NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Lane Sisters

The Lane Sisters were four female siblings who first achieved success in the 1930s as a singing act, with their popularity leading to a series of successful films. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

Early Life

The four sisters were from a family of five. Leotabel (Leota) (25 October 1903 – July 25, 1963), Dorothy (Lola) (May 21, 1906 – June 22, 1981), Rosemary (April 4, 1914 – November 25, 1974), and Priscilla (June 12, 1915 – April 4, 1995), were born to Dr. Lorenzo A. Mullican and his wife, Cora Bell Hicks. Their sister, Martha (born 1905) did not enter showbusiness. The first three children had been born in Macy, Indiana, but the family moved in 1907 to Indianola, Iowa, a small college town south of Des Moines. Here Dr. Mullican had a dental practice. The Mullicans owned a large house with 22 rooms, some of which they rented out to students attending nearby Simpson College. October 25 is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1900 (MCMIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Friday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ... July 25 is the 206th day of the year (207th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... May 21 is the 141st day of the year (142nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1906 (MCMVI) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... is the 173rd day of the year (174th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 94th day of the year (95th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1914 (MCMXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... is the 329th day of the year (330th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... June 12 is the 163rd day of the year (164th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar). ... is the 94th day of the year (95th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full 1995 Gregorian calendar). ... Macy is a town located in Miami County, Indiana. ... Indianola is a city located in Warren County, Iowa. ... Nickname: Hartford of the West, City of Skywalks, Raccoon City, DSM Location in the State of Iowa, USA Coordinates: Country United States State Iowa County Polk County Incorporated September 22, 1851 Government - Mayor Frank Cownie Area - City 77. ...

Before marrying, Cora Mullican had been a reporter with a local newspaper in Macy, and she had originally harbored acting ambitions. In this, she was frustrated by the strict religious beliefs of her Methodist parents who frowned on any form of public entertainment. For school of ancient Greek medicine, see Methodism (history of medicine). ...

Cora encouraged her daughters to sing and play musical instruments. All the girls were fond of music, and at one time or another studied music in night classes at Simpson College in Indianola. Dorothy was already playing piano at age twelve for a silent screen movie house.

Career Beginnings

Leota was the first to leave home to pursue a musical career in New York in the mid-1920s. In 1928 Dorothy followed Leota to New York. The girls shared an apartment and made the theatrical rounds. They eventually obtained parts in a Gus Edwards show, Greenwich Village Follies. It was Edwards who changed their names to Lane, and consequently Dorothy became Lola Lane. New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... The 1920s is a decade that is sometimes referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ... Gus Edwards is the name of a songwriter and vaudevillian born in Germany in 1879 a playwright born in the West Indies in 1939 Categories: Disambiguation | Stub ...

Martha, meanwhile, eloped with a college professor and moved to Des Moines. She had no interest in show business. She had a child, later divorced, and became a medical secretary.

Leota and Lola both made their Broadway debuts in the late twenties, Lola in 1928, as Sally Moss in The War Song, which opened on Broadway on the twenty-fourth of August, 1928 at the Nederlander Theatre (then known as the National Theatre) and Leota in 1929 as Contrary Mary in Babes In Toyland, which opened on the twenty-third of December, 1929 at Jolson's 59th Street Theatre. The War Song closed four months into its run but Lola soon went to Hollywood where she made her debut starring as Alice Woods alongside Paul Page in the drama Speakeasy (1929). She was soon teamed with Page again in the film The Girl From Havana (1929) as Joan Anders. Meanwhile Babes In Toyland closed after only thirty-two performances. Leota then followed her sister to Hollywood where she made her only screen appearance in a comedy short directed by Roscoe Fatty Arbuckle called Three Hollywood Girls (1931). She soon returned to New York. Dr. Mullican strenuously objected to his younger daughters following theatrical careers, but Cora was determined. Broadway theatre[1] is the most prestigious form of professional theatre in the U.S., as well as the most well known to the general public and most lucrative for the performers, technicians and others involved in putting on the shows. ... The Nederlander Theatre is a Broadway theatre. ... See: Babes in Toyland (band) Babes in Toyland (operetta) by Victor Herbert Babes in Toyland (1934 movie) with Laurel and Hardy Babes in Toyland (1961 movie) with Annette Funicello and Tommy Sands Babes in Toyland (1986 movie) with Drew Barrymore and Keanu Reeves Babes in Toyland (1997 movie) - an animated... Al Jolson (born Asa Yoelson, May 26, 1886 â€“ October 23, 1950) was an acclaimed European singer and actor whose career lasted from 1911 until his death in 1950. ... ... Paul Page at the 1992 Indy 500 Paul Page is an American motorsports broadcaster who was the lead announcer of ABC Sports coverage of the Indianapolis 500 from 1988 to 2004. ... Roscoe Conkling Arbuckle (March 24, 1887 â€“ June 29, 1933) was an American silent film comedian. ...

