Woman with white headscarf, facing right
Turner as Cora Smith in The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946)

Lana Turner (1921–1995) was an American actress who appeared in over fifty films during her career, which spanned four decades. Discovered in 1937 at age 16, she signed a contract with Warner Bros. but soon transferred to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.[1] The studio's co-founder, Louis B. Mayer, helped further her career by casting her in several youth-oriented comedies and musicals, including Dancing Co-Ed (1939)[2] and Ziegfeld Girl (1941), the latter of which was a commercial success and helped establish her as one of the studio's leading performers.[3] Turner subsequently co-starred with Clark Gable in the drama Somewhere I'll Find You (1943), the first of four films she would appear in with him.[4]

Turner's role as a femme fatale in the film noir The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) advanced her career significantly and established her as a dramatic actress.[5] It earned her acclaim with Bosley Crowther of The New York Times deeming it "the role of her career."[6] In addition to her film roles, Turner frequently appeared on radio programs throughout the 1940s, including Suspense and The Orson Welles Almanac.[7][8] In 1952, she co-starred in the drama The Bad and the Beautiful (1952) opposite Kirk Douglas, portraying an alcoholic actress.[9] Turner made her final film appearance with Gable[10] in the drama Betrayed (1954).[11] After the critical and commercial failure of Diane (1956), MGM opted not to renew Turner's contract.[12] At the time, her films with the studio had collectively earned over $50 million[13]

In 1957, she took a leading role portraying Constance MacKenzie in 20th Century Fox's Peyton Place, a film adaptation of the Grace Metalious novel of the same name.[14] The film was a major box office success,[15] and Turner earned her first and only Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for her performance.[14] In 1959, she accepted the lead role in Douglas Sirk's remake of Imitation of Life, a drama for Universal Pictures in which she portrayed a struggling stage actress, which was another commercial success at the box office.[16] Turner's final leading role was in 1966's Madame X, for which she earned a David di Donatello award for Best Actress.[17] She spent the majority of the 1970s in semiretirement, appearing in touring stage plays, such as Forty Carats[18] and Bell, Book and Candle.[19] In 1982, she was cast in a recurring guest role on the television soap opera Falcon Crest.[20] She made her final film appearance in the comedy horror film Witches' Brew in 1980.[21]

