She was a star of B-movies and film noir; not such a dubious distinction
as many of these films have become classics. She was a blonde bombshell,
voluptuous, demure, seductive and sexy. She was most often cast as a broad,
a moll, assertive, earthy and domineering but could equally as well handle
the role of a more conventional leading lady. She was born Emily Marie Bertelson
on December 11, 1922 in Marysvale, Utah, a small farming community where
her father worked as a mechanic. As a child her grandmother took her to
the movies where she developed a yen for acting. Her parents drove her 30
miles over dirt roads to take acting lessons at age 11. After winning two
local beauty pageants as a teen she attended Brigham Young University in
Utah where she majored in drama. She then headed to Hollywood to study under
Maria Ouspenskaya. One night while working as a cigarette girl at the Mocambo
night club on the Sunset Strip she'd begun crying over the inability to
pay her rent when producer Arthur Hornblow Jr. spotted her and out of sympathy
to her dilemma, offered her an audition for a part in the musical "All-American
Co-Ed." After winning the role and playing other bit parts in films
she headed for New York where she worked as an actor in radio dramas. She
made her Broadway debut in "Follow the Girls" which led to a contract
at MGM. Her films included: "All-American Co-Ed" (1941) her film
debut; "Smart Alecks" (1942) as Nurse; "Chatterbox"
(1943) as Hostess; "Follow the Leader" (1944) as Native Girl in
Dream; "Song of the Thin Man" (1947) as Helen Amboy; "Force
of Evil" (1948) as Edna Tucker; "The Fighting Kentuckian"
(1949) with John Wayne and Oliver Hardy, as Ann Logan; "Outpost in
Morocco" (1949) as Cara; "Hellfire" (1949) as Doll Brown;
"The Showdown" (1950) as Adelaide; "Frenchie" (1950)
as Diane Gorman; "Double Deal" (1950) as Terry Miller; "Dakota
Lil" (1950) as Dakota Lil; "Two Dollar Bettor" (1951) as
Mary Slate; "Little Big Horn" (1951) as Celia Donlin; "Hurricane
Island" (1951) as Jan Bolton; "Outlaw Women" (1952) as Iron
Mae McLeod; "The Jungle" (1952) as Princess Mari; "The Sniper"
(1952) as Jean Darr; one of her more memorable roles in "Narrow Margin"
(1952) as Mrs. Neall; "Trouble Along the Way" (1953) as Anne McCormick;
"City That Never Sleeps" (1953) as Lydia Biddel; one of my favorites
as a youth "Cat Women of the Moon" (1953) as Helen Salinger, Navigator;
"So This is Love" (1953) as Marilyn Montgomery; "The Eddie
Cantor Story" (1953) as Cleo Abbott; "Hell's Half Acre" (1954)
as Rose; "The Bounty Hunter" (1954) as Alice Williams; "Abbott
and Costello Meet the Mummy" (1955) as Madame Rontru; "Swamp Woman"
(1955) as Josie; "The Killing" (1956) as Sherry Peatty; "The
Unholy Wife" (1957) as Gwen; "The Story of Mankind" (1957)
as Josephine; "Day of the Bad Man" (1958) as Cora Johnson; "Island
Woman" (1958) as Elizabeth; "The Day Mars Invaded Earth"
(1962) as Claire Fielding; "Critic's Choice" (1963) with Lucille
Ball, as Sally Orr; "Mail Order Bride" (1964) as Hanna aka Carrie
Bentell; "Bedtime Story" (1964) as Mrs. Sutton; "Chamber
of Horrors" (1966) as Madame Corona; "Support Your Local Gunfighter"
(1971) as Goldie; "Cahill: United States Marshal" (1973) with
John Wayne, as Mrs. Hetty Green, one of her better roles; "The Outfit"
(1974) as Madge Coyle; "Hearts of the West" (1975) as Woman in
Nevada; "Freaky Friday" (1977) as Mrs. Murphy; "Lovely But
Deadly" (1981) as Aunt May and "Commando Squad" (1987) as
Casey, her last film. On TV she was a regular on the series: "Supercarrier"
(1988) as Billie Costello. She also appeared in TV movies including: "Wild
Women" (1970); "Manhunter" (1974) and "Salem's Lot"
(1979). She guest starred on many series including: "Lassie";
"Cheyenne"; "Maverick"; "Perry Mason"; "Yancy
Derringer"; "Rawhide"; "The Rebel"; "Batman";
"Bonanza"; "Gunsmoke"; "Charlie's Angels";
"Simon & Simon" and "Murder, She Wrote." She married
bandleader Ted Steele in 1946 but the marriage was annulled. She later married
Jack R. Hupp in 1954 with whom she had a son and they remained married to
her death. She was active in the Screen Actors Guild and received its Ralph
Morgan Award for 25 years of distinguished service. She died on December
10, 2000 of natural causes in Beverly Hills, California at age 80 one day
short of her 81st birthday.
