[60] This was followed by These Glamour Girls (1939), a comedy in which she portrayed a taxi dancer invited to attend a dance with a male coed at his elite college. Some of the stars are magnetic dazzlers on celluloid and ordinary, practical, polo-coated little things in private life. I'm so f-g tired of being Ava Gardner." While their brief marriage was turbulent, Gardner thanks first husband Mickey Rooney for her sexual education. [33] In 1965, she met Hollywood producer and businessman Robert Eaton, who was ten years her junior, through business associates. [206][207] The two began arguing heatedly in the bedroom, during which Stompanato threatened to kill Turner, her daughter Cheryl and her mother. [262] She filed for divorce in January 1970,[97] after which she claimed to be celibate for the remainder of her life. [258], With few film offers coming in, Turner signed on to appear in the television series Harold Robbins' The Survivors. [122] Turner later recalled she was surprised about replacing Hepburn, saying: "I'm about the most un-Hepburnish actress on the lot. [218] In popular music, Turner was referenced in songs recorded by Nina Simone[342] and Frank Sinatra,[343] and was the source of the stage name of singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey. Lana Turner was one of the biggest stars of Golden Age Hollywood cinema. [8] John was 24 years old at the time, and Mildred's father objected to the courtship. "[121] It was her first starring role that did not center on her looks. [132] Homecoming was well received by audiences, and Turner and Gable were nicknamed "the team that generates steam". Gardner repeatedly contemplated suicide near the end of her life. [70], In 1940, Turner appeared in her first musical film, Two Girls on Broadway, in which she received top billing over established co-stars Joan Blondell and George Murphy. "[109] Critic Anita Loos praised Turner's performance in the film, writing: "Lana Turner typifies modern allure. [161] The films were Flame and the Flesh, in which she portrayed a manipulative woman who takes advantage of a musician, and Betrayed, an espionage thriller set in the Nazi-occupied Netherlands; the latter marked Turner's fourth and final film appearance opposite Clark Gable. In the mid-thirties, Columbia Pictures put her under a long-term contract, transforming dark-haired teenager Rita Cansino into redhead bombshell Rita Hayworth. [184] She also received critical acclaim, with Variety noting that "Turner looks elegant" and "registers strongly",[185] and, for the first and only time, she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress. [199][200] Stompanato got wind of the plan and showed up on the set with a gun, threatening her and Connery. "[227] Critics and audiences could not help noticing that the plots of Peyton Place and Imitation of Life both seemed to mirror certain parts of Turner's private life, resulting in comparisons she found painful. [33] She stated that she had "never seen myself walking before [It was] the first time [I was] conscious of my body. ChickComedy/YouTube Comedian Lahna Turner was married to Ralphie May. But the marriage was not a success, and in October 2015, Turner filed for divorce seeking joint custody of their two children. [85] Meanwhile, the press continued to fuel rumors that Turner and Gable were romantic offscreen, which Turner vehemently denied. Lana Turner relationship list. lana turner cause of death. [94] Upon completing the tour, Turner had sold $5.25 million in war bonds. The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) [Cora Smith]: Killed in a car accident while riding with John Garfield; we see the car go off the road . Lana Turner was an American actress who had a net worth of $5 million at the time of her death. February 27, 2023 . [125] She discovered she was pregnant with Power's child in the fall of 1947, but chose to have an abortion. I got a big chance to do some real acting in The Postman Always Rings Twice, and I'm not going to slip back if I can help it. [157] The Bad and the Beautiful was both a critical and commercial success, and earned her favorable reviews. [286] Her appearance was a ratings success, and her character returned for an additional five episodes.