Dorothy Lamour

Lamour's birth name was Mary Leta Dorothy Slaton; Lamour came from the name of her step-father. After winning the title of Miss New Orleans in a beauty pageant she moved to Chicago, Illinois in 1931, hoping to become a professional singer. She got a job singing with the band of Herbie Kay[?], who became her first husband. She also sang on the popular Rudy Vallee radio show.

In 1936 she moved to Hollywood and began appearing regularly in films for Paramount Pictures, first in bit parts. The role that made her a star was Ulah (a sort of female Tarzan) in The Jungle Princess[?] (1936). She wore a sarong[?], which would become associeated with her, and captivated many viewers with her sensuous exotic attractive appearance. While she first achieved stardom as a sex symbol, Lamour also showed talent as both a comic and dramatic actress.

She appeared in a series of "Road" pictures with Bing Crosby and Bob Hope in the 1940s and 1950s.

Some of Dorothy Lamour's other notable films include The Hurricane (1937), Disputed Passage[?] (1939), Beyond the Blue Horizon[?] (1942), Dixie (1943), and On Our Merry Way[?] (1948).

Dororthy Lamour died at her home in North Hollywood at the age of 81.

Quotes

• "Glamour is just sex that got civilized."