Betty Grable

Ruth Elizabeth "Betty" Grable (December 18, 1916 – July 3, 1973) was an American actress, singer, and pin-up girl whose famous bathing-suit poster was an icon of the World War II era.

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Born in Saint Louis, Missouri to John C. Grable (the son of German and Dutch immigrants) and Lillian Hoffman (who was of Dutch, Irish and English descent), she was propelled into acting by her mother, who insisted that one of her daughters become a star. For her first role, as a chorus girl in the film Happy Days (1929), Grable was only 12 years old (legally underage for acting), but because the chorus line performed in blackface, it was impossible to tell how old she was. For her next film, her mother tried to get her to sign a contract using false ID, but when this was discovered Grable was fired. Grable finally obtained a role as a 'Goldwyn Girl' in Whoopee!, starring Eddie Cantor, and had played in some 20 films by 1939, including the Academy Award-nominated The Gay Divorcee, starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

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In 1937 she married another famous former child-actor, Jackie Coogan, but Coogan was under considerable stress from a lawsuit against his parents over his earnings, and the couple divorced in 1940.

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The same year that she divorced Coogan, Grable obtained a contract with 20th Century Fox, becoming their top star throughout the decade, with splashy technicolor films such as Down Argentine Way, Springtime in the Rockies, Moon Over Miami, Coney Island, and Pin Up Girl. It was during her reign as box-office champ that Grable posed for her famous pin-up photo, which soon became escapist fare among GIs fighting overseas in World War II. It has become one of the most iconic images of the war. This pin-up poster was featured in the movie Stalag 17.

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In 1943 she married jazz trumpeter and big band leader Harry James, by whom she had 2 children; they divorced in 1965.

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Grable's later career was marked by feuds with studio heads, who worked her to exhaustion. At one point, in the middle of a fight with Darryl F. Zanuck, she tore up her contract with him and stormed out of his office. Gradually leaving movies entirely, she made the transition to television and starred in Las Vegas.

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Betty Grable died of lung cancer at the age of 56 and was buried in the Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.

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December 18: December 18 is the 352nd day of the year (353rd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 13 days remaining....

1916: 1916 is a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar)...

July 3: July 3 is the 184th day of the year (185th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 181 days remaining....

Betty Grable related Images and Photos (experimental)

Betty Grable	Betty Grable Print	Betty Grable Print	Betty Grable and Carmen Miranda Print
Betty Grable World War II Pin-Up Picture 1943	The Nitwits Betty Grable 1935	Diamond Horseshoe Betty Grable Dick Haymes Phil Silvers 1945	Down Argentine Way Betty Grable Don Ameche Carmen Miranda 1940
Pin-Up Girl Betty Grable John Harvey Joe E. Brown Martha Raye Charlie Spivak 1944	Moon over Miami Betty Grable 1941	Footlight Serenade John Payne Betty Grable Victor Mature 1942	Footlight Serenade John Payne Betty Grable Victor Mature on Window Card 1942