[287]. [294] She underwent exploratory surgery to remove the cancer,[294] but it had metastasized to her jaw and lungs. [275] In the fall of 1978, she appeared in a Chicago production of Divorce Me, Darling, an original play in which she portrayed a San Francisco divorce attorney. [289] She subsequently guest-starred on an episode of The Love Boat in 1985,[290] which marked her final on-screen appearance. [38], By Turner's own account, she was a junior at Hollywood High School when she skipped a typing class and bought a Coca-Cola at the Top Hat Malt Shop[34][40] located on the southeast corner of Sunset Boulevard and McCadden Place. Published on July 3, 2018 06:50 PM. [52] In her early films, Turner did not color her auburn hairsee Dancing Co-Ed (1939), in which she was billed "the red-headed sensation who brought "it" back to the screen". An Aspiration Cut Short. [153] Suffering from depression over her career and financial problems, she attempted suicide in September 1951 by slitting her wrists in a locked bathroom. "[4] Michael Gordon, who directed Turner in Portrait in Black, remembered her as "a very talented actress whose chief reliability was what I regarded as impoverished taste Lana was not a dummy, and she would give me wonderful rationalizations why she should wear pendant earrings. Julia Jean Mildred Frances Turner: Date of death: . It's an image I've worked too hard to obtain and preserve. [92], Throughout the war, Turner continued to make regular appearances at U.S. troop events and area bases, though she confided to friends that she found visiting the hospital wards of injured soldiers emotionally difficult. [154] The following year, she began filming her second musical, The Merry Widow. It wasn't much of a play even when Julie Harris was doing it, and it all but disappears under the old-time Hollywood glamor of Miss Turner's star presence. Turner left the majority of her estate to her maid, Carmen Lopez Cruz, who had been her companion for 45 years and caregiver during her final illness. [293][294] In a press release, she stated that the cancer had been detected early and had not damaged her vocal cords or larynx. She was 74 years old when she passed away. "[33], Her next project was Johnny Eager (1941), a violent mobster film in which she portrayed a socialite. [172][173] The production was rushed to accommodate a Christmas release and was completed in only three months, but it received unfavorable reviews from critics. [7] Shortly after completing They Won't Forget, she made an appearance in James Whale's historical comedy The Great Garrick (1937), a biographical film about British actor David Garrick, in which she had a small role portraying an actress posing as a chambermaid. After 18 years at MGM, I'm a free agentI used to go on a bended knee to the front office and say, please give me a decent story. [306] In They Won't Forget (1937) and Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938), she embodied an "innocent sexuality" portraying ingnues. Lex Barker, Actor singer She married with Lex Barker (54), in 1953. [96], In July 1942,[97] Turner met her second husband, actor-turned-restaurateur Joseph Stephen "Steve" Crane, at a dinner party in Los Angeles. [129] Production of Cass Timberlane was exhausting for Turner, because it was shot in between retakes of Green Dolphin Street. [278][279][280] During this time, Turner was in the midst of a self-described "downhill slide". It's the Lana Turner Story, Told by the Sweater Girl Herself Turner's private life drew in the public eye from her many marriages and romances, hitting its sensational peak when her lover,. [54] The same year, she was loaned to United Artists for a minor role as a maid in The Adventures of Marco Polo. [303] Cheryl challenged the will, and Cruz said that the majority of the estate was consumed by probate costs, legal fees and medical expenses.[304]. [229] During this time, Turner's daughter Cheryl privately came out as a lesbian to her parents, who were both supportive of her. "[249] Kaspar Monahan of the Pittsburgh Press lauded her performance, writing: "Her performance, I think, is far and away her very best, even rating Oscar consideration in next year's Academy Award race, unless the culture snobs gang up against her. [202] Turner and Armstrong later returned with two Scotland Yard detectives to the rented house where she and Stompanato were staying. In the 1980s she had a recurring role on the TV series Falcon Crest. When Frank Sinatra saw the film The Postman Always Rings Twice, his eyes were on stalks. [239][217] The following year, she made her final film at MGM with Bob Hope in Bachelor in Paradise (1961), a romantic comedy about an investigative writer (Hope) working on a book about the wives of a lavish California community; the film received a mostly positive critical reception. Harrison was smoker. [198] To avoid further confrontation, Turner and her makeup artist, Del Armstrong, called Scotland Yard in order to have Stompanato deported. [47] Her first starring role for MGM was scheduled to be an adaptation of The Sea-Wolf, co-starring Clark Gable, but the project was eventually shelved. "[33] Several years after the film's release, Modern Screen journalist Nancy Squire wrote that Turner "made a sweater look like something Cleopatra was saving for the next visiting Caesar". Lana Turner, 75, the sweater girl-turned-glamorous film star whose discovery at a soda fountain became the stuff Hollywood dreams are made of, died June 29 at her home in Century City, Calif. She . Turner's next film, Imitation of Life (1959), proved to be one of the greatest successes of her career, but . [162] In The New York Times, Bosley Crowther wrote of Betrayed: "By the time this picture gets around to figuring out whether the betrayer is Miss Turner or Mr. