[183] She also received critical acclaim, with Variety noting that "Turner looks elegant" and "registers strongly",[184] and, for the first and only time, she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress. The project was shelved for several months, and Turner told journalists in December 1949: "Everybody agrees that the script is still a pile of junk. "[320], According to her daughter, Turner's obsessive attention to detail often resulted in dressmakers storming out during dress fittings. Birth. [268], In the early 1970s, Turner transitioned to theater, beginning with a production of Forty Carats, which toured various East Coast cities in 1971. [153] The following year, she began filming her second musical, The Merry Widow. [61] Turner's onscreen sex appeal in the film was reflected by a review in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in which she was characterized as "the answer to 'oomph'". [178][179] According to Cheryl, Turner confronted Barker before forcing him out of their home at gunpoint. Search above to list available cemeteries. In 1992, Turner was diagnosed with throat cancer and died of the disease three years later at age 74. [255] According to Turner, Pellar (also known as Ronald Dante or Dr. Dante)[256] falsely claimed to have been raised in Singapore and to have a Ph.D. in psychology. [212], Though Turner and her daughter were exonerated of any wrongdoing, public opinion on the event was varied, with numerous publications intimating that Turner's testimony at the inquest was a performance; Life magazine published a photo of Turner testifying in court along with stills of her in courtroom scenes from three of her films. Mildred was four days shy of her 17th birthday when she gave birth to her only child. [104][105], Meanwhile, publicity over Turner's remarriage to Crane led MGM to play up her image as a sex symbol in the comedy Slightly Dangerous (1943), with Robert Young, Walter Brennan and Dame May Whitty, in which she portrayed a woman who moves to New York City and poses as the long-lost daughter of a millionaire. 29 Jun 1995 (aged 74) Century City, Los Angeles County, California, USA. [29] Following her father's death, Turner lived for a period in Modesto with a family who physically abused her and "treated her like a servant". Year should not be greater than current year. [101] Though she wanted multiple children, Turner had Rh-negative blood, which caused fetal anemia and made it difficult to carry a child to term. [198][199] Stompanato got wind of the plan and showed up on the set with a gun, threatening her and Connery. Oops, we were unable to send the email. You may not upload any more photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 20 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 5 photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 30 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 15 photos to this memorial. [160] 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. [60] She was then cast in a supporting part as a "sympathetic bad girl" in Calling Dr. Kildare (1939), MGM's second entry in the Dr. Kildare series. "[162] 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. lana turner stompanato homicide johnny hollywood death lineup mysteries newsletter want sign real [275] During rehearsals, a stagehand told reporters that Turner was "the hardest working broad I've known". No one who adored her in movies would be disappointed to meet her in the flesh. To use this feature, use a newer browser. There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery. [120][121] The film was produced by Carey Wilson, who insisted on casting Turner based on her performance in The Postman Always Rings Twice. cities. [181] The film, directed by Mark Robson, was adapted from Grace Metalious' best-selling novel of the same name. [175] Turner gleefully told a reporter at the time that she was "walking around in a daze. [42] In December 1936, Marx introduced Turner to film director Mervyn LeRoy, who signed her to a $50 weekly contract with Warner Bros. on February 22, 1937 ($942 in 2021 dollars [43]). Are you sure that you want to delete this photo? [252] In April 1969,[253] Turner filed for divorce from Eaton after four years of marriage upon discovering he had been unfaithful to her. Born to working-class parents in northern Idaho, Turner spent her childhood there before her family relocated to California. "[265] 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. [276] Richard Christiansen of the Chicago Tribune praised her performance, writing that, "though she is still a very nervous and inexpert actress, she is giving by far her most winning performance".

