Jane Frazee
Mary Jane Frehse (July 18, 1915 – September 6, 1985), was an American actress, singer, and dancer.
Also recorded as Mary Jane Frehse
Jane Frazee

Republic Pictures · archive · Public domain
- Name
- Jane Frazee
- Birth Name
- Mary Jane Frehse
- Born
- 18 July 1915
- Birthplace
- Saint Paul, Minnesota, U.S.
- Died
- 6 September 1985
- Place of death
- Newport Beach, California, U.S.
- Occupation
- * Actress
- Spouse
- * Whitey Christensen (m. married 1948; div. divorced 19??)
- Nationality
- United States
- Languages
- English
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
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Documentary summary
Mary Jane Frehse (July 18, 1915 – September 6, 1985), was an American actress, singer, and dancer.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
Jane Frazee (1915–1985) was an American actress, dancer and singer. Born in Duluth, the actress died in Newport Beach. Languages used include English.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 27 September 2026
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wikidata · Q6152241 · wikipedia · Jane Frazee
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Jane Frazee • Birth Name — Mary Jane Frehse • Born — 18 July 1915 • Birthplace — Saint Paul, Minnesota, U.S. • Died — 6 September 1985 • Place of death — Newport Beach, California, U.S. • Occupation — * Actress • singer • dancer • Years Active — 1921–1956 • Spouse — * Whitey Christensen (m. married 1948; div. divorced 19??) • David Hugh Leatherman (m. married 1957; div. divorced 19??) • Children — 1
Professional life
Professional life
Jane, age six, and her 12-year-old sister Ruth formed a singing vaudeville act known as The Frazee Sisters. The act broke up in 1940, when Jane landed a leading role in the B film Melody and Moonlight (1940) for Republic Pictures. Shortly after the film's release she was signed by Universal Pictures and was featured in Buck Privates, the high-grossing 1941 comedy/World War II film starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. The strong impression she made in that film elevated her to leading-lady roles in Universal's popular "B" musicals, usually appearing opposite Robert Paige. She left Universal in late 1942, when she married actor-director Glenn Tryon, who was 16 years her senior. The actress was still very much in demand and returned to Republic for more musicals. She also appeared frequently in budget features for Columbia Pictures. After World War II, most of the larger Hollywood studios curtailed their lower-budget productions and produced fewer features. This affected scores of actors, who sought refuge at the smaller studios that had been making low-budget features all along. Thus, Jane Frazee found steady if unprestigious work at Monogram Pictures and Lippert Pictures, in addition to her Republic duties. This led to the even lower-budgeted and faster-paced fields of westerns and television (including the early series Adventures of Superman, in a small but memorable part as the outspoken rural woman who picks up a dazed Clark Kent in her car in the popular episode, "Panic in the Sky" (1953)). The actress ended her screen career co-starring in short subjects produced by Warner Brothers. These were the popular Joe McDoakes comedies starring George O'Hanlon. The 10-minute shorts were domestic sketches noted for their wild comic exaggeration, and Frazee (who appeared without billing) earned her laughs with excellent comedy timing. The series lapsed in 1956.
Personal life and death
Personal life and death
On May 28, 1942, Frazee married associate producer Glenn Tryon in Yuma, Arizona. They were divorced on April 16, 1947, in Las Vegas, Nevada, and had one son, Timothy. On April 24, 1948, Frazee married Whitey Christensen, a screen double for Roy Rogers, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Frazee died of pneumonia at the Flagship Health Center in Newport Beach, California in 1985, aged 70.
Billed with sister Ruth as The Frazee Sisters
Billed with sister Ruth as The Frazee Sisters
• Captain Blue Blood (1935) • Study and Understudy (1936) • Up in Lights (1938) • Rollin' in Rhythm (1939) • Pharmacy Frolics (1939) • Arcade Varieties (1939) • Swing Styles (1939)
Joe McDoakes short subjects
Joe McDoakes short subjects
Jane Frazee co-starred as Joe's wife Alice, without screen credit: • So You Want to Be Your Own Boss (1954) • So You Want to Go to a Nightclub (1954) • So You're Taking in a Roomer (1954) • So You Want to Know Your Relatives (1954) • So You Don't Trust Your Wife (1955) • So You Want to Be a Gladiator (1955) • So You Want a Model Railroad (1955) • So You Think the Grass is Greener (1956)

L. to R.: Roy Rogers, Jane Frazee, and Andy Devine in Under California Stars (1948) - publicity still (cropped)
Republic Pictures · eBay
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Duluth.
Birth place
Newport Beach.
Death place
Films
• Illustration — Frazee with Roy Rogers and Andy Devine in Under California Stars (1948) • Illustration — Allan Jones and Jane Frazee in When Johnny Comes Marching Home, 1943 • Melody and Moonlight (1940) • Music in the Morgan Manner (1941) (as Herself) • Buck Privates (1941) • Angels with Broken Wings (1941) • San Antonio Rose (1941) • Sing Another Chorus (1941) • Moonlight in Hawaii (1941) • Hellzapoppin (1941) • Don't Get Personal (1942) • What's Cookin'? (1942) • Almost Married (1942) • Moonlight Masquerade (1942) • Get Hep to Love (1942) • Moonlight in Havana (1942) • When Johnny Comes Marching Home (1942) • Hi'ya, Chum (1943) • Keep 'Em Slugging (1943) (in footage from Hi'ya, Chum) • Rhythm of the Islands (1943) • Beautiful but Broke (1944) • Cowboy Canteen (1944) • Rosie the Riveter (1944) • Swing in the Saddle (1944) • Kansas City Kitty (1944) • She's a Sweetheart (1944) • Practically Yours (1944) • The Big Bonanza (1944) • Ten Cents a Dance (1945) • Swingin' on a Rainbow (1945) • George White's Scandals (1945) • A Guy Could Change (1946) • Calendar Girl (1947) • Springtime in the Sierras (1947) • On the Old Spanish Trail (1947) • The Gay Ranchero (1948) • Under California Stars (1948) • Incident (1948) • Grand Canyon Trail (1948) • Last of the Wild Horses (1948) • Rhythm Inn (1951)
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.The New York Times Biography of Jane Frazee
- 2.Jane Frazee Weds Glenn Tryon. News-Pilot. Associated Press. 1. May 29, 1942.
- 3.Divorces. Billboard. 47. May 17, 1947.
- 4.Marriages. Billboard. 54. May 8, 1948.
- 5.Jane Frazee, Movie Actress Appeared in Musicals in 40's. The New York Times. United Press International. B 18. September 9, 1985.
References
Citations
References
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reference work
Partially resolvedreference work
Partially resolved
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 22 September 2026.
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