Film

Woman staring in distance, the words "Lana Turner" beneath her
In They Won't Forget (1937)
Woman lounging on a couch
In Ziegfeld Girl (1940)
Woman facing a man, holding her shoulders
With Clark Gable in Betrayed (1954)
Woman wearing a scarf, clutching her chest
In Madame X (1966)
Year Title Role(s) Director(s) Studio Ref.
1937 They Won't Forget Mary Clay Mervyn LeRoy Warner Bros. [22]
1937 Topper Nightclub Patron[lower-alpha 1] Norman Z. MacLeod Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [23]
1937 The Great Garrick Mademoiselle Auber James Whale Warner Bros. [23]
1938 The Adventures of Marco Polo Nazama's Maid United Artists [23]
1938 Love Finds Andy Hardy Cynthia Potter George B. Seitz Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [24]
1938 The Chaser Miss Rutherford[lower-alpha 2] Edwin L. Marin Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [23]
1938 Four's a Crowd Passerby[lower-alpha 3] Michael Curtiz Warner Bros. [23]
1938 Rich Man, Poor Girl Helen Thayer Reinhold Schünzel Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [23]
1938 Dramatic School Mado Robert B. Sinclair Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [23]
1939 Calling Dr. Kildare Rosalie Jewett Harold S. Bucquet Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [24]
1939 These Glamour Girls Jane Thomas S. Sylvan Simon Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [25]
1939 Dancing Co-Ed Patty Marlow S. Sylvan Simon Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [25]
1940 Two Girls on Broadway Patricia 'Pat' Mahoney S. Sylvan Simon Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [26]
1940 We Who Are Young Marjorie White Brooks Harold S. Bucquet Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [24]
1941 Ziegfeld Girl Sheila Regan Robert Z. Leonard Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1941 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Bea Emery Victor Fleming Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1941 Honky Tonk Elizabeth Cotton Jack Conway Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1942 Johnny Eager Lisbeth Bard Mervyn LeRoy Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1942 Somewhere I'll Find You Paula Lane Wesley Ruggles Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1943 The Youngest Profession Herself[lower-alpha 4] Edward Buzzell Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1943 Slightly Dangerous Peggy Evans /Carol Burden [lower-alpha 5] Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1943 Du Barry Was a Lady Herself[lower-alpha 6] Roy Del Ruth Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1944 Marriage Is a Private Affair Theo Scofield West Robert Z. Leonard Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1945 Keep Your Powder Dry Valerie 'Val' Parks Edward Buzzell Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1945 Week-End at the Waldorf Bunny Smith Robert Z. Leonard Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1946 The Postman Always Rings Twice Cora Smith Tay Garnett Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [22]
1947 Green Dolphin Street Marianne Patourel Victor Saville Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1947 Cass Timberlane Virginia Marshland George Sidney Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1948 Homecoming Lt. Jane 'Snapshot' McCall Mervyn LeRoy Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [27]
1948 The Three Musketeers Milady de Winter George Sidney Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [28]
1950 A Life of Her Own Lily Brannel James George Cukor Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [29]
1951 Mr. Imperium Fredda Barlo Don Hartman Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [28]
1952 The Merry Widow Crystal Radek Curtis Bernhardt Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [28]
1952 The Bad and the Beautiful Georgia Lorrison Vincente Minnelli Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [28]
1953 Latin Lovers Nora Taylor Mervyn LeRoy Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [28]
1954 Flame and the Flesh Madeline Richard Brooks Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [28]
1954 Betrayed Carla Van Oven Gottfried Reinhardt Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [28]
1955 The Prodigal Samarra Richard Thorpe Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [22]
1955 The Sea Chase Elsa Keller John Farrow Warner Bros. [28]
1955 The Rains of Ranchipur Lady Edwina Esketh Jean Negulesco 20th Century Fox [30]
1956 Diane Diane de Poitiers David Miller Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [28]
1957 Peyton Place Constance MacKenzie Mark Robson 20th Century Fox [22]
1958 The Lady Takes a Flyer Maggie Colby Jack Arnold Universal Pictures [28]
1958 Another Time, Another Place Sara Scott Lewis Allen Paramount Pictures [31]
1959 Imitation of Life Lora Meredith Douglas Sirk Universal Pictures [32]
1960 Portrait in Black Sheila Cabot Michael Gordon Universal Pictures [32]
1961 By Love Possessed Marjorie Penrose John Sturges United Artists [33]
1961 Bachelor in Paradise Rosemary Howard Jack Arnold Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [33]
1962 Who's Got the Action? Melanie Flood Daniel Mann Paramount Pictures [28]
1965 Love Has Many Faces Kit Jordan Alexander Singer Columbia Pictures [28]
1966 Madame X Holly Parker David Lowell Rich Universal Pictures [34]
1969 The Big Cube Adriana Roman Tito Davison Warner Bros. [35]
1974 Persecution Carrie Masters Don Chaffey Fanfare Films [28]
1976 Bittersweet Love Claire David Miller AVCO Embassy [28]
1980 Witches' Brew Vivian Cross United Artists [36]
1994 That's Entertainment! III Herself
  • Bud Friedgen
  • Michael J. Sheridan
 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [37]

Unrealized projects

Year Title Role(s) Notes Ref.
1940 Our Dancing Daughters Un­known Remake of 1928 film; never made [38]
1940 The Uniform Un­known Set to star opposite Clark Gable; Turner was replaced with Rosalind Russell, and the film was released as They Met in Bombay[39] [40]
1947 Bedeviled Un­known Unfinished; Turner dropped out to appear in The Three Musketeers [41]
1949 Samson and Delilah Delilah Role went to Hedy Lamarr [42]
1959 Streets of Montmartre Suzanne Valadon Set to star with Louis Jourdan; never made[43] [44]