Priscilla, was known as a tomboy, played baseball, climbed trees, and wanted to become a trapeze artist. Cora Mullican once said that "Rosemary was the lively one, the game-getter-upper." "Gee," Rosemary once told her mother when she was a schoolgirl, "if you'd just adopt four children, we'd have a baseball team!"

Rosemary and Priscilla travelled to Des Moines every weekend to study dancing with Rose Lorenz.

The girls made their first professional appearance September 30, 1930, at Des Moines' Paramount Theater. Rosemary, then 17, and Priscilla, 15, performed on stage as part of the entertainment accompanying the release of Lola's Hollywood movie Good News. September 30 is the 273rd day of the year (274th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1930 (MCMXXX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display 1930 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Rosemary, a member of the National Honor Society, graduated from Indianola High in 1931 and attended Simpson College for a while, playing on the freshman basketball team.

Priscilla graduated from high school and was permitted to travel to New York to visit Leota who was then appearing in a musical revue in Manhattan. Priscilla decided to enroll at the nearby Fagen School of Dramatics and Leota paid the fee. At this time talent agent Al Altman saw Priscilla performing in one of Fagen’s school plays and invited her to screentest for MGM. She was 16 years old. MGM logo Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer or MGM, is a large media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of cinema and television programs. ...

Priscilla wrote to a friend in Indianola, "Leota accompanied me to a sort of theater in a New York skyscraper. Others were there being made up. One was a strange looking girl with her hair slicked back in a sort of a bun. Her name is said to be Catherine [sic] Hepburn. Not very pretty, I thought, but Mr. Altman said she has something. Margaret Sullavan, the Broadway actress, was there too!" Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 â€“ June 29, 2003) was an iconic four-time Academy Award-winning American star of film, television and stage, widely recognized for her sharp wit, New England gentility and fierce independence. ... Margaret Sullavan Margaret Brooke Sullavan (May 16, 1911 - January 1, 1960) was an American actress. ...

A follow up letter said that her test had proven unsuitable. Neither Hepburn nor Sullavan were approved, and neither received a contract from MGM at the time.

In the meantime, Cora had left her husband and in 1932, accompanied by Rosemary, arrived in New York. Cora immediately went to work pushing her two young daughters into attending auditions for various prospective Broadway productions, without success. It was while the girls were trying out numbers at a music publishing office that Fred Waring, an orchestra leader, heard them harmonizing. He found them attractive and individually talented. In early 1933 with Cora’s approval they were signed to a contract with Waring. Cora acted as chaperone to Rosemary and Priscilla who at this time adopted the name Lane. Fredrick Malcolm Waring (born June 9, 1900 in Tyrone, Pennsylvania, died July 29, 1984, State College, Pennsylvania) was a popular musician, bandleader, and radio and TV personality of the 20th century, sometimes referred to as the man who taught America how to sing. ...

Fred Waring not only toured with his band, known as "The Pennsylvanians", but had a weekly radio show. Priscilla quickly became known as the comedienne of the group. Rosemary sang the ballads while Priscilla performed the swing numbers and wisecracked with Waring and various guests. Dr. Mullican instituted divorce proceedings against his wife on the grounds of desertion and the divorce was granted in 1933.

Rosemary and Priscilla remained with Fred Waring for almost five years. In 1937 Waring was engaged by Warner Bros. in Hollywood to appear with his entire band in Varsity Show, a musical starring Dick Powell. Both Rosemary and Priscilla were tested and awarded feature roles in the film. Rosemary shared the romantic passages with Powell, while Priscilla was a high spirited college girl. Warner Bros. ... Richard Ewing Dick Powell (November 14, 1904 â€“ January 2, 1963) was an American singer, actor, producer, and director. ...

Although Lola had been in Hollywood since 1929 she had twice retired from the screen for marriage. Now she had made a comeback. She was second lead to Bette Davis in the melodrama, Marked Woman, and won critical acclaim. Lola played the part of Gaby, a tough clip joint "hostess." Warners awarded her a contract in 1937. Her somewhat exotic looks suited the hard-edge roles she found at Warner Bros. studios. Bette Davis (April 5, 1908 â€“ October 6, 1989), born Ruth Elizabeth Davis, was a two-time Academy Award-winning American actress of film, television and theatre. ... Poster for The Perils of Pauline (1914). ... Marked Woman is the title of a crime melodrama film released by Warner Brothers Studios in 1937. ...

