Brenda Joyce (actress)
Brenda Joyce | |
---|---|
Born | Betty Graftina Leabo February 25, 1917 |
Died | July 4, 2009 Santa Monica, California, U.S. | (aged 92)
Other names | Betty Ward |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 1939–1949 |
Spouse | Owen Ward (1941–1960) (divorced) (3 children) |
Children | 3[3] |
Brenda Joyce (born Betty Graftina Leabo,[
Early life
The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Grafton Leabo,[6] Joyce was born in Excelsior Springs, Missouri, and was known to family and friends as Graftina.[citation needed]
When she was 5 years old, she moved with her mother to
Between her years in college and those in film, Joyce was a model for photographers. She appeared "in current magazines -- in new automobiles, using toothpaste, modeling shoes, smiling her way through the glossy life of a magazine girl."[7]
Film career
Although she appeared in many
Her first four appearances as Jane were opposite Johnny Weissmuller. However, her last performance as Jane, in Tarzan's Magic Fountain (1949), was with Lex Barker as Tarzan. Joyce and Karla Schramm, from the silent era, were the only two actresses to play Jane opposite two different actors playing Tarzan.[citation needed]
She retired from acting in 1949.
Later years
Joyce retired "at the peak of her career to raise a family."[8] Later, as Betty Ward, she became director of the Catholic Re-settlement Office in Monterey, California, and "helped hundreds of refugees find new lives in America."[8]
Personal life
She was married to Owen Ward, whom she had known "since her junior high school days,"[7] from 1941 until their divorce in 1960; they had three children, Pamela Ann, Timothy Owen and Beth Victoria.[citation needed]
Death
Joyce died of pneumonia at age 92[9] on July 4, 2009, in a nursing home in Santa Monica, California.[5]
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1939 | The Rains Came | Fern Simon | |
Here I Am a Stranger | Simpson Daniels | ||
1940 | Little Old New York | Harriet Livingston Fulton | |
Maryland | Linda | ||
Public Deb No. 1 | Penny Cooper | ||
1941 | Private Nurse | Mary Malloy | |
Marry the Boss's Daughter | Fredericka Barrett | ||
1942 | Right to the Heart | Jenny Killian | |
Whispering Ghosts | Elizabeth Woods | ||
The Postman Didn't Ring | Julie Martin | ||
Little Tokyo, U.S.A. | Maris Hanover | ||
1943 | Thumbs Up | Louise Latimer | |
1945 | Tarzan and the Amazons | Jane | |
I'll Tell the World | Lorna Gray | ||
Strange Confession | Mary | ||
The Enchanted Forest | Anne | ||
Pillow of Death | Donna Kincaid | ||
1946 | Tarzan and the Leopard Woman | Jane | |
Little Giant | Miss Ruby Burke | ||
The Spider Woman Strikes Back | Jean Kingsley | ||
Danger Woman | June Spenser | ||
1947 | Tarzan and the Huntress | Jane | |
Stepchild | Dale Bullock | ||
1948 | Tarzan and the Mermaids | Jane | |
Shaggy | Laura Calvin | ||
1949 | Tarzan's Magic Fountain | Jane | (final film role) |
References
- ^ "Brenda Joyce Brenda Joyce, who died on July 4 aged 97, swung to fame opposite Johnny Weissmuller and then Lex Barker as the seventh actress to play Jane in the durable Tarzan series of films". The Daily Telegraph. London. July 24, 2009. Retrieved April 26, 2010.
- ^ "Actress Brenda Joyce Dies - SFScope - Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror". Archived from the original on July 21, 2011. Retrieved October 18, 2009.
- ^ "Brenda Joyce". Archived from the original on August 5, 2019. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
- ^ Other sources indicate 1912 or 1915 as her year of birth. A friend of Joyce's said after her death that she was 92, which would be consistent with a birth year of 1917.
- ^ a b Barnes, Mike (July 17, 2009). "'Tarzan' actress Brenda Joyce dies". Hollywood Reporter.
- ^
- ^
External links
- "Brenda Joyce". Find a Grave. Retrieved August 10, 2010.
- Brenda Joyce at IMDb
- Brenda Joyce at AllMovie
- "'Tarzan' actress Brenda Joyce dies at 92". Associated Press. Retrieved July 23, 2009.