Television

Bust of woman with short bob haircut, looking down
On The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, 1967
Year Title Role(s) Notes Ref.
1967 The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour Herself Episode: "1.10" [45]
1969–70 Harold Robbins' The Survivors Tracy Carlyle Hastings 15 episodes [46]
1971 The Last of the Powerseekers Television film [47]
1982–83 Falcon Crest Jacqueline Perrault 6 episodes [48]
1985 The Love Boat Elizabeth Raleigh Episode: "Caribbean Cruise: Call Me Grandma/A Gentleman of Discretion/The Perfect Divorce/Letting Go" [37]

Radio

Woman holding a script, gesturing while speaking into a microphone
Performing on the Suspense radio show, 1945
Air date ProgramEpisode Role(s) Notes Ref.
June 2, 1941 Lux Radio Theatre They Drive by Night Lana Carlsen Guest-starring with Lucille Ball[49] [50]
January 19, 1942 Philip Morris Playhouse The Devil and Miss Jones Mary Jones Co-starring with Lionel Barrymore [51]
July 5, 1944 The Orson Welles Almanac The Mercury Wonder Show Herself Guest-starring with Susan Hayward [8]
June 19, 1944 The Orson Welles Almanac Fifth War Loan Drive [52]
May 3, 1945 Suspense Fear Paints a Picture Julia [7]
April 11, 1946 Lux Radio Theatre Honky Tonk Elizabeth Cotton Co-starring with John Hodiak [53]
June 17, 1946 Screen Guild Theater Marriage Is a Private Affair Theo Scofield West Co-starring with John Hodiak [54]
August 14, 1946 Academy Award Theater Vivacious Lady Francey [53]
April 13, 1948 The Bob Hope Show Herself Skit performed with Bob Hope [55]
September 19, 1949 Lux Radio Theatre Green Dolphin Street Marianne Patourel [56]

Stage

Year(s) Title Role(s) Notes Ref.
1971 Forty Carats Ann Stanley Touring performance [18]
1975 The Pleasure of His Company Jessica Anne Poole Single performance; Arlington Park Theater, Chicago [57]
1978 Divorce Me, Darling Amelia Conway Performances at Drury Lane Theatre, Chicago[58] [59]
1976–78 Bell, Book and Candle Gillian Holroyd Touring performance; co-starring with Patrick Horgan[19] [60]
1980–82 Murder Among Friends Angela Forrester Touring performance[61] [62]

Awards and nominations

Award Category Year Nominated work(s) Outcome Ref.
Academy Awards Best Actress in a Leading Role 1958 Peyton Place Nominated [14]
David di Donatello Best Foreign Actress 1966 Madame X Won [17]
Donostia Awards Lifetime Achievement 1994 – Won [63]
Laurel Awards Top Female Dramatic Performance 1958 Peyton Place 4th place [64]
Top Female Star 1959 – 9th place [65]
1960 – 13th place [66]
1961 – 9th place [66]
Best Actress 1966 Madame X 5th place [66]
Medalla Sitges Best Actress 1975 Persecution Won [67]

Notes

  1. ↑ Uncredited role
  2. ↑ Scenes deleted
  3. ↑ Uncredited role
  4. ↑ Cameo role
  5. ↑ In this film, she plays a character known by different names.
  6. ↑ Uncredited role