Turner, who disclosed in May 1992 that she had been treated for throat cancer, died at her Century City home with her daughter Cheryl Crane at her side, police Officer Sonia Monaco said. [28] They also frequently moved, for a time living in Sacramento and throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. She willed the majority of her estate left to Carmen Lopez Cruz, her maid for 45 years. [234][235] Ray Duncan of the Independent Star-News wrote that Turner "suffers prettily through it all, like a fashion model with a tight-fitting shoe". [213] 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. Turner is frequently cited as a popular culture icon of Hollywood glamour and a screen legend of classical Hollywood cinema.[4]. [155], Turner's next project was opposite Kirk Douglas in Vincente Minnelli's The Bad and the Beautiful (1952), a drama focusing on the rise and fall of a Hollywood film mogul, in which Turner portrayed an alcoholic movie star. She appeared in five roles on stage from 1971 to 1982. Lana's cause of death was throat cancer. [79] While the film was financially successful at the box office,[80] Time magazine panned it, calling it "a pretentious resurrection of Robert Louis Stevenson's ghoulish classic As for Lana Turner, fully clad for a change, and the rest of the cast they are as wooden as their roles. "[249] The role earned Turner a David di Donatello Golden Plaque Award for Best Foreign Actress that year. [161] 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. [187] 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". cemeteries found within miles of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. Flowers added to the memorial appear on the bottom of the memorial or here on the Flowers tab. [42] Placing first, she did receive a couple of European awards. [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. [52] Warner obliged, as he believed Turner would not "amount to anything". [327] While discussions surrounding Turner have largely been based on her cultural prevalence, little scholarly study has been undertaken on her career,[328] and opinion of her legacy as an actress has divided critics. With Steven Crane, she had a daughter Cheryl Crane in 1943. [91] In June 1942, she embarked on a 10-week war-bond tour throughout the western United States with Gable. As manager of this memorial you can add or update the memorial using the Edit button below. Some sources claim Turner's birth name to be Julia Jean Mildred Frances Turner. She published her autobiography, "Lana: The Lady, The Legend, The Truth" in 1982. Are you sure that you want to report this flower to administrators as offensive or abusive? She is the vamp of today as Theda Bara was of yesterday. Death. 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". [306] Film historian Jeanine Basinger notes that she "represented the girl who'd rather sit on the diving board to show off her figure than get wet in the water the girl who'd rather kiss than kibbitz". [269] A review in The Philadelphia Inquirer noted: "Miss Turner always could wear clothes well, and her Forty Carats is a fashion show in the guise of a frothy, little comedy. [280] In 1980, Turner made her final feature-film appearance alongside Teri Garr in the comedy horror film Witches' Brew. The email does not appear to be a valid email address. [102][103] Turner was urged by doctors to undergo a therapeutic abortion to avoid potentially life-threatening complications, but she managed to carry the child to term. However, she doesn't look like a vamp. [315] Columnist Dorothy Kilgallen took note of the intersections between Turner's life and screen persona early in her career, writing in 1946: Lana Turner is a super-star for many reasons but chiefly because she is the same off-screen as she is on. In the suit, Stompanato's son alleged that Turner had been responsible for his death, and that her daughter had taken the blame. [22] At age three, she performed an impromptu dance routine at a charity fashion show in which her mother was modeling. [153] She was saved by her business manager, Benton Cole, who broke down the bathroom door and called emergency medical services. The same year, she had what she referred to as a "religious awakening", and again began practicing her Catholic faith. [306], By the 1950s, both critics and audiences began noting parallels between Turner's rocky personal life and the roles she played. We have set your language to Family members linked to this person will appear here. If you have questions, please contact [emailprotected]. Biography - A Short Wiki Failed to delete memorial. [250], In late 1968, she began filming the low-budget thriller The Big Cube, in which she portrayed a glamorous heiress being dosed with LSD by her stepdaughter in hopes of driving her insane and receiving the family estate. 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. [238][216] 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. Try again later. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. [96], In July 1942,[97] Turner met her second husband, actor-turned-restaurateur Joseph Stephen "Steve" Crane, at a dinner party in Los Angeles. [68] In the spring of 1940, after the two had divorced, Turner discovered she was pregnant and had an abortion. The studio recast Turner in the smaller role, though she was still given top billing. [260] Pellar denied the accusations and no charges were filed against him. Turner on her representation in press[304], When Turner was discovered, MGM executive Mervyn LeRoy envisioned her as a replacement for the recently deceased Jean Harlow and began developing her image as a sex symbol. [60] Upon completing Dramatic School, Turner screen-tested for the role of Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the Wind (1939). [345] Turner has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6241 Hollywood Boulevard. You are nearing the transfer limit for memorials managed by Find a Grave. WebLana Turner ( born Julia Jean Turner; February 8, 1921 June 29, 1995) was an American actress. During the early 1940s, Turner established herself as a leading lady and one of MGM's top stars, appearing in such films as the film noir Johnny Eager (1941); the musical Ziegfeld Girl (1941); the horror film Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941); and the romantic war drama Somewhere I'll Find You (1942), one of several films in which she starred opposite Clark Gable. [193][194] Turner would also claim that on one occasion he drugged her and took nude photographs of her while unconscious, potentially to use as blackmail. Mervyn LeRoy on Turner during her first audition, December 1936[34], Turner's discovery is considered a show-business legend and part of Hollywood mythology among film and popular cultural historians. "[38] With her mother's permission, Turner was referred by Wilkerson to the actor/comedian/talent agent Zeppo Marx. 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