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner's office, Ronnie died due to "complications of metastatic. [71] In the film, she portrayed Sheila Regan, an alcoholic aspiring actress based on Lillian Lorraine. [264] Turner's remains were cremated and given to Cheryl. [204] Stompanato, angered that he did not attend with her, awaited her return home that evening, whereupon he physically assaulted her. Lana Turner (February 8, 1921 - June 29, 1995) was an American actress in 1937-1962. Lana Turner. But she had that sexy clean quality I wanted. Turner's role in the film has also caused her to be frequently associated with film noir and the femme fatale archetype in critical circles. "[146] Although unenthusiastic about the screenplay, Turner agreed to appear in the film after executives promised her suspension would be lifted upon doing so. [291][292] During her contract with MGM, photographs that showed her holding cigarettes had to be airbrushed at the studio's request in an effort to conceal her smoking. [212][299] According to Cheryl, Turner's death was a "total shock", as she had appeared to be in better health and had recently completed seven weeks of radiation therapy. [209] Turner testified that she initially believed Cheryl had punched him, but realized Stompanato had been stabbed when he collapsed and she saw blood on his shirt. [98] The two eloped to Las Vegas a week after they began dating. [50][51], In late 1937, LeRoy was hired as an executive at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), and asked Jack L. Warner to allow Turner to relocate with him to MGM. San Sebastin International Film Festival, "A star was born in Idaho; Wallace folks remember Turner's early years. I'm anxious to get started. [170], MGM then gave Turner the titular role of Diane de Poitiers in the period drama Diane (1956), which had originally been optioned by the studio in the 1930s for Greta Garbo. At 16, she was signed to a personal contract by Warner Bros. director Mervyn LeRoy, who took her with him when he transferred to MGM in 1938. Stompanato was known to have been physically abusive to Turner. [64] A remake of The Broadway Melody, the film was marketed as featuring Turner's "hottest, most daring role". Cause Of Death: Throat cancer. Turner, who had been treated for throat cancer, apparently died of natural causes, a police spokeswoman, Ramona Baety, confirmed to The Associated Press. [9] She became "thrilled" by the ritual practices of the church,[9] and when she was seven, her mother allowed her to formally convert to Roman Catholicism. [78] MGM had initially cast Turner in the lead, but Tracy specifically requested Bergman for the part. [21][25] His robbery and homicide were never solved,[21] and his death had a profound effect on Turner. Lana Turner spoke these words as aspiring actress Lora Meredith in Imitation of Life (1959), but they could have been uttered by almost any of her characters over her 4 decades in Hollywood. / lana turner cause of death. She was 74 years old when she died. Lana Turner was married to seven men, including bandleader Artie Shaw. [137][138] Turner's wedding celebrations interfered with her filming schedule for The Three Musketeers, and she arrived to the set three days late. The New York Times writes that she married bandleader Artie Shaw in 1940 when she was just 19. An ailing Groucho Marx was the victim of elder abuse [29], While baptized a Protestant at birth,[32] Turner attended Mass with the Hislops, a Catholic family with whom her mother had temporarily boarded her in Stockton, California. She also struggled for a long period with alcoholism and smoking, both of which led to the throat cancer that would take her life. [128] As of early 1946, Turner was set for the role, but schedules with Green Dolphin Street almost prohibited her from taking it, and by late 1946, she was nearly recast. [220] The production was difficult for Turner given the recent events of her personal life, and she suffered a panic attack on the first day of filming. Over the course of her nearly 