References

  1. ↑ Wayne 2003, p. 165.
  2. ↑ Morella & Epstein 1971, p. 35.
  3. ↑ Langer 2001, event occurs at 17:10.
  4. ↑ Wayne 2003, p. 174.
  5. ↑ MacPherson, Virginia (October 12, 1946). "Heavy Drama Her Dish Now, Says Lana". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, New York. p. 11. Archived from the original on November 6, 2018. Retrieved March 11, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ Langer 2001, event occurs at 38:45.
  7. 1 2 Fear Paints a Picture. Suspense. CBS Radio. May 3, 1945. Event occurs at 0:22 – via Internet Archive.
  8. 1 2 Heyer 2005, p. 182.
  9. ↑ Morella & Epstein 1971, pp. 132–133.
  10. ↑ McKay 2012, p. 119.
  11. ↑ Crowther, Bosley (September 9, 1954). "The Screen in Review; 'Betrayed,' War Story, Opens at the State". The New York Times. p. 36. Archived from the original on November 16, 2018. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
  12. ↑ Morella & Epstein 1971, p. 161.
  13. ↑ Morella & Epstein 1971, p. 162.
  14. 1 2 3 Kashner & MacNair 2002, p. 254.
  15. ↑ Langer 2001, event occurs at 1:08:25.
  16. ↑ Kashner & MacNair 2002, p. 267.
  17. 1 2 Valentino 1976, p. 251.
  18. 1 2 Morella & Epstein 1971, p. 289.
  19. 1 2 Shearer, Lloyd (August 28, 1977). "Lana's Lectures". San Bernardino Sun. San Bernardino, California. p. 113. Archived from the original on August 26, 2018. Retrieved August 25, 2018 – via California Digital Newspaper Collection.
  20. ↑ Gritten, David (October 18, 1982). "Falcon Crest Soars". People. 18 (16). Archived from the original on May 29, 2018. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  21. ↑ Greene 2018, p. 127.
  22. 1 2 3 4 Jordan 2009, p. 247.
  23. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Jordan 2009, p. 221.
  24. 1 2 3 Fischer 1991, p. 188.
  25. 1 2 Wayne 2003, p. 168.
  26. ↑ Wayne 2003, p. 169.
  27. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Wayne 2003, p. 196.
  28. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Wayne 2003, p. 197.
  29. ↑ Fischer 1991, p. 202.
  30. ↑ Wayne 2003, p. 183.
  31. ↑ Wayne 2003, p. 185.
  32. 1 2 Wayne 2003, p. 187.
  33. 1 2 Wayne 2003, p. 188.
  34. ↑ Wayne 2003, p. 189.
  35. ↑ Basinger 1976, p. 134.
  36. ↑ Jordan 2009, p. 218.
  37. 1 2 "Lana Turner Credits". TV Guide. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  38. ↑ Parsons, Louella (March 28, 1940). "Lana Turner Given Three Weeks Vacation For Trip to New York With Artie Shaw". The Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. p. 16. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved March 11, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  39. ↑ Shearer 2010, p. 130.
  40. ↑ Parsons, Louella (December 5, 1940). "Clark Gable, Lana Turner Form M-G-M Oomph Team". The Courier. Waterloo, Iowa. p. 19. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved March 11, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  41. ↑ Thomas, Bob (December 5, 1947). "Allyson, Heflin To Star In MGM's 'Bedeviled'". The Miami News. Miami, Florida. Associated Press. p. 10-A. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved March 11, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  42. ↑ Barton 2010, p. 169.
  43. ↑ Morella & Epstein 1971, p. 223.
  44. ↑ Parsons, Louella (July 16, 1959). "Lana Turner To Star As Mother Of Utrillo". The Indianapolis Star. Indianapolis, Indiana. p. 19. Archived from the original on July 27, 2018. Retrieved July 27, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  45. ↑ "Return of Lana". Star-Gazette. Elmira, New York. May 6, 1967. p. 20. Archived from the original on September 3, 2019. Retrieved September 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  46. ↑ Basinger 1976, p. 136.
  47. ↑ Parish 1978, p. 447.
  48. ↑ "Lana Turner to Appear On CBS's 'Falcon Crest'". The New York Times. December 26, 1981. Archived from the original on March 21, 2017. Retrieved March 21, 2017.
  49. ↑ Grams 2000, p. 300.
  50. ↑ Billips & Pierce 1995, p. 251.
  51. ↑ Pitts 2015, p. 78.
  52. ↑ Clements & Weber 1996, p. 163.
  53. 1 2 Valentino 1976, p. 267.
  54. ↑ Basinger 1976, p. 62.
  55. ↑ Turner, Lana; Hope, Bob (April 13, 1948). The Bob Hope Show (Radio broadcast). NBC.
  56. ↑ Billips & Pierce 1995, p. 415.
  57. ↑ Valentino 1976, p. 284.
  58. ↑ "This Weekend in Chicago". The Pantagraph. Chicago. December 14, 1978. p. 11. Archived from the original on July 18, 2018. Retrieved August 25, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  59. ↑ Christiansen, Richard (November 3, 1978). "Lana Turner in 'Divorce' Entertains Just Being Lana". Chicago Tribune. p. 39. Archived from the original on July 19, 2018. Retrieved August 25, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  60. ↑ Gussow, Mel (July 22, 1977). "Along the Straw-Hat Trail". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 24, 2018. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
  61. ↑ Blank, Ed (May 30, 1982). "Lana Turner: Still All Glamour". The Pittsburgh Press. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. p. 69. Archived from the original on July 18, 2018. Retrieved August 25, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  62. ↑ Chambers, Andrea; Adelson, Suzanne (November 8, 1982). "Lana Turner". People. 18 (19). Archived from the original on December 3, 2013.
  63. ↑ Wayne 2003, p. 194.
  64. ↑ O'Neil 2003, p. 205.
  65. ↑ Wedman, Les (October 16, 1959). "Laurel Awards Announced". The Province. Vancouver, British Columbia. p. 35. Archived from the original on September 3, 2019. Retrieved September 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  66. 1 2 3 "Awards". Official Licensing Website of Lana Turner. CMG Worldwide. Archived from the original on December 16, 2017. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  67. ↑ "Dossier de Presma" (PDF). Sitges Film Festival. p. 15. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 3, 2019. Retrieved September 3, 2019.

