Diana Lynn
Encyclopedia
Diana Lynn was an American actress.
Born Dolores Marie Loehr in Los Angeles, California
, Lynn was considered a child prodigy
because of her exceptional abilities as a pianist
at an early age, and by the age of 12 was playing with the Los Angeles Junior Symphony Orchestra.
, in There's Magic in Music, when it was decided that she had more potential than she had been allowed to show. Paramount Pictures
changed her name to "Diana Lynn" and began casting her in films that allowed her to show her personality and developed her skills as an actress.
Her comedic scenes with Ginger Rogers
in The Major and the Minor
were well received, and in 1944 she scored an outstanding success in Preston Sturges
' The Miracle of Morgan's Creek
. She appeared in two Henry Aldrich
films, and played writer Emily Kimbrough in two films Our Hearts Were Young and Gay
and Our Hearts Were Growing Up both co-starring Gail Russell
.
After a few more films, she was cast in one of the year's biggest successes, the comedy My Friend Irma
with Marie Wilson
as Irma, and Dean Martin
and Jerry Lewis
in their film debuts. The group reprised their roles for the sequel
My Friend Irma Goes West
. During the 1950s Lynn continued acting in films, and was the female lead in the much lampooned Bedtime for Bonzo
opposite Ronald Reagan
.
newspaper publisher Dorothy Schiff
.
She acted frequently in television guest roles throughout the 1960s. By 1970, she had virtually retired from acting and had relocated to New York, where she was running a travel agency. Paramount offered her a part in a new film, and after some consideration she accepted the offer and moved back to Los Angeles. Before filming started, she suffered a stroke
and died nine days later at age 45. Lynn was interred at the Episcopal Church of the Heavenly Rest in New York, New York.
Diana Lynn has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
: for motion pictures, at 1625 Vine Street
, and for television, at 6350 Hollywood Boulevard
.
is a film producer.
Another daughter, Susan ... aka Daisy Hall http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0355449/ http://www.contactmusic.com/movie-review/treasureisland1999, who bears a striking resemblance to her great-grandfather Jacob Schiff
http://www.123people.co.uk/ext/frm?ti=person%20finder&search_term=daisy%20hall&search_country=GB&st=person%20finder&target_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.geocities.jp%2Fwoodyprojects%2Fcast.htm, is an alumna of the ultra-elite and highly-selective Emma Willard School
for Girls in Troy, New York
, and as an actress herself, has starred in numerous French- and lesser known American-produced films, during the 1980s, '90s and 2000s http://www.123people.co.uk/ext/frm?ti=person%20finder&search_term=daisy%20hall&search_country=GB&st=person%20finder&target_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.blockbuster.com%2Fbrowse%2Fcatalog%2FpersonDetails%2F26241§ion=weblink&wrt_id=226.
Born Dolores Marie Loehr in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, Lynn was considered a child prodigy
Child prodigy
A child prodigy is someone who, at an early age, masters one or more skills far beyond his or her level of maturity. One criterion for classifying prodigies is: a prodigy is a child, typically younger than 18 years old, who is performing at the level of a highly trained adult in a very demanding...
because of her exceptional abilities as a pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
at an early age, and by the age of 12 was playing with the Los Angeles Junior Symphony Orchestra.
Film career
Dolores Loehr made her film debut playing the piano in They Shall Have Music and was once again back at the keyboard, accompanying Susanna FosterSusanna Foster
Suzanne DeLee Flanders Larson was an American film actress best known for her leading role as Christine in the 1943 film version of The Phantom of the Opera....
, in There's Magic in Music, when it was decided that she had more potential than she had been allowed to show. Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
changed her name to "Diana Lynn" and began casting her in films that allowed her to show her personality and developed her skills as an actress.
Her comedic scenes with Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers was an American actress, dancer, and singer who appeared in film, and on stage, radio, and television throughout much of the 20th century....
in The Major and the Minor
The Major and the Minor
The Major and the Minor is a 1942 American comedy film starring Ginger Rogers and Ray Milland. It was the first American film directed by Billy Wilder, and launched his "incomparable" directing career...
were well received, and in 1944 she scored an outstanding success in Preston Sturges
Preston Sturges
Preston Sturges , originally Edmund Preston Biden, was a celebrated playwright, screenwriter and film director born in Chicago, Illinois...
