Jane Greer

• Name — Jane Greer • Birth Name — Bettejane Greer • Born — 9 September 1924 • Birthplace — Washington, D.C., U.S. • Died — 24 August 2001 • Place of death — Los Angeles, California, U.S. • Resting Place — Westwood Memorial Park • Awards — Hollywood Walk of Fame • Known for — Out of the Past • Occupation — Actress • Children — 3, including Lawrence Lasker • Years Active — 1945–1996 • Partner — Frank London (1965–2001; his death)

Greer was born in Washington, D.C., the daughter of Charles Durell McClellan Greer Jr. and his wife, Bettie. She had a twin brother Donn, who became an actor and director starting in 1951, after getting out of the service when World War II ended. In 1940, at age 15, Greer suffered from a facial palsy, which paralyzed the left side of her face. She recovered, but the condition may have contributed to her "patented look" and "a calm, quizzical gaze and an enigmatic expression that would later lead RKO to promote her as 'The Woman with the Mona Lisa Smile'." She claimed that the facial exercises used to overcome the paralysis taught her the importance of facial expression in conveying human emotion. On December 4, 1945, Greer had her name legally changed to Jane Greer by a court in Los Angeles. She said of her previous name: "Mine is a sissy name. It's too bo-peepish, ingenueish, for the type of role I've been playing. It's like Mary Lou or Mary Ann."

A beauty-contest winner and professional model from her teens, Greer began her show-business career as a big-band singer. She sang in Washington, D.C., with the orchestra of Enric Madriguera. She "sang phonetically in Spanish" with the group.

• Illustration — With Robert Mitchum in Out of the Past Greer's noteworthy roles in television included guest appearances on episodes of numerous shows over the decades, such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Bonanza, Quincy, M.E., Murder, She Wrote, and a 1975 role with Peter Falk and Robert Vaughn in an episode of Columbo titled Troubled Waters. She even got to make fun of Out of the Past in a parody with Robert Mitchum on TV's Saturday Night Live in 1987. Greer joined the casts of Falcon Crest in 1984 and Twin Peaks in 1990 in recurring roles until her retirement in 1996.

Greer was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1634 Vine Street for her contributions to the motion picture industry. The star was dedicated on February 8, 1960.

Greer married Rudy Vallée on December 2, 1943, in Hollywood, but they separated after three months and divorced on July 27, 1944. On August 20, 1947, Greer married Edward Lasker, a Los Angeles lawyer and businessman, with whom she had three sons: Alex, a screenwriter and author, Lawrence, a movie producer (WarGames, Sneakers), and Steven, a two time Grammy Award winner. Greer and Lasker divorced in 1963. Frank London (an actor and dialogue coach) was Greer's domestic partner from 1965 until his death in 2001, six months before Greer died. Greer was Catholic. Greer died of cancer on August 24, 2001, at the age of 76, in Bel Air, Los Angeles.

• Year — Film — Role — Director — Notes • 1945 — Pan-Americana — Miss Downing — John H. Auer — Uncredited • Two O'Clock Courage — Helen Carter — Anthony Mann — as Bettejane Greer • George White's Scandals — Billie Randall — Felix E. Feist — as Bettejane Greer • Dick Tracy — Judith Owens — William A. Berke • 1946 — The Falcon's Alibi — Lola Carpenter — Ray McCarey • Sunset Pass — Lolita Baxter — William Berke • The Bamboo Blonde — Eileen Sawyer — Anthony Mann • 1947 — Sinbad the Sailor — Pirouze — Richard Wallace • They Won't Believe Me — Janice Bell — Irving Pichel • Out of the Past — Kathie Moffat — Jacques Tourneur • 1948 — Station West — Charlie — Sidney Lanfield • 1949 — The Big Steal — Joan Graham — Don Siegel • 1951 — The Company She Keeps — Diane Stuart — John Cromwell • You're in the Navy Now — Ellie C. Harkness — Henry Hathaway • 1952 — You for Me — Katie McDermad — Don Weis • The Prisoner of Zenda — Antoinette de Mauban — Richard Thorpe • Desperate Search — Julie Heldon — Joseph H. Lewis • 1953 — The Clown — Paula Henderson — Robert Z. Leonard • Down Among the Sheltering Palms — Diana Forrester — Edmund Goulding • 1956 — Run for the Sun — Katherine "Katie" Connors — Roy Boulting • 1957 — Man of a Thousand Faces — Hazel Bennet Chaney — Joseph Pevney • 1964 — Where Love Has Gone — Marian Spicer — Edward Dmytryk • 1965 — Billie — Agnes Carol — Don Weis • 1973 — The Outfit — Alma Macklin — John Flynn • 1979 — A Christmas for Boomer — William Asher — TV movie • 1982 — The Shadow Riders — Ma Traven — Andrew V. McLaglen — TV movie • 1984 — Against All Odds — Mrs. Wyler — Taylor Hackford • 1986 — Just Between Friends — Ruth Chadwick — Allan Burns • 1989 — Immediate Family — Michael's Mother — Jonathan Kaplan • 1996 — Perfect Mate — Mom — Karl Armstrong — Independent film

• The Ford Television Theatre – "Look for Tomorrow" (1953), "One Man Missing (1955)", "Moment of Decision" (1957) • Celebrity Playhouse – "Diamonds in the Sky" (1955) as Nina • Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre – "A Gun for My Bride" (1957), "The Vaunted" (1958), "Stagecoach to Yuma" (1960) • Playhouse 90 – "No Time at All" (1958) as Karen • Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1959) (Season 4 Episode 34: "A True Account") as Mrs. Cannon-Hughes / Ms. Cannon-Hughes / Mrs. Cannon-Hughes-Brett • Bonanza – "The Julia Bulette Story" (1959) as Julia Bulette • Stagecoach West – "High Lonesome" (1960) as Kathleen Kane • Thriller – "Portrait Without a Face" (1961) as Ann Moffat • Burke's Law – "Who Killed My Girl?" (1964) as Lonnie Smith • Columbo – "Troubled Waters" (1975) as Sylvia Danziger • Quincy, M.E. – "The Depth of Beauty" (1979) as Dorrie Larkin • Falcon Crest (1984) as Charlotte Pershing (recurring role, 6 episodes) • The Law & Harry McGraw – "Murder by Landslide" (1987) as Augusta Stillman • Saturday Night Live – "Robert Mitchum/Simply Red" (1987) as Kathy (uncredited) • Murder, She Wrote – "The Last Flight of the Dixie Damsel" (1988) as Bonnie Phelps • Twin Peaks (1990) as Vivian Smythe Niles