Fan mail began to pour into the studio inquiring about the three young actresses. It was revealed that Priscilla was fresh, wholesome, sincere, and straightforward. She was blonde and blue-eyed, weighed 102 pounds, stood 5 feet 2 ½ inches and sported an 18 inch waist. She was athletic, swam every day, was an excellent tennis player, and rode horseback. She was, however, very feminine and loved perfumes and flowers. She was passionate about cats and owned twelve. Her musical tastes tended to be serious, as she preferred classical music. She read mystery stories for relaxation. She was superstitious and would not wear her favorite color blue on Mondays, considered Wednesday her best day, and seven her lucky number. In later years she said she had worn an old pair of brown shoes for luck in at least one scene in every film she made. Priscilla shared a rented ranch home in the San Fernando Valley with her mother and Rosemary.

Warner’s purchased Priscilla and Rosemary’s contract from Fred Waring and signed them to seven year pacts. Priscilla’s first film after Varsity Show was Men are Such Fools, in which she was starred opposite Wayne Morris. This was followed by Love Honor and Behave, another light romantic comedy again with Morris and Cowboy From Brooklyn again teaming with Dick Powell. The publicity department at the studio suggested that Priscilla and Morris be seen together around town; they liked each other and did date for a period however Priscilla later said it was never serious on either side. Rosemary's first film after Varsity Show was in the musical Hollywood Hotel, in which she co-starred with sister Lola and former co-star Dick Powell, before starring in Gold Diggers In Paris, opposite Rudy Vallee. An actor most famous for his role as Robin Hood (aka Robin of Kensington) in the television comedy series (Maid Marian and Her Merry Men) . He is also known as Adam Morris. ... Richard Ewing Dick Powell (November 14, 1904 â€“ January 2, 1963) was an American singer, actor, producer, and director. ... Rudy Vallee (July 28, 1901 - July 3, 1986) was a popular United States singer, actor, bandleader, and entertainer. ...

Prisilla was next assigned the lead in Brother Rat, which had been a very successful Broadway play. Again she played opposite Wayne Morris, and among the cast were such newcomers as Ronald Reagan, Jane Wyman, Jane Bryan, and Eddie Albert. The film, when released in October 1938, was a big success for all the young players. An actor most famous for his role as Robin Hood (aka Robin of Kensington) in the television comedy series (Maid Marian and Her Merry Men) . He is also known as Adam Morris. ... Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 â€“ June 5, 2004) was the 40th President of the United States (1981 â€“ 1989) and the 33rd Governor of California (1967 â€“ 1975). ... Jane Wyman (born Sarah Jane Fulks on January 5, 1917 in Saint Joseph, Missouri)[1] is an Academy Award-winning, Golden Globe-winning and Emmy-nominated American actress also known for being the first wife of president Ronald Reagan. ... Jane Bryan (born June 11, 1918) was an American actress being built up by the Warner Bros. ... Eddie Albert, born Edward Albert Heimberger, (April 22, 1906 â€“ May 26, 2005) was a popular Oscar and Emmy Award-nominated American stage, film, character actor, gardener and humanitarian activist, perhaps best known for playing Bing Edwards in the Brother Rat films, or for his role in the 1960s television comedy...

At this time of professional success, the sisters were informed that Dr. Mullican had died in Iowa.