' The Miracle of Morgan's Creek
The Miracle of Morgan's Creek
The Miracle of Morgan's Creek is a 1944 screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, starring Eddie Bracken and Betty Hutton, and featuring Diana Lynn, William Demarest and Porter Hall...
. She appeared in two Henry Aldrich
Henry Aldrich
Henry Aldrich was an English theologian and philosopher.-Life:Aldrich was educated at Westminster School under Dr Richard Busby. In 1662, he entered Christ Church, Oxford, and in 1689 was made Dean in succession to the Roman Catholic John Massey, who had fled to the Continent. In 1692, he...
films, and played writer Emily Kimbrough in two films Our Hearts Were Young and Gay
Our Hearts Were Young and Gay
Our Hearts Were Young and Gay is the title of a book by actress Cornelia Otis Skinner and journalist Emily Kimbrough, published in 1942. The book presents a description of their European tour in the 1920s, when they were fresh out of college from Bryn Mawr. Skinner wrote of Kimbrough, "To know...
and Our Hearts Were Growing Up both co-starring Gail Russell
Gail Russell
Gail Russell was an American film and television actress.-Career:She was born Elizabeth L. Russell to George and Gladys Russell in Chicago, Illinois, and then moved to the Los Angeles, California, area when she was a teenager. Russell's extraordinary beauty brought her to the attention of...
.
After a few more films, she was cast in one of the year's biggest successes, the comedy My Friend Irma
My Friend Irma (film)
My Friend Irma is a comedy film directed by George Marshall and is most notable as the film debut of comedy team Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis...
with Marie Wilson
Marie Wilson (American actress)
Katherine Elisabeth Wilson , better known by her stage name, Marie Wilson, was an American radio, film, and television actress. She may be best remembered as the title character in My Friend Irma.-Career:...
as Irma, and Dean Martin
Dean Martin
Dean Martin was an American singer, film actor, television star and comedian. Martin's hit singles included "Memories Are Made of This", "That's Amore", "Everybody Loves Somebody", "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You", "Sway", "Volare" and "Ain't That a Kick in the Head?"...
and Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis is an American comedian, actor, singer, film producer, screenwriter and film director. He is best known for his slapstick humor in film, television, stage and radio. He was originally paired up with Dean Martin in 1946, forming the famed comedy team of Martin and Lewis...
in their film debuts. The group reprised their roles for the sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
My Friend Irma Goes West
My Friend Irma Goes West
My Friend Irma Goes West is a 1950 film based on the radio show My Friend Irma and featuring the comedy team of Martin and Lewis...
. During the 1950s Lynn continued acting in films, and was the female lead in the much lampooned Bedtime for Bonzo
Bedtime for Bonzo
Bedtime for Bonzo is a 1951 comedy film directed by Fred de Cordova, starring future U.S. President Ronald Reagan. It revolves around the attempts of the central character, Professor Peter Boyd , to teach human morals to a chimpanzee, hoping to solve the "nature versus nurture" question...
opposite Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
.
Early death
A marriage to John C. Lindsay ended in divorce in 1953. Lynn was then married in 1956 to Mortimer Hall, son of New York PostNew York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
newspaper publisher Dorothy Schiff
Dorothy Schiff
Dorothy Schiff was an owner and then publisher of the New York Post for nearly 40 years. She was a granddaughter of financier Jacob H. Schiff...
.
She acted frequently in television guest roles throughout the 1960s. By 1970, she had virtually retired from acting and had relocated to New York, where she was running a travel agency. Paramount offered her a part in a new film, and after some consideration she accepted the offer and moved back to Los Angeles. Before filming started, she suffered a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
and died nine days later at age 45. Lynn was interred at the Episcopal Church of the Heavenly Rest in New York, New York.
Diana Lynn has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
: for motion pictures, at 1625 Vine Street
Vine Street
Vine is a street in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California that runs north-south from Melrose Avenue up past Hollywood Boulevard. The intersection of Hollywood and Vine was once a symbol of Hollywood itself...