50-year career, she achieved fame as both a pin-up model and a film actress, as well as for her highly publicized personal life. [235][236] Ray Duncan of the Independent Star-News wrote that Turner "suffers prettily through it all, like a fashion model with a tight-fitting shoe". [263][264] Turner married a total of eight times to seven different husbands,[212] and later famously said: "My goal was to have one husband and seven children, but it turned out to be the other way around. With her film career launched in earnest by the dawn of the forties, she became a top pin-up . Article. Cause of death. She is far more deadly because she lets her audience relax. [256] According to Turner, Pellar (also known as Ronald Dante or Dr. Dante)[257] falsely claimed to have been raised in Singapore and to have a Ph.D. in psychology. A spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Department of Medical . [259] Premiering in September 1969, the series was given a major national marketing campaign, with billboards featuring life-sized images of Turner. [47] The film earned her the nickname of the "Sweater Girl" for her form-fitting attire, which accentuated her bust. According to Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner's office, Ronnie died from complications of metastatic colon carcinoma, an advanced-stage type of cancer which originates in the colon and. [219] She portrayed a struggling stage actress who makes personal sacrifices to further her career. [63] The film was a commercial success, and led to Turner appearing on the cover of Look magazine. Actor (1945 - 1973 (bef.)) They had nothing to do with the role, but they had to do with her particular self-image. "Guest: Lana Turner". In a 1958 inquest, killing of Lana Turner's boyfriend was detailed Deputy Dist. [125][33] During this time, she also had romantic affairs with Frank Sinatra[126] and Howard Hughes, the latter of which lasted for 12 weeks in late 1946. [22] At age three, she performed an impromptu dance routine at a charity fashion show in which her mother was modeling. [292] She died nine months later at the age of 74 on June 29, 1995, of complications from the cancer, at her home in Century City, Los Angeles, with her daughter by her side. [341] The Stompanato murder and its aftermath were also the basis of the Harold Robbins novel Where Love Has Gone (1962). He was 59. [217] A 1962 novel by Harold Robbins entitled Where Love Has Gone and its subsequent film adaptation were inspired by the event. [44], Turner made her feature film debut in LeRoy's They Won't Forget (1937),[45] a crime drama in which she played a teenage murder victim. [296] The cancer was found to have returned in July 1994. On the evening of April 4, 1958, 14-year-old Cheryl Crane stabbed 32-year-old Johnny Stompanato, the boyfriend of her mother, actress Lana Turner, at Turner's rented home in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California. [225] Reviews were mixed,[226] although Variety praised her performance, writing: "Turner plays a character of changing moods, and her changes are remarkably effective, as she blends love and understanding, sincerity and ambition. [261] Pellar denied the accusations and no charges were filed against him. [164], In 1955, MGM's new studio head Dore Schary had Turner star as a pagan temptress in the Biblical epic The Prodigal (1955), her first CinemaScope feature. "She'd completed. "I knew that my looks might get me . "[266] In April 1975, Turner spoke at a retrospective gala in New York City examining her career, which was attended by Andy Warhol, Sylvia Miles, Rex Reed and numerous fans. "I wasn't dumb," Gardner said. [276] During rehearsals, a stagehand told reporters that Turner was "the hardest working broad I've known". "[163] Upon returning to the United States in September 1953, Turner married actor Lex Barker,[97] whom she had been dating since their first meeting at a party held by Marion Davies in the summer of 1952. Reid. [132] She was the studio's first choice for the role, but it was reluctant to offer her the part, considering her overbooked schedule. Browse 79 lana turner 1955 stock photos and images available, or start a new search to explore more stock photos and images. I tried to persuade the studio to give me something different. "[131], In August 1947, immediately upon completion of Cass Timberlane, Turner agreed to appear as the female lead in the World War II-set romantic drama Homecoming (1948), in which she was again paired with Clark Gable, portraying a female army lieutenant who falls in love with an American surgeon (Gable). [261] In addition, she later accused him of stealing $100,000 worth of jewelry from her. [92], Arriving to sell