The Lane Sisters

Warner Bros. had purchased a story by Fannie Hurst titled Sister Act and planned to star Errol Flynn in the film, along with four actresses. Flynn, however, was withdrawn from the project to star in The Adventures of Robin Hood. The script for Sister Act was then rewritten to place the emphasis on the four girls. Bette Davis was to be the star, but she refused the role. Lola Lane, always enterprising, approached Jack Warner with the suggestion she and her sisters star in the film. Warner agreed, and Leota was summoned from New York to test for the part of Emma, but proved unsuitable. The studio substituted Gale Page, a young contractee as the fourth daughter. The actress would be tagged for the rest of her career as the fourth Lane. When the film, now titled Four Daughters, was released on September 24, 1938, it proved to be a big hit. It was followed by two sequels, Four Wives in 1939 and Four Mothers in 1941, again starring the Lanes and Gale Page. Leota played Emma in the Lux Radio version of the film heard on the evening of December 18, 1939. Warner Bros. ... Fannie Hurst in 1932, portrait by Carl Van Vechten. ... Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (June 20, 1909 â€“ October 14, 1959) was an Australian film actor, most famous for his romantic swashbuckler roles in Hollywood films and his flamboyant lifestyle. ... The Adventures of Robin Hood is the title of: a 1938 movie, starring Errol Flynn: see The Adventures of Robin Hood (movie) a television series of the 1950s, starring Richard Greene: see The Adventures of Robin Hood (series) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other... Bette Davis (April 5, 1908 â€“ October 6, 1989), born Ruth Elizabeth Davis, was a two-time Academy Award-winning American actress of film, television and theatre. ... This article is about Jack Warner, the head of Warner Brothers. ... Gale Page (July 29, 1913 – January 8, 1983) was an American actress. ... Four Daughters is a 1938 film which tells the story of a happy musical family whose lives and loves are disrupted by the arrival of a cynical young composer who interjects himself into the daughters romantic lives. ... September 24 is the 267th day of the year (268th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... In the Gregorian calendar, December 18 is the 352nd day of the year (353rd in leap years), with 13 days remaining until the end of the year. ... Year 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Priscilla's next assignment was Yes, My Darling Daughter, adapted from a successful play. The story concerned a girl, the daughter of a feminist and one time suffragette, who decides to spend a weekend alone with her fiancee, played by Jeffrey Lynn. The premise of the film in which an unmarried couple spent a weekend together unchaperoned was roundly criticized and was banned in some parts of the United States. The publicity, however, piqued public curiousity, and the film became a box office hit. Priscilla received praise for her vivacious performance, as did Lynn playing the boy friend. The supporting cast included Roland Young, Fay Bainter, May Robson, Genevieve Tobin, and Ian Hunter. Jeffrey Lynn (February 16, 1909 – November 24, 1995) was an American actor. ... Roland Young (11 November 1887, London - 5 June 1953, New York City) was a British actor. ... Fay Bainter (December 7, 1891 â€“ April 16, 1968) was an American actress. ... May Robson (April 19, 1858 - October 20, 1942) was an Australian-born actress and playwright. ... Genevieve Tobin (November 29, 1899 â€“ July 21, 1995) was an American actress. ... Ian Hunter (born Ian Hunter Patterson on June 3, 1939 in Oswestry, Shropshire, England) was the lead singer of the band Mott the Hoople from 1969 until the band broke up in 1974. ...

Upon completion of this film Warners sent Priscilla, Rosemary, Errol Flynn, and Ann Sheridan among others on a personal appearance tour in conjunction with the release of Flynn’s first western Dodge City (film). Priscilla enjoyed the experience and the chance to travel through the country. Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (June 20, 1909 â€“ October 14, 1959) was an Australian film actor, most famous for his romantic swashbuckler roles in Hollywood films and his flamboyant lifestyle. ... Ann Sheridan (February 21, 1915 â€“ January 21, 1967) was an American film actress. ... Broncho Billy Anderson, from The Great Train Robbery The Western movie is one of the classic American film genres. ...

Returning to Hollywood, another story was prepared to feature the four daughters, Daughters Courageous, which co-starred John Garfield who had also co-starred in both Four Daughters and Four Wives. Although the story was different, it also covered the lives and loves of four sisters, and proved to be another hit with the public. Daughters Courageous was a movie from 1939, starring three of the four Lane Sisters (Lola, Rosemary and Priscilla). ... John Garfield John Garfield (born March 4, 1913 in New York City; died May 21, 1952 in New York City) was an American actor. ...

Priscilla was again cast with John Garfield in Dust Be My Destiny, a melodrama of prison life. She played the sympathetic stepdaughter of a brutal prison foreman, played by Stanley Ridges. She falls in love with convict Garfield. The original ending of the film had the young lovers dying as fugitives from justice. Audience reaction at previews was so negative that the studio withdrew the film and reshot a happy ending. Variety wrote, "She is completely sincere throughout with several dramatic scenes rising far above the material provided." Stanley Ridges (1890-1951) was a British-born American actor who made his mark in films by playing a wide assortment of character parts, his most famous ones probably being two different professors - one of them the kindly Professor Kingsley in the thriller Black Friday, who is hit by a... Variety is a daily magazine for the entertainment industry. ...

Rosemary Lane was also teamed with Garfield in Blackwell's Island (1939), however this was not a sucess. Roosevelt Island, pop. ...

Priscilla attained full co-starring status in her next film, The Roaring Twenties and was billed above the title along with James Cagney. A major box office hit, Priscilla was shown to advantage as a night club singer, who marries lawyer Jeffrey Lynn, but is lusted after by gangster Cagney. She sang "It Had to Be You," "Melancholy Baby," and "I’m Just Wild About Harry". James Francis Cagney, Jr. ... Jeffrey Lynn (February 16, 1909 – November 24, 1995) was an American actor. ...

