Marilyn Maxwell | |
|---|---|
 Maxwell in 1961 | |
| Born | Marvel Marilyn Maxwell (1921-08-03)August 3, 1921 Clarinda, Iowa, U.S. |
| Died | March 20, 1972(1972-03-20) (aged 50) |
| Years active | 1942–71 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 1 |
Marvel Marilyn Maxwell[1] (August 3, 1921 – March 20, 1972) was an American actress and entertainer. In a career that spanned the 1940s and 1950s,[2] she appeared in several films and radio programs, and entertained the troops during World War II and the Korean War onUSO tours withBob Hope.[3]
Maxwell was a native ofClarinda, Iowa.[4] During the 1930s, she worked as an usher in Fort Wayne, Indiana at the Rialto Theater located at 2616 South Calhoun Street.[5] In Fort Wayne, she attended Central High School. She dropped out of school in her sophomore year to join an Indianapolis band as a singer.[6]
She started her professional entertaining career as a radio singer and a singer on stage withTed Weems' big band while still a teenager. She moved to Hollywood after being with thePasadena Playhouse[7] and signed withMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1942 as a contract player.[8][9][10][11] Among the radio programs in which she appeared wereBeat the Band,[12]Kraft Music Hall andThe Abbott and Costello Show.Louis B. Mayer, the head of MGM, insisted she change the Marvel part of her real name. She dropped her first name and kept the middle one.[3] She appeared in severalDr. Kildare films withVan Johnson -Dr. Gillespie's Criminal Case (1943);Three Men in White (1944); andBetween Two Women (1945).[7] Some of her other film roles includedLost in a Harem (1944) withAbbott and Costello;Champion (1949) withKirk Douglas;The Lemon Drop Kid (1951) withBob Hope;New York Confidential (1955) withBroderick Crawford; andRock-A-Bye Baby (1958) withJerry Lewis. She received critical praise for her performance in the musicalSummer Holiday (1948).[7] The popular Christmas song "Silver Bells" made its debut inThe Lemon Drop Kid, sung by Maxwell and Hope.[13]
Maxwell appeared twice as a singer in the second season (1955–1956) ofThe Jimmy Durante Show.[citation needed] She sang at theLatin Quarter in New York and other top nightclubs of the time.[7]
She appeared as the mystery guest of 'What's My Line ' on May 10, 1953. At one point, a blind-folded panelist asked whether or not she wasMarilyn Monroe.
In 1961 she starred in the TV seriesBus Stop but withdrew midway through the season.[7]
Maxwell married three times; each ended in divorce. In September 1944, she married actorJohn Conte; the relationship was dissolved in June 1946. Her second marriage to restaurateur Anders McIntyre lasted just over a year from January 1, 1950[14] until March 23, 1951.[1] Maxwell's six-year marriage to writer/producer Jerry Davis ended in 1960. Her only child, Matthew, was born to Maxwell and Davis in 1956.[15]
Maxwell met and became friends withFrank Sinatra when they crossed paths, both of them in separate nationally renowned big bands in the late 1930s. Their friendship continued after Maxwell gave up singing for acting and moved to Hollywood and Sinatra had moved from New Jersey to Beverly Hills in the early 1940s. By 1945, the friendship had progressed into an extra-marital affair. Sinatra’s wife Nancy saw Maxwell wearing a diamond bracelet she had earlier seen in Sinatra’s car which she assumed was for her. Taking this as evidence of Sinatra’s infidelity, Nancy ordered Maxwell and her husbandJohn Conte to immediately leave the Sinatra family Christmas gala of 1945. Confronted after the party, Sinatra admitted the affair to his wife, but claimed it was only casual. Soon after, Maxwell and Sinatra ended their sexual liaison.[16][17][11]
From 1950 to 1954, Maxwell had an affair with actor/comedianBob Hope who was married to singer Dolores (Reade) Hope. Hope and Maxwell’s relationship was so open that many in Hollywood referred to her as Mrs. Bob Hope.[citation needed]
During the 1950s, Maxwell became good friends with fellow actorRock Hudson. After her marriage to Jerry Davis ended in 1960, Hudson's agentHenry Willson arranged for Maxwell to become one of several women Hudson publicly "dated" to counter rumors of the actor's homosexuality.[18]
On March 20, 1972, at age 50, Maxwell was found dead in her home by her 15-year-old son, who had arrived home from school. The cause was an apparent heart attack; she had been treated forhypertension andpulmonary disease.[7]Bob Hope,Bing Crosby,Frank Sinatra, andJack Benny were honorary pallbearers at her funeral.[19]
| Year | Program | Episode/source |
|---|---|---|
| 1944 | Kraft Music Hall | Resident singer[20][21] |
| 1946 | Stars over Hollywood | A Woman's Touch[22] |
| 1947 | The Abbott and Costello Show | Who's On 1st, 17 April 1947 |
| 1949 | The Martin and Lewis Show | episode 10 |
Soon he was telling people that he and Marilyn belonged together and that he was going to – again – ask Nancy for a divorce.
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