, and for television, at 6350 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood Boulevard
-Revitalization:In recent years successful efforts have been made at cleaning up Hollywood Blvd., as the street had gained a reputation for crime and seediness. Central to these efforts was the construction of the Hollywood and Highland shopping center and adjacent Kodak Theatre in 2001...
.
Family
Lynn was survived by her husband, and four young children. Her daughter Dolly HallDolly Hall
Dorothy Theresa "Dolly" Hall is an American film producer.-Career:Hall has produced films including The Wedding Banquet , The Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls in Love , All Over Me , High Art and 54 . In 1998, Variety named Hall as one of their top ten "Producers to Watch"...
is a film producer.
Another daughter, Susan ... aka Daisy Hall http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0355449/ http://www.contactmusic.com/movie-review/treasureisland1999, who bears a striking resemblance to her great-grandfather Jacob Schiff
Jacob Schiff
Jacob Henry Schiff, born Jakob Heinrich Schiff was a German-born Jewish American banker and philanthropist, who helped finance, among many other things, the Japanese military efforts against Tsarist Russia in the Russo-Japanese War.From his base on Wall Street, he was the foremost Jewish leader...
http://www.123people.co.uk/ext/frm?ti=person%20finder&search_term=daisy%20hall&search_country=GB&st=person%20finder&target_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.geocities.jp%2Fwoodyprojects%2Fcast.htm, is an alumna of the ultra-elite and highly-selective Emma Willard School
Emma Willard School
The Emma Willard School, originally called Troy Female Seminary and often referred to simply as "Emma," is an independent university-preparatory day and boarding school for young women, located in Troy, New York on Mount Ida, offering grades 9-12 and postgraduate coursework...
for Girls in Troy, New York
Troy, New York
Troy is a city in the US State of New York and the seat of Rensselaer County. Troy is located on the western edge of Rensselaer County and on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. Troy has close ties to the nearby cities of Albany and Schenectady, forming a region popularly called the Capital...
, and as an actress herself, has starred in numerous French- and lesser known American-produced films, during the 1980s, '90s and 2000s http://www.123people.co.uk/ext/frm?ti=person%20finder&search_term=daisy%20hall&search_country=GB&st=person%20finder&target_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.blockbuster.com%2Fbrowse%2Fcatalog%2FpersonDetails%2F26241§ion=weblink&wrt_id=226.
Filmography
- They Shall Have MusicThey Shall Have MusicThey Shall Have Music is a 1939 musical film starring famed violinist Jascha Heifetz , Joel McCrea, Andrea Leeds, and Gene Reynolds...
(1939) - There's Magic in Music (1941)
- The Major and the MinorThe Major and the MinorThe Major and the Minor is a 1942 American comedy film starring Ginger Rogers and Ray Milland. It was the first American film directed by Billy Wilder, and launched his "incomparable" directing career...
(1942) - Henry Aldrich Gets Glamour (1942)
- Henry Aldrich Plays Cupid (1944)
- The Miracle of Morgan's CreekThe Miracle of Morgan's CreekThe Miracle of Morgan's Creek is a 1944 screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, starring Eddie Bracken and Betty Hutton, and featuring Diana Lynn, William Demarest and Porter Hall...
(1944) - Our Hearts Were Young and GayOur Hearts Were Young and GayOur Hearts Were Young and Gay is the title of a book by actress Cornelia Otis Skinner and journalist Emily Kimbrough, published in 1942. The book presents a description of their European tour in the 1920s, when they were fresh out of college from Bryn Mawr. Skinner wrote of Kimbrough, "To know...
(1944) - And the Angels SingAnd the Angels SingAnd the Angels Sing is a classic example of a film musical written to capitalize on the title of a previously popular song; in this case Benny Goodman's 1939 number one hit song, "And the Angels Sing" by Ziggy Elman and Johnny Mercer, and sung by Martha Tilton although the song is not sung in the...
(1944) - Out of This World (1945)
- The Bride Wore BootsThe Bride Wore BootsThe Bride Wore Boots is a 1946 romantic comedy film with Barbara Stanwyck in the title role, playing opposite Robert Cummings. A very young Natalie Wood is seen in the film, directed by Irving Pichel....