At this point, Priscilla was earning $750 a week, a fantastic salary for the Depression era, but puny compared to the salaries of other studio stars. She demanded an increase. She also felt the plot of her next movie, Money and the Woman was sordid and refused to report for work. Her agent explained, "The role is not one she should be asked to do." She was replaced by Brenda Marshall. Brenda Marshall (September 29, 1915 â€“ July 30, 1992) was an American cinema actress. ...

Priscilla was next assigned the lead in My Love Came Back, a romantic story involving a girl violinist. Again, Priscilla refused the part, so a furious Jack Warner suspended her. Olivia de Havilland, equally reluctant to act in the film, eventually did. Olivia Mary de Havilland (born July 1, 1916) is a two-time Academy Award winning actress and is the last surviving principal cast member from Gone with the Wind. ...

Later Career's & Eventual Retirement

Lola continued her career into the 1940s with her tough girl persona in drama's such as Convicted Woman (1940), Gangs Of Chicago (1940), Mystery Ship (1941), Miss V From Moscow (1942) and Lost Canyon (1942), although she desperatley wanted to break away from her type-casting. . She retired at the age of forty in 1946. Her last three films; "Why Girls Leave Home" (1945) as Irene Mitchell, "Deadline At Dawn" (1946) as Edna Bartelli and "They Made Me A Killer" (1946) as Betty Ford, both had her in the supporting female roles. This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

Rosemary had good reviews for 1940's The Boys from Syracuse, based on Rogers and Hart's Broadway hit of 1938. The next year she made an unusual move for a film actress of her era by becoming a Broadway star in the musical Best Foot Forward, as Gale Joy, which opened on Broadway at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre on October first, 1941. It closed after 326 performances on the fourth of July 1942. However she lost the subsequent movie role to Lucille Ball. Good movie parts started to dwindle and Rosemary closed out her film career in 1945 with "Sing Me a Song of Texas", as nightclub singer Laurie Lang, the niece of a wealthy Texas rancher. She began a career selling real estate from an office in Pacific Palisades. Rodgers and Hart was the songwriting team consisting of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart. ... Best Foot Forward (1943) is a film version of the hit 1941 Broadway musical comedy. ... Lucille DÃ©sirÃ©e Ball (August 6, 1911 â€“ April 26, 1989) was an iconic American actor, comedian and star of the landmark sitcom I Love Lucy, a four time Emmy Award winner (awarded 1953, 1956, 1967, 1968) and charter member of the Television Hall of Fame. ...

After winning her raise, Priscilla returned to work, but the films assigned to her were no better than those she had turned down. Brother Rat and a Baby was an inferior sequel and Three Cheers For the Irish gave her little to do.

The British Picturegoer, always a supporter of the Lane Sisters, stated that all was not right with Priscilla Lane. In its June 15, 1940, issue, they wondered why "Priscilla was still knocking at the door of major stardom." They felt Warner Bros. was casting her as stooge to such actors as John Garfield and James Cagney. They went on to say Priscilla had great charm and while not a really great dramatic actress, deserved much larger and more important roles than she was getting. The same magazine, two years later on August 22, 1942, referred to their 1940 article and once again expressed disappointment at Warners’ treatment of the star. They were unaware that she had already left the studio. June 15 is the 166th day of the year (167th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... August 22 is the 234th day of the year (235th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ...

On April 28, 1941, she was heard on Lux Radio Theater with George Brent and Gail Patrick in Wife, Husband and Friend. April 28 is the 118th day of the year (119th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the movie, see 1941 (film). ... Lux Radio Theater, one of the genuine classic radio anthology series (NBC Blue Network (1934-1935); CBS (1935-1954); NBC (1954-1955)) adapted first Broadway stage works, and then (especially) films to hour-long live radio presentations. ... Brent (right) in Experiment Perilous George Brent (March 15, 1904 - May 26, 1979 was an actor in American cinema. ... Gail Patrick (born June 20, 1911 â€“ died July 6, 1980) was an American actress. ...

At Warner Bros. she appeared opposite Ronald Reagan in a light hearted comedy, Million Dollar Baby and as a night club singer in Blues in the Night. Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 â€“ June 5, 2004) was the 40th President of the United States (1981 â€“ 1989) and the 33rd Governor of California (1967 â€“ 1975). ...

