Lucille Lund
Encyclopedia
Lucille Lund was an American film actress of the 1930s.
to Oluf and Laura (Skjelkvale) Lund, and was of Norwegian descent. She began her theatrical career as a child doing play extracts and readings. After leaving school she joined a stock company, the Henry Duffy Players, and toured up and down the Pacific Coast. She then studied drama at Northwestern University
in Chicago
. Lund studied drama
while attending Northwestern University.
contract as a prize. Her first film was Horseplay in 1933, in which she had a minor role, with her first noticeable film being opposite Robert Young
in the 1933 movie Saturday's Millions.
In 1934 she starred in six films. That year she starred in The Black Cat
, a horror film starring Boris Karloff
and Bela Lugosi
. She also starred in the lead role opposite Reb Russell
in Range Warfare, and would be named a "WAMPAS Baby Star
". Of the thirteen girls selected that year to be "WAMPAS Baby Stars", only four would see any success as actresses. It was the last year that "WAMPAS" selected actresses for that title.
Lund had roles in twenty-one films from 1935 through 1939, many of which were B-movies. Of her last four films, however, she was uncredited in three. She married Kenneth Higgins, and would continue acting in commercials
well into her 50s.
, Muriel Evans
and Miriam Seegar
, in addition to Lund and others. The documentary searched into Hollywood's early beginnings, and its pioneers. It would be Lund's last on-camera work. She died at her home in Rolling Hills, California
in 2002, aged 88.
Background
Lucille Lund was born in Buckley, WashingtonBuckley, Washington
Buckley is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. The population was 4,354 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Buckley is located at near the communities of Enumclaw, Bonney Lake, and Wilkeson....
to Oluf and Laura (Skjelkvale) Lund, and was of Norwegian descent. She began her theatrical career as a child doing play extracts and readings. After leaving school she joined a stock company, the Henry Duffy Players, and toured up and down the Pacific Coast. She then studied drama at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. Lund studied drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
while attending Northwestern University.
Career
In 1933 she won a nationwide contest, "The Most Beautiful College Coed", which included a small Universal PicturesUniversal Pictures
-1920:* White Youth* The Flaming Disc* Am I Dreaming?* The Dragon's Net* The Adorable Savage* Putting It Over* The Line Runners-1921:* The Fire Eater* A Battle of Wits* Dream Girl* The Millionaire...
contract as a prize. Her first film was Horseplay in 1933, in which she had a minor role, with her first noticeable film being opposite Robert Young
Robert Young (actor)
Robert George Young was an American television, film, and radio actor, best known for his leading roles as Jim Anderson, the father of Father Knows Best and as physician Marcus Welby in Marcus Welby, M.D. .-Early life:Born in Chicago, Illinois, Young was the son of an Irish immigrant father...
in the 1933 movie Saturday's Millions.
In 1934 she starred in six films. That year she starred in The Black Cat
The Black Cat (1934 film)
The Black Cat is a 1934 horror film that became Universal Pictures' biggest box office hit of the year. It was the first of eight movies to pair actors Béla Lugosi and Boris Karloff. Edgar G. Ulmer directed the film; Peter Ruric wrote the screenplay...
, a horror film starring Boris Karloff
Boris Karloff
William Henry Pratt , better known by his stage name Boris Karloff, was an English actor.Karloff is best remembered for his roles in horror films and his portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in Frankenstein , Bride of Frankenstein , and Son of Frankenstein...
and Bela Lugosi
Béla Lugosi
Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó , commonly known as Bela Lugosi, was a Hungarian actor of stage and screen. He was best known for having played Count Dracula in the Broadway play and subsequent film version, as well as having starred in several of Ed Wood's low budget films in the last years of his...
. She also starred in the lead role opposite Reb Russell
Reb Russell
Ewell Albert "Reb" Russell was a Major League Baseball player for the Chicago White Sox and the Pittsburgh Pirates....
in Range Warfare, and would be named a "WAMPAS Baby Star
WAMPAS Baby Stars
The WAMPAS Baby Stars was a promotional campaign sponsored by the Western Association of Motion Picture Advertisers in the United States which honored thirteen young women each year whom they believed to be on the threshold of movie stardom. They were selected from 1922 to 1934, and annual...
". Of the thirteen girls selected that year to be "WAMPAS Baby Stars", only four would see any success as actresses. It was the last year that "WAMPAS" selected actresses for that title.
Lund had roles in twenty-one films from 1935 through 1939, many of which were B-movies. Of her last four films, however, she was uncredited in three. She married Kenneth Higgins, and would continue acting in commercials
Television advertisement
A television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
well into her 50s.
Later years
In 1997 she took part in the documentary Lugosi: Hollywood's Dracula, about the life and career of Bela Lugosi. In 2000 Lund took part in the documentary I Used to be in Pictures, which featured many actresses from the early years of Hollywood, which included Beverly RobertsBeverly Roberts
Beverly Roberts was an American film and stage actress of the 1930s, and entertainment business executive through the 1970s.-Career:...
, Muriel Evans
Muriel Evans
Muriel Evans was an American film actress. She is best known for her many appearances in popular westerns of the 1930s for which she won a Golden Boot Award.-Early life and career:...
and Miriam Seegar
Miriam Seegar
Miriam Seegar Whelan , was an American silent film actress.-Early Life:Born in Greentown, Indiana, Her parents were teachers. She was one of four daughters. Her father later opened up a hardware store but died when Miriam was 14. The third of four talented sisters: Dr...
, in addition to Lund and others. The documentary searched into Hollywood's early beginnings, and its pioneers. It would be Lund's last on-camera work. She died at her home in Rolling Hills, California
Rolling Hills, California
Rolling Hills is a city in the Palos Verdes Hills, in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 1,860, down from 1,871 at the 2000 census...
in 2002, aged 88.