bonds in her hometown of Wallace, Idaho, she was greeted with a banner that read "Welcome home, Lana", followed by a large celebration during which the mayor declared a holiday in her honor. [92] During the tour, she began promising kisses to the highest war bond buyers; while selling bonds at the Pioneer Courthouse in Portland, Oregon, she sold a $5,000 bond to a man for two kisses,[93] and another to an elderly man for $50,000. Anne Heche's Official Cause Of Death Revealed. Her popularity continued through the 1950s in dramas such as The Bad and the Beautiful (1952) and Peyton Place (1957), the latter for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress. [97] She later claimed Topping's drinking problem and excessive gambling as her impetus for the divorce. Her hair was dark, messy, uncombed. [34] She soon became a protge of LeRoy, who suggested that she take the stage name Lana Turner, a name she would come to legally adopt several years later. Harrison had surgery and radiation in 1998. After the war, Turner was cast in a lead role opposite John Garfield in The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946), a film noir based on James M. Cain's debut novel of the same name. Sophie Turner nails casual chic in furry jacket and graphic . Some sources claim Turner's birth name to be Julia Jean Mildred Frances Turner. [327] She has also been cited by scholars as a gay icon because of her glamorous persona and triumphs over personal struggles. Upon Turner's death, John Updike wrote in The New Yorker that she "was a faded period piece, an old-fashioned glamour queen whose fifty-four films, over four decades didn't amount, retrospectively to much As a performer, she was purely a studio-made product. Even the love goddess Lana Turner, who co-starred with Burton in The Rains Of Ranchipur, enjoyed a fling with him in his trailer. "Joan Rivers interviews Lana Turner". [210] More than 100 reporters and journalists attended the April 12, 1958 inquest, described by attendees as "near-riotous". According to Closer Weekly, Turner was married eight times, including twice to the same man. She died in Los Angeles and buried in California . [243], In mid-1962, Turner filmed Who's Got the Action?, a comedy in which she portrayed the wife of a gambling addict opposite Dean Martin. [56] During the shoot, Turner completed her studies with an educational social worker, allowing her to graduate high school that year. Lana Turner was born on February 8, 1921 and died on June 29, 1995. [139][140] Studio head Louis B. Mayer threatened to suspend her contract, but Turner managed to leverage her box-office draw with MGM to negotiate an expansion of her role in the film, as well as a salary increase amounting to $5,000 per week ($60,678 in 2021 dollars [43]). [212] Despite this, Cheryl ran away from home multiple times and the press wrote about her rebelliousness. Actress Lana Turner (born Julia Jean Mildred Frances Turner) was one of America's most celebrated sex symbols during the 1940s and 1950s making over 50 films. "Bob" Topping Jr., a millionaire socialite and brother of New York Yankees owner Dan Topping, and a grandson of tin-plate magnate Daniel G. [190] He pursued Turner aggressively, sending her various gifts. [273][274] Critic Elaine Matas noted of a 1977 performance that Turner was "brilliant" and "the bright spot in an otherwise mediocre play". [149] The first, Mr. Imperium, released in March 1951, was a box-office flop, and had Turner starring as an American woman who is wooed by a European prince. [187], In January 1958, Paramount Pictures released The Lady Takes a Flyer, a romantic comedy in which Turner portrayed a female pilot. Turner, Lana (September 29, 1982). Though Turner only appeared on screen for a few minutes,[46] Wilkerson wrote in The Hollywood Reporter that her performance was "worthy of more than a passing note". Lana Turner (/ln trnr/; born Julia Jean Turner; February 8, 1921 - June 29, 1995) was an American actress who over the course of her nearly 50-year career achieved fame as both a pin-up model and a dramatic actress as well as for her highly publicized personal life. lana turner cause of death. "[151] It earned her unfavorable reviews, with one critic from the St. Petersburg Times writing: "Without Lana Turner, Mr. Imperium would be a better picture. He is survived by his wife, fellow comic Lahna Turner, and their two . [214] The scandal also coincided with the release of Another Time, Another Place, and the film was met with poor box-office receipts and a lackluster critical response. [188] While shooting the film the previous spring, she had begun receiving phone calls and flowers on the set from mobster Johnny Stompanato, using