Frank Capra requested her for the lead opposite Cary Grant in Arsenic and Old Lace. The hit comedy film was completed in early 1942, but was not released until 1944, held up by contractural agreement not to distribute the film until the play’s long Broadway run was over. It was Priscilla’s last Warner film. Her contract was terminated by mutual agreement after five years with the studio. This article is about the film director. ... Archibald Alec Leach (January 18, 1904 â€“ November 29, 1986), better known by his screen name, Cary Grant, was an English film actor. ... Arsenic and Old Lace is a play by Joseph Kesselring, which was made into a film by director Frank Capra. ...

She freelanced next, signing a one picture deal with Universal Studios where she starred with Robert Cummings in Alfred Hitchcock’s Saboteur (1942). The director did not want either Cummings or Priscilla in the film. In Priscilla’s case, Hitchcock felt she was too much the girl next door. Universal insisted that they play the leads, and when the film was released, Priscilla's acting was praised while some criticism was focused on Hitchcock for reworking so much from his earlier films into this wartime spy drama. Universal Studios (sometimes called Universal Pictures or Universal City Studios), a subsidiary of NBC Universal, is one of the major American film studios that has production studios and offices located at 100 Universal City Plaza Drive in Universal City, California, an unincorporated area of Los Angeles County between Los Angeles... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock KBE (August 13, 1899 â€“ April 29, 1980) was a highly influential British film director and producer who pioneered many techniques in the suspense and thriller genres. ... Saboteur is a 1942 Universal film directed by Alfred Hitchcock with a screenplay written by Peter Viertel and Joan Harrison. ...

Priscilla had commitments for two more films. The first was Silver Queens for producer Harry Sherman in which she was co-starred with George Brent. She played the owner of a gambling house in 1870s San Francisco. The other film was a Jack Benny comedy, The Meanest Man in the World, released in January 1943. Brent (right) in Experiment Perilous George Brent (March 15, 1904 - May 26, 1979 was an actor in American cinema. ... Jack Benny (February 14, 1894 in Chicago, Illinois â€“ December 26, 1974 in Beverly Hills, California), born Benjamin Kubelsky, was an American comedian, vaudeville performer, and radio, television, and film actor. ...

Priscilla then retired from films. For the duration of the war, she followed her husband across the country as he moved from one military base to another. She was generous with her talents and often performed at camp shows.

While living in Van Nuys, Priscilla was offered and accepted the leading role in Fun on a Weekend for producer/director Andrew Stone, co-starring Eddie Bracken. When the film was released in 1947, Variety opined, "Miss Lane, who’s been absent from films for some time, gives a good enough performance which should ensure her work in more pictures." However, Priscilla returned to domestic life. Once again she and her husband moved, this time to Studio City. Andrew Stone (1988-?) attended Liberty University in Bethlehem, Pennsylavania from 2002-2006. ... Eddie Bracken (born February 7, 1915; died November 14, 2002) was an American comic actor. ...

In 1948 Priscilla accepted the offer of the lead role opposite Lawrence Tierney in a film noir, Bodyguard, starring as Doris Brewster. During an interview with a Hollywood correspondent, she stated, "I didn’t realize how much I miss filming until I came back. I love this work, and I hope to make many, many more pictures." Lawrence Tierney in Born to Kill (1947) Lawrence Tierney (March 15, 1919 â€“ (February 26, 2002) was an American actor. ... This still from The Big Combo (1955) demonstrates the visual style of film noir at its most extreme. ...

Bodyguard proved to be her last picture. An expected contract with RKO Studios did not eventuate. With the advent of television, and the Supreme Court’s anti-trust ruling against the studios, the whole studio system was collapsing, and there was a drastic cut back in the number of players under contract. The classic logo of RKO Radio Pictures. ...

In January of 1951, Cora Mullican died at the San Fernando Valley home her daughters had bought for her years earlier.

Priscilla returned to show business briefly in 1958 with her own show on a local television station broadcasting from Boston. Titled The Priscilla Lane Show, she chatted and interviewed celebrities visiting the area. She enjoyed the television experience, but family demands proved too much, and she gave up after a year.

Personal Lives

Lola was married five times, but bore no children. She was first married to Henry Clay Dunham. After this brief marriage she wed actor Lew Ayres on the fifteenth of September 1931. They subsequently divorced on the third of January 1933. She then married director Alexander Hall in 1934. They divorced on the fourteenth of December 1936. She then married Roland West in 1940. He was a producer, director and screenwriter, but was mostly famous for being a suspect in the 1935 death of his girl friend, actress Thelma Todd. Neighbors heard them quarreling the night before she was found in her garage, overcome by carbon monoxide poisoning. Though a suspect, he was never arrested. The pair remained married until his death on the thirty-first of March 1952 from Heart disease. On his deathbed he allegedly confessed murdering Thelma Todd, to good friend and actor Chester Morris. She married Robert Hanlon three years later in 1955, the pair were married till her death twenty-six years later. Hanlon later produced, directed and wrote the screenplay for the film "Killers" (1999). publicity photo for Ayres Lew Ayres (December 28, 1908 â€“ December 30, 1996) was an American actor. ...

