Born Joanne Letitia LaCock in Logan, West Virginia, Dru came to New York City in 1940, and after finding employment as a model, was chosen by Al Jolson to appear in the cast of his Broadway show Hold Onto Your Hats. During this time Dru met and married the popular singerDick Haymes and when they moved to Hollywood she found work in theater. Dru was spotted by a talent scout and made her first film appearance in Abie's Irish Rose in 1946.
Over the next decade she appeared frequently in films, most often cast in westerns such as the John Wayne films Red River (1948) and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949). She also gave a well received performance in the drama film All the King's Men (1949). She later lamented that she had been typecast in western films, commenting that once an actress became typecast, that was the end, and adding that she had never liked horses. Her film career began to fade by the end of the 1950s but she continued working frequently in television.
Although regarded as a capable and popular film actress, it was for her contributions to television that Dru was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
She died from lymphedema in Los Angeles, California.
Born Joanne LaCock in Logan, West Virginia, in January 1922, beautiful JoanneDru went to New York as a teenager, following the death of her father.
Dru and Ireland made a number of films together, including All the King's Men (1949; with Broderick Crawford), Vengeance Valley (1951; with Burt Lancaster), Hannah Lee (1953; with Macdonald Carey), and Southwest Passage (1954; with Rod Cameron).
Sadly, by this time Dru's health had begun to deteriorate, and she passed away in 1996 at the age of 74.
Although regarded as a capable and popular filmactress, it was for her contributions to television that Dru was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Dru died in Los Angeles, California at the age of 74 from lymphedema, a disease "which is especially common after surgery or radiation therapy were used in combination to treat cancer", which indicates that she probably had undergone these treatments for cancer (likely breast cancer) prior to her death.