Cathy Downs
| Cathy Downs | |
|---|---|
 in The Dark Corner (1946) | |
| Born |
March 3, 1924 Port Jefferson, New York, U.S. |
| Died |
December 8, 1976 (aged 52) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | cancer[1] |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1945–1965 |
| Spouse(s) |
Robert Brunson (1956-1963) (divorced) Joe Kirkwood, Jr. (1952-1955) (divorced) |
Cathy Downs (March 3, 1924 – December 8, 1976) was an American film actress.
Biography
Downs was born in Port Jefferson, New York.[2] She was the daughter of James Nelson Downs and Edna Elizabeth Newman. A former Vogue cover model, she was brought to Hollywood in 1944 by a 20th Century-Fox talent scout.[3]
Downs began her film career with a small roles in State Fair (1945) and The Dolly Sisters (1945). In 1946 she played the title role in My Darling Clementine and Clifton Webb's unfaithful wife in The Dark Corner. Following the success of My Darling Clementine, Downs was cast in a prison drama For You I Die (1947), an Abbott & Costello comedy The Noose Hangs High, and several western films.[4]
By the beginning of the 1950s she was appearing in lower budget films, including some science fiction films, with one of these films Missile to the Moon marking her last screen appearance, in 1958.
She worked sporadically in television during the 1960s, with her final television appearance in 1965 on Perry Mason as murder victim and title character Millicent Barton in "The Case of the Hasty Honeymooner." She was unemployed the remaining eleven years of her life before she died in Los Angeles, California.
Downs has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contribution to Television, at 6646 Hollywood Boulevard.[5]
Personal life
She was married first to Joe Kirkwood, Jr. (1952–1955; divorced) who played the character Joe Palooka in films and on TV.[6] They had long been out of touch, when, in 1976 Kirkwood heard that Downs was in dire financial straights.
Kirkwood was setting up a trust fund for her when he learned she had died of cancer at the age of 52. She is interred at Woodlawn Cemetery, Santa Monica.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1945 | The Dolly Sisters | Miss Mascara | uncredited |
| State Fair | Girl on carousel | uncredited | |
| Diamond Horseshoe | Miss Cream Puff | uncredited | |
| 1946 | My Darling Clementine | Clementine Carter | |
| Do You Love Me | Clothes model | uncredited | |
| The Dark Corner | Mari Cathcart | ||
| 1947 | For You I Die | Hope Novak | |
| 1948 | The Noose Hangs High | Carol Scott | |
| Panhandle | Jean 'Dusty' Stewart | ||
| 1949 | Massacre River | Katherine 'Kitty' Reid | |
| 1950 | Short Grass | Sharon Lynch | |
| The Sundowners (1950 film) | Kathleen Boyce | ||
| 1951 | Joe Palooka in Triple Cross | Anne Palooka | |
| 1952 | Gobs and Gals | Betty Lou Prentice | |
| 1953 | Bandits of the West | Joanne Collier | |
| The Flaming Urge | Charlotte Cruickshank | ||
| 1955 | The Phantom from 10,000 Leagues | Lois King | |
| The Big Tip Off | Sister Mary Joan of Arc | ||
| 1956 | The She Creature | Dorothy Chappel | |
| Kentucky Rifle | Amy Connors | ||
| The Oklahoma Woman | Susan Grant | ||
| 1957 | The Amazing Colossal Man | Carol Forrest | |
| Curfew Breakers | Mrs. Bowman | ||
| 1958 | Missile to the Moon | June Saxton |
References
- ↑ http://www.glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com/show/414/Cathy+Downs/index.html
- ↑ "Cathy Downs". IMDb. Retrieved October 4, 2012.
- ↑ "Cathy Downs". Find A Grave. Retrieved October 4, 2012.
- ↑ IMDB entry
- ↑ Hollywood Walk of Fame
- ↑ Downs' biodata at New York Times
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cathy Downs. |
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