Rosemary was married just once. On Dec. 28, 1941, at the home of a Flushing, N.Y., minister, Lane married handsome George H. "Bud" Westmore, wizard Hollywood makeup artist who previously had had a stormy three-month marriage to comic actress Martha Raye. The Lane-Westmore marriage lasted 13 years and produced a daughter, Bridget. But Lane sued Westmore for separate maintenance in November 1952, saying he walked out on her on July 11 of that year. Frank Westmore, in his book "The Westmores of Hollywood" (1976), said Lane and Westmore "had been very happy, or so everyone thought, including Rosemary." The couple went through a messy divorce in 1954.

Priscilla dated assistant director and screenwriter Oren Haglund. Impulsively she eloped with Haglund to Yuma, Arizona on January 14, 1939, but left him the following day. The marriage was soon annulled. In November 1941, Priscilla became engaged to publisher John Barry, whom she had first met in 1939. She wrote in the November issue of Photoplay how she looked forward to their marriage. She also stated she would continue her career. Abruptly, in early 1942, the engagement to Barry was broken after she met Joseph Howard, a young Air Force lieutenant, at a dude ranch in the Mojave Desert. A native of Lawrence, Massachusetts, he had joined the Army Air Corps straight from college in 1939. He was scouting the area for likely sites for air bases and had taken a short vacation. The couple were married on May 22, 1942, by a justice of the peace in Las Vegas at the home of the executive officer of an Army Air Force gunnery school. At the war’s end in 1945, Priscilla and Joe were living in New Mexico, and she was pregnant with their first child. Their son, Joseph Lawrence, was born December 31, 1945. In 1946 after Joe’s discharge from the service, the couple moved back to California, where they resided in Victorville. Joe, who had a degree in engineering, became a building contractor. The family moved to Van Nuys in December 1945, and Priscilla accepted the leading role in Fun on a Weekend. Afterwards Joe and Priscilla moved, this time to Studio City. Priscilla became pregnant in 1949, and on April 17, 1950, daughter Hannah was born. By June of 1951 the boom in the construction industry in New England Priscilla and Joe moved back to his native Massachusetts. Joe left the final decision up to Priscilla, who later declared she never regretted her choice. She fell in love with New England, and the couple settled with their children in Andover, Massachusetts. Priscilla was busy with her family. She gave birth to a second daughter, Judith, on August 22, 1953. The Howard’s fourth and youngest child, James, was born December 4, 1955. Outside her family, Priscilla was a busy woman. She was devoutly religious, having converted to Roman Catholicism, as had her sister Lola. The family attended church regularly, and she was involved with Catholic charities. She enjoyed tending her garden, growing flowers and vegetables. She ran a girl scout troop and volunteered at local hospitals. She had, however, become less outgoing as far as public life was concerned. She refused all offers of work, most interviews and did not answer fan mail. In July 1972 Joe Howard retired from business, and he and Priscilla moved to their summer home at 7 Howards Grove in Derry, New Hampshire. Joe died suddenly on May 18, 1976 at the age of 60. He was still in the Air Force Reserve, which he had joined after his discharge from active duty in 1946. Heart broken, Priscilla remained in Derry. She said, more than a year later in 1977, "I’m still trying to pull myself together after Joe’s death." She busied herself with volunteer work and her garden. An Air force is a military or armed service that primarily conducts aerial warfare. ... For the indigenous American tribe, see Mohave. ... Settled: 1655 â€“ Incorporated: 1847 Zip Code(s): 01840 â€“ Area Code(s): 351 / 978 Official website: http://www. ... The Army Air Corps is a component of the British Army. ... May 22 is the 142nd day of the year (143rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ... This article is about the city of Las Vegas in Nevada. ... Capital Santa Fe Largest city Albuquerque Area Ranked 5th - Total 121,665 sq mi (315,194 kmÂ²) - Width 342 miles (550 km) - Length 370 miles (595 km) - % water 0. ... April 17 is the 107th day of the year (108th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the region in the United States of America. ... Official language(s) English Capital Boston Largest city Boston Area Ranked 44th - Total 10,555 sq mi (27,360 kmÂ²) - Width 183 miles (295 km) - Length 113 miles (182 km) - % water 13. ... Location in Massachusetts Coordinates: Country United States State Massachusetts County Essex County Settled 1642 Incorporated 1646 Government - Type Open town meeting - Town Manager Reginald Buzz Stapczynski - Board of Selectmen Ted Teichert (2009) Mary Lyman (2008) Alexander Vispoli (2007) John Hess (2007) Brian Major (2009) Area - Town 32. ... August 22 is the 234th day of the year (235th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1953 (MCMLIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... December 4th redirects here. ... 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... Location in Rockingham County, New Hampshire Coordinates: Country United States State New Hampshire County Rockingham County Incorporated 1827 Government - Town Council Brent Carney Kevin Coyle Craig W. Bulkley Janet Fairbanks Rick Metts Beverly Ferrante Brian Chirichiello Area - Town 36. ... May 18 is the 138th day of the year (139th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the 1976 Gregorian calendar. ...

