quipped: "Well, at my age you can't lean against a palm tree and sing 'Moon of Manakoora'", she said. "People would look at that and say 'What is she trying to do?'"[1]
During the 1990s, she made only a handful of professional appearances but remained a popular interview subject for publications and TV talk and news programs. Lamour's final stage performance was as "Hattie" in the Long Beach Civic Light Opera's 1990 production of Stephen Sondheim's "Follies".
In 1995, the musicalSwinging on a Star, a revue of songs written byJohnny Burke (who wrote many of the most famousRoad to ... movie songs as well as the score to Lamour's filmAnd the Angels Sing (1944)) opened on Broadway and ran for three months; Lamour was credited as a "special advisor". It was nominated for the Best MusicalTony Award; the actress playing her in theroad movie segment, Kathy Fitzgerald, also was nominated.[citation needed]
Lamour's first marriage was to orchestra leaderHerbie Kay, with whose orchestra Lamour sang. The two married in 1935 and divorced in 1939.[24][25]
Early in her career, Lamour metJ. Edgar Hoover, director of theFederal Bureau of Investigation. According to Hoover's biographerRichard Hack, Hoover pursued a romantic relationship with Lamour, and the two spent a night together at a Washington, D.C., hotel. When Lamour was later asked if she and Hoover had a sexual relationship, she replied: "I cannot deny it."[26] In her autobiographyMy Side of the Road (1980), Lamour does not discuss Hoover in detail; she refers to him only as "a lifelong friend".[27]
On April 7, 1943, Lamour married Air Force captain and advertising executiveWilliam Ross Howard III[1] in Beverly Hills.[28] The couple had two sons: John Ridgely (1946–2018[29]) and Richard Thomson Howard (born 1949).[30][31]
In 1957, Lamour and Howard moved to the Baltimore, Maryland, suburb ofSudbrook Park.[32] In 1962, the couple and their two sons moved toHampton, another Baltimore suburb in Dulaney Valley, with their oldest son, John, attendingTowson High School.[33][34] She also owned a home in Palm Springs, California.[35] Howard died in 1978.[1]
Lamour was a registeredRepublican who supported the presidency ofRonald Reagan as well as Reagan's re-election in 1984.[36]
Lamour died at her home in North Hollywood on September 22, 1996, from a heart attack, at the age of 81.[37][1] Her funeral was held at St. Charles Catholic Church in North Hollywood, California, where she was a member.[38][39] She was interred in theForest Lawn, Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles.[40]
For her contribution to the radio and motion picture industry, Lamour has two stars on theHollywood Walk of Fame. Her star for her radio contributions is located at 6240 Hollywood Boulevard, and her star for her motion picture contributions is located at 6332 Hollywood Boulevard.[41]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | Damon Runyon Theater | Sally Bracken | Television debut Episode: "The Mink Doll" |
| 1967 | I Spy | Halima | Episode: "The Honorable Assassins" |
| 1969 | The Name of the Game | Stella Fisher | Episode: "Chains of Command" |
| 1970 | Love, American Style | Holly's Mother | Segment: "Love and the Pick-Up" |
| 1971 | Marcus Welby, M.D. | Mary DeSocio | Episode: "Echos from Another World" |
| 1976 | Death at Love House | Denise Christian | Television movie Alternative title:The Shrine of Lorna Love |
| 1980 | The Love Boat | Lil Braddock | Episode: "That's My Dad/The Captain's Bird/Captive Audience" |
| 1984 | Hart to Hart | Katherine Prince | Episode: "Max's Waltz" |
| 1984 | Remington Steele | Herself | Episode: "Cast in Steele" |
| 1986 | Crazy like a Fox | Rosie | Episode: "Rosie" |
| 1987 | Murder, She Wrote | Mrs. Ellis | Episode: "No Accounting for Murder" |
| Year | Show |
|---|---|
| 1958 | Oh, Captain! |
| 1995 | Swinging on a Star |
{{cite book}}:|website= ignored (help)Lamour is the heroine of Matilda Bailey'syoung adult novel,Dorothy Lamour and the Haunted Lighthouse (1947), whose "heroine has the same name and appearance as the famous actress but has no connection ... it is as though the famous actress has stepped into an alternate reality in which she is an ordinary person." The story was written for a young teenage audience and is reminiscent of the adventures ofNancy Drew. It is part of a series known as "Whitman Authorized Editions", 16 books published between 1941 and 1947 that each featured a film actress as heroine.[42]
She was featured in a brief print run of 2-3 issues during the 1950s, inDorothy Lamour Jungle Princess Comics, a series of comic books dedicated to her on-film Jungle Princess persona (featuring screenshots from past movies as the covers).[43]
It does get a little confusing; for example, my full name would be Mary Leta Dorothy Slaton Lambour Lamour Kay Kaumeyer Howard if you keep count. But at this point, I was just terribly happy to be Mrs. Herbie Kay.
Front and Center | Sealtest Variety Hour Dorothy Lamour.
