Joan Blondell was a beautiful and talented actress whose career spanned over forty years
She was born Rose Joan Blondell on August 30, 1906, in New York City. Her parents were vaudeville entertainers and she began performing with them when she was just a toddler. Their troupe was known as the Bouncing Blondells. The family spent time in Australia, Hawaii, Texas, and California. After graduating from Santa Monica high school she briefly attended North Texas State Teacher's College. In 1926 she won fourth place in the Miss America pageant. The following year she was working at a library when she was brutally raped by a policeman. Soon after she decided to move to New York City to become a fashion model. The lovely blonde starred in the 1930 Broadway show Penny Arcade with James Cagney. Although the play flopped Warner Brothers cast her and Cagney in the movie version, which was renamed Sinner's Holiday. Joan was chosen to be a Wampas Baby Star and was offered a long term contract at Warner Brothers. The studio wanted her to change her name to Inez Holmes but she refused.
She was born Rose Joan Blondell on August 30, 1906, in New York City. Her parents were vaudeville entertainers and she began performing with them when she was just a toddler. Their troupe was known as the Bouncing Blondells. The family spent time in Australia, Hawaii, Texas, and California. After graduating from Santa Monica high school she briefly attended North Texas State Teacher's College. In 1926 she won fourth place in the Miss America pageant. The following year she was working at a library when she was brutally raped by a policeman. Soon after she decided to move to New York City to become a fashion model. The lovely blonde starred in the 1930 Broadway show Penny Arcade with James Cagney. Although the play flopped Warner Brothers cast her and Cagney in the movie version, which was renamed Sinner's Holiday. Joan was chosen to be a Wampas Baby Star and was offered a long term contract at Warner Brothers. The studio wanted her to change her name to Inez Holmes but she refused.
She appeared in the hit pre-code films The Public Enemy, Three On A Match, and Blondie Johnson. The wisecracking characters she played made her very popular with audiences during the depression. Joan co-starred with Glenda Farrell in nine movies including Kansas City Princess and Havana Windows. She married cinematographer George Barnes on January 4, 1933. He didn't want children so during their relationship she had seven abortions! Despite her husband's objections she gave birth to a son named Norman 1934. Joan divorced George in 1936 and married actor Dick Powell. They had a daughter, Pamela Ellen, and Dick adopted her son Norman. The couple worked together in the musicals Dames and Gold Diggers of 1937. During the 1940s she mainly played supporting roles in films like Topper Returns, A Tree Grows In Brooklyn, and Nightmare Alley. She also went on tour with the musical Bye Bye Birdie. Her marriage to Dick ended in 1944 after he fell in love with actress June Allyson. Joan married producer Mike Todd in 1947.
Unfortunately he had a serious gambling problem and became abusive. He once tried to push her out of a window! She divorced Mike in 1950 and filed for bankruptcy. Joan received an Academy Award nomination in 1952 for her performance in the drama The Blue Veil. In 1957 she appeared in the comedy Desk Set and co-starred with Jayne Mansfield in Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter. She became a familiar face on television making guest appearances on The Twilight Zone and The Lucy Show. From 1968 until 1970 she starred in the series Here Comes The Brides and was nominated for two Emmy awards. Joan also wrote a novel called Center Door Fancy which was loosely based on her own experiences in Hollywood. One of her final roles was playing a waitress in the hit 1978 musical Grease. On December 25, 1979 she died from leukemia at the age of seventy-three. She was cremated and buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California. Her son, Norman Powell, has become a successful producer.
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