Deaths

Leota passed away on the twenty-fifth of July, 1963 in [[Glendale, California, just months before her sixtieth birthday.

Lola died of arterial disease on the twenty-second of June, 1981 inSanta Barbara, California at the age of seventy-five. Nickname: Santa Barbara is situated on the southward-facing coast at far right. ...

Rosemary had just turned sixty-one and was living quietly in retirement in Pacific Palisades when she died Nov. 28, 1974, at the Motion Picture Country Hospital in Woodland Hills, California. The cause was a cerebral blood clot, stemming from diabetes and chronic pulmonary obstruction. Services were held at Santa Monica, and, for unknown reasons, Lane was buried in an unmarked grave at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale.

In 1994, Priscilla was diagnosed with lung cancer. She moved to a nursing home, Wingate, in Andover, near son Joe and his family. She died there at 7:30 AM on April 4, 1995, of cancer and chronic heart failure, only two months before her eightieth birthday. A funeral mass was said at St. Matthew’s church in Windham, New Hampshire, and burial followed at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. Her husband Joe, who had served his country for nearly forty years had been buried there with full military honors. Priscilla was laid to rest beside him. Lung cancer is the malignant transformation and expansion of lung tissue, and is the most lethal of all cancers worldwide, responsible for 1. ... is the 94th day of the year (95th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full 1995 Gregorian calendar). ... Windham is a town located in Rockingham County, New Hampshire. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Official language(s) English Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Area Ranked 35th - Total 42,793 sq mi (110,862 kmÂ²) - Width 200 miles (320 km) - Length 430 miles (690 km) - % water 7. ...

Cultural references

In episode 9 of the "Topsy Turvy World" sequence of The Bullwinkle Show, Boris Badenov gives Natasha Fatale three guesses as to who lives at the North Pole. She uses all three guesses in one reply, "Santa Claus, Judge Crater, and the Lane Sisters." This article does not cite any references or sources. ... From left to right, Boris Badenov, Natasha Fatale, and Fearless Leader. ... From left to right, Boris Badenov, Natasha Fatale, and Fearless Leader. ... Joseph Force Crater (1889 - ?) was a judge in New York City who disappeared on August 6, 1930. ...

Filmography (Leota Lane)

Filmography (Lola Lane)

Daughters Courageous (1939) .... Linda Masters ... aka A Family Affair ... aka American Family ... aka Family Reunion

In Paris, A.W.O.L. (1936) .... Lola ... aka Let's Pretend We're Sweethearts (USA: reissue title) ... aka They Went to War (USA: reissue title)

Port of Lost Dreams (1934) .... Molly Deshon/Molly Clark Christensen ... aka Captain Dangerous (USA: TV title)

Fox Movietone Follies of 1929 (1929) .... Lila Beaumont ... aka Movietone Follies of 1929 ... aka The William Fox Movietone Follies of 1929 (USA)

Filmography (Rosemary Lane)

Ladies Must Live (1940) .... Pat Halliday ... aka The Bridegroom Misbehaves ... aka The Hometowners

Daughters Courageous (1939) .... Tinka Masters ... aka A Family Affair ... aka American Family ... aka Family Reunion

Filmography (Priscilla Lane)

Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) .... Elaine Harper ... aka Frank Capra's 'Arsenic and Old Lace' (USA: complete title)

Daughters Courageous (1939) .... Buff Masters ... aka A Family Affair ... aka American Family ... aka Family Reunion

Notes

External links

Categories: American musical groups | American film actors | American female singers The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, and video games. ... The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, and video games. ... The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, and video games. ... The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, and video games. ... Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... The Wikimedia Commons (also called Wikicommons) is a repository of free content images, sound and other multimedia files. ...

Contents

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