the name "John Steele". "[110], In August 1944, Turner divorced Crane, citing his gambling and unemployment as primary reasons. [248] A review in the Chicago Tribune praised her performance, noting: "when she takes the stand in the final (with Keir Dullea) courtroom scene, her face resembling a dust bowl victory garden, it's the most devastating denouement since Barbara Fritchie poked her head out the window. [69] She would later recall that Shaw treated her "like an untutored blonde savage, and took no pains to conceal his opinion". Date of death. "[310] She also likened her to Clara Bow, adding: "Both of them, trusting and lovable, use their hearts instead of their heads. [165][166] She was reluctant to appear in the film because of the character's scanty, "atrocious" costumes and "stupid" lines, and during the shoot struggled to get along with co-star Edmund Purdom, whom she later described as "a young man with a remarkably high opinion of himself". They were married on July 3, 2005, and had two kids, a daughter and a son. CONTACT DETAILS Web Site: . [260] Despite ABC's extensive publicity campaign and the presence of other big-name stars, the program fared badly, and it was canceled halfway into the season after a 15-week run in 1970. Comedian Ralphie May died on October 6 at age 45. "[27], Turner sometimes lived with family friends or acquaintances so that her impoverished mother could save money. Turner's reputation as a glamorous femme fatale was enhanced by her critically acclaimed performance in the noir The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946), a role which established her as a serious dramatic actress. [100] After discovering she was pregnant in November 1942, Turner remarried Crane in Tijuana in March 1943. Turner suffered through many personal tragedies and failed marriages in her quest to find happiness. The last time I begged for a good story they gave me The Prodigal. [183] Released in December 1957, Peyton Place was a major blockbuster success, which worked in Turner's favor as she had agreed to take a percentage of the film's overall earnings instead of a salary. [76] After completing the film, Turner and co-star Garland remained lifelong friends, and lived in houses next to one another in the 1950s. Shortly after, the two eloped and moved west, settling in Idaho. Lana Turner was born Julia Jean Turner[6][7][b] on February 8, 1921,[c] at Providence Hospital[13] in Wallace, Idaho, a small mining community in the Idaho Panhandle region. Her next marriage was to Joseph Stephen Crane in 1942 (via Livingly ). [67] Their marriage only lasted four months, but was highly publicized, and led MGM executives to grow concerned over Turner's "impulsive behavior". [127], Turner's next film was the romantic drama Cass Timberlane, in which she played a young woman in love with an older judge, a role for which Jennifer Jones, Vivien Leigh and Virginia Grey had also been considered. She is the most glamorous actress since Jean Harlow. Lana Turner's father was murdered when she was a child. "[4] Critic Leonard Maltin noted in 2005 that Turner "came to crystallize the opulent heights to which show business could usher a small-town girl, as well as its darkest, most tragic and narcissistic depths". [154] She was saved by her business manager, Benton Cole, who broke down the bathroom door and called emergency medical services. A long-time heavy smoker, Turner was diagnosed with throat cancer in May 1992. Burton reportedly said: 'She set out to get me, and I let. He was convicted of killing actress Lana Clarkson in 2003 at his castle-like mansion on the edge of Los Angeles. In the suit, Stompanato's son alleged that Turner had been responsible for his death, and that her daughter had taken the blame. In the 1980s she had a recurring role on the TV series Falcon Crest. [99][100] Their marriage was annulled by Turner four months later upon discovering that Crane's previous divorce had not yet been finalized. Lana Turnerborn Julia Jean Mildred Francis Turner on February 8, 1921 in Wallace, Idahohad one of the most dramatic off-screen. [145], In 1949, Turner was to star in A Life of Her Own (1950), a George Cukor-directed drama about a woman who aspires to be a model in New York City. [150] "The script was stupid," she recalled. [246] The two married in June of that year at his family's home in Arlington, Virginia. [201] Connery answered by grabbing the gun out of Stompanato's hand and twisting his wrist, causing him to run off the set. [212][213] Cheryl remained a temporary ward of the court until April 24, when a juvenile court hearing was held, during which the judge expressed concerns over her receiving "proper parental supervision".