(1946) - Our Hearts Were Growing Up (1946)
- Easy Come, Easy Go (1947)
- RuthlessRuthless (film)Ruthless is a drama film directed by Edgar G. Ulmer and starring Zachary Scott and Louis Hayward.-Plot:Horace Vendig shows himself to the world as a rich philanthropist. In fact, the history of his rise from his unhappy broken home shows this to be far from the case...
(1948) - Texas, Brooklyn and HeavenTexas, Brooklyn and HeavenTexas, Brooklyn and Heaven is a 1948 American romantic comedy film directed by William Castle and starring Guy Madison and Diana Lynn.- Plot :...
(1948) - Every Girl Should Be MarriedEvery Girl Should Be MarriedEvery Girl Should Be Married is a 1948 romantic comedy film starring Cary Grant and Betsy Drake. -Plot summary:...
(1948) - My Friend IrmaMy Friend Irma (film)My Friend Irma is a comedy film directed by George Marshall and is most notable as the film debut of comedy team Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis...
(1949) - Paid in FullPaid in Full (film)Paid in Full is a 2002 American criminal drama film that was produced by Roc-A-Fella Films and directed by Charles Stone III. It takes place in Harlem just before the Crack Epidemic that hit during the 1980s. The title of the film is taken from the 1987 album by Eric B. and Rakim."Paid in Full" is...
(1950) - PeggyPeggy (film)Peggy is a 1916 silent film comedy drama produced and directed by Thomas Ince and starring Billie Burke in her motion picture debut. It is a lost film.-Cast:*Billie Burke as Peggy Cameron*William H. Thompson as Andrew Cameron...
(1950) - My Friend Irma Goes WestMy Friend Irma Goes WestMy Friend Irma Goes West is a 1950 film based on the radio show My Friend Irma and featuring the comedy team of Martin and Lewis...
(1950) - Rogues of Sherwood ForestRogues of Sherwood ForestRogues of Sherwood Forest is a 1950 Technicolor Columbia Pictures film directed by Gordon Douglas and featuring John Derek as Robin the Earl of Huntingdon, the son of Robin Hood, Diana Lynn as Lady Marianne, and the late Alan Hale, Sr...
(1950) - The People Against O'HaraThe People Against O'HaraThe People Against O'Hara is a 1951 film noir based on Eleazar Lipsky's novel. The movie stars Spencer Tracy, Pat O'Brien, and James Arness, and is directed by John Sturges, who also directed the The Great Escape.- Plot :...
(1951) - Bedtime for BonzoBedtime for BonzoBedtime for Bonzo is a 1951 comedy film directed by Fred de Cordova, starring future U.S. President Ronald Reagan. It revolves around the attempts of the central character, Professor Peter Boyd , to teach human morals to a chimpanzee, hoping to solve the "nature versus nurture" question...
(1951) - Meet Me at the Fair (1952)
- Plunder of the SunPlunder of the SunPlunder of the Sun is a 1949 novel by David F. Dodge about a hunt for ancient Peruvian treasure. It was made into a 1953 movie of the same name starring Glenn Ford and relocated to Mexico.-Cast:*Glenn Ford as Al Colby*Diana Lynn as Julie Barnes...
(1953) - Track of the CatTrack of the CatTrack of the Cat is a William A. Wellman film starring Robert Mitchum and Teresa Wright. The film is based on a 1949 adventure novel of the same name by Walter Van Tilburg Clark. This was Wellman's second adaptation of a Clark novel, the first being The Ox-Bow Incident...
(1954) - An Annapolis Story (1955)
- You're Never Too YoungYou're Never Too YoungYou're Never Too Young is a comedy film starring the team of Martin and Lewis, released on August 25, 1955 by Paramount Pictures, and co-starring Diana Lynn, Nina Foch, and Raymond Burr.-Plot:...
(1955) - The KentuckianThe KentuckianThe Kentuckian is a 1955 adventure film directed by Burt Lancaster, who also starred. It also marked the feature film debut of Walter Matthau. The picture is an adaptation of the novel The Gabriel Horn by Felix Holt...
(1955) - Company of Killers (1970)