Everything about Mamie Van Doren totally explained
Mamie Van Doren (born
February 6,
1931 some sources say
1933) is an
American actress and
sex symbol.
Early life
Van Doren was born
Joan Lucille Olander in
Rowena, South Dakota, the daughter of Warner Carl Olander (
March 30,
1908 -
June 4,
1992) and Lucille Harriet Bennett (
January 21,
1912 -
August 27,
1995). She is of three-quarters
Swedish ancestry; the remainder is mixed English and German. Her mother named her after
Joan Crawford. In 1939, the family moved to
Sioux City, Iowa. In May 1942, they moved to
Los Angeles.
In early 1946, Joan began working as an usher at the
Pantages Theatre in
Hollywood. The following year, she'd a bit part on an early
television show. She also sang with
Ted Fio Rito's band and entered
beauty contests. In the summer of 1949, at age 18, she won the titles "Miss Eight Ball" and "Miss Palm Springs".
Joan was discovered by famed producer
Howard Hughes on the night she was crowned Miss Palm Springs. The pair dated for several years. Hughes launched her career by placing her in several RKO films.
Early career
Hughes provided Van Doren with a bit part in
Jet Pilot at
RKO, which was her
motion picture debut. Her line of
dialogue consisted of one word, "Look!" and she appears uncredited in the film. (
Eddie Cochran did the music for the film). This film was later featured in
Mystery Science Theater 3000's 'Untamed Youth' (1990).
Some of Van Doren's more noteworthy movies include
Teacher's Pet (
1958) at
Paramount,
Born Reckless (1958) at
Warner Bros.,
High School Confidential (1958), and
The Beat Generation (
1959), the latter two at
MGM. But Van Doren was just as well known for her provocative roles. She was in prison for
Girls Town (1959), which provoked censors with a shower scene where audiences could see Van Doren's naked back. As Eve in
The Private Lives of Adam and Eve (1960) she wore only fig leaves, and in other films, like
The Beautiful Legs of Sabrina (1959),
Sex Kittens Go to College (1960) and
Vice Raid (1960) audiences were clued in as to the nature of the films from the titles.
Many of Van Doren's film roles showcased her ample curves, and her on screen wardrobe usually consisted of tight sweaters, low-cut blouses, form-fitting dresses, and daring (for the era) swimsuits. While she and other blonde bombshell contemporaries as
Cleo Moore,
Sheree North and
Diana Dors didn't attain the same level of
superstar status as
Marilyn Monroe, Van Doren did become a very famous star and notable Hollywood sex symbol. Marilyn, Mamie and
Jayne Mansfield were known as the "Three M's."
Personal life
Van Doren has been married five times; sportswear manufacturer Jack Newman (married 1950-divorced 1950), bandleader, composer and actor
Ray Anthony (married 1955-divorced 1961), baseball player Lee Meyers (married 1966-divorced 1967), businessman Ross McClintock (married 1972-divorced 1973) and actor Thomas Dixon (married 1979-present).
She and Anthony had one son, Perry Ray Anthony (born
March 18,
1956).
Van Doren's early 1960s highly publicized on-again off-again engagement to
baseball player
Bo Belinsky broke off for good in 1964. In her tell-all
autobiography, she acknowledged numerous affairs, including ones with
Clark Gable,
Howard Hughes,
Johnny Carson,
Elvis Presley,
Burt Reynolds,
Jack Dempsey,
Steve McQueen,
Johnny Rivers,
Robert Evans,
Eddie Fisher,
Warren Beatty,
Tony Curtis,
Steve Cochran, and
Joe Namath. Claiming fidelity to each lover, of Hollywood life she said, "I don't wear panties anymore - this startles the Hollywood wolves so much they don't know what to pull at, so they leave me alone."
Van Doren also developed a nightclub act and did a lot of live theatre. She performed in stage productions of
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and
Dames at Sea at the
Drury Lane Theatre,
Chicago, and appeared in
Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? and
The Tender Trap at the Arlington Park Theatre.
During the
Vietnam War, she did tours for U.S. troops in
Vietnam, for three months in 1968 and again in 1970. In addition to
USO shows, she visited
hospitals, including the wards of amputees and burn victims that many other celebrities stayed away from.
Van Doren's guest appearances on TV include
The Bob Cummings Show,
The Jack Benny Show,
Fantasy Island,
Burke's Law,
Vega$, and
L.A. Law.
In the 1970s, Van Doren did a nightclub act in
Las Vegas.
Second career in later life
Van Doren's autobiography,
Playing the Field, brought much new attention to the veteran sex symbol and proved to be her biggest media splash in over 25 years. Since the book's publication she's often been interviewed and profiled and has occasionally returned to acting.
At age 60, she underwent
cosmetic surgery. In interviews, she's consistently denied ever having
breast implants. In 2006, Mamie posed for photographs for
Vanity Fair with
Pamela Anderson as part of their annual Hollywood issue.
In 2006 — at age 75 — Van Doren and her husband, Thomas, maintain her popular and controversial web site http://www.mamievandoren.com. Here she sells autographed "nipple prints" and homemade short films starring herself, such as 'A Girl and Her Banana'.
Her contemporary topless and nude photos and outspoken political views have helped create a larger fan base than at any time in her remarkable career, arguably the longest career of any Hollywood sex symbol, with the possible exception of
Mae West, Van Doren's childhood idol.
Van Doren has a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7057 Hollywood Boulevard in
Hollywood.
Filmography
Further Information
Get more info on 'Mamie Van Doren'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://mamie_van_doren.totallyexplained.com">Mamie Van Doren Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