Sources

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  • Billips, Connie J.; Pierce, Arthur (1995). Lux Presents Hollywood: A Show-by-Show History of the Lux Radio Theatre and the Lux Video Theatre, 1934–1957. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-0-899-50938-9.
  • Clements, Cynthia; Weber, Sandra (1996). George Burns and Gracie Allen: A Bio-Bibliography. Vol. 72. New York: Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-26883-0.
  • Fischer, Lucy (ed). (1991). Imitation of Life. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press. ISBN 0-8135-1644-7.
  • Grams, Martin (2000). Radio Drama: A Comprehensive Chronicle of American Network Programs, 1932–1962. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-0-786-40051-5.
  • Greene, Heather (2018). Bell, Book and Camera: A Critical History of Witches in American Film and Television. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-1-476-63206-3.
  • Heyer, Paul (2005). The Medium and the Magician: Orson Welles, the Radio Years, 1934–1952. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman and Littlefield. ISBN 978-0-742-53797-2.
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  • Kashner, Sam; MacNair, Jennifer (2002). The Bad & the Beautiful: Hollywood in the Fifties. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. ISBN 978-0-393-32436-5.
  • Langer, Carole (dir.) (2001). Lana Turner ... a Daughter's Memoir (Documentary). Turner Classic Movies.
  • McKay, James (2012). The Films of Victor Mature. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-0-786-44970-5.
  • Morella, Joe; Epstein, Edward Z. (1971). Lana: The Public and Private Lives of Miss Turner. New York: Citadel Press. ISBN 0-8065-0226-6.
  • O'Neil, Thomas (2003). Movie Awards: The Ultimate, Unofficial Guide to the Oscars, Golden Globes, Critics, Guild & Indie Honors. New York: Perigee Book. ISBN 978-0-399-52922-1.
  • Parish, James Robert (1978). The Hollywood Beauties. New York: Arlington House. ISBN 978-0-87000-412-4.
  • Pitts, Michael R. (2015). RKO Radio Pictures Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Films, 1929–1956. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-1-476-61683-4.
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  • Wayne, Jane Ellen (2003). The Golden Girls of MGM: Greta Garbo, Joan Crawford, Lana Turner, Judy Garland, Ava Gardner, Grace Kelly and Others. New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers. ISBN 0-7867-1303-8.

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