Profile of June Allyson on Famous Like Me

June Allyson (born October 7, 1917) is an American actress, popular in the 1940s and 1950s.

She was born Ella Geisman in the Bronx, New York City to Clara and Robert Geisman (who was of Dutch descent). She was brought up in near-poverty. After a childhood accident, she took up both swimming and dancing as therapy, and made her Broadway chorus-line debut in 1938 in the musical Sing Out the News. After her appearance in Best Foot Forward in 1941, she was selected for the 1943 film version, and followed it up with several other musicals, including Two Sisters from Boston (1946)and Good News (1947). She also played straight roles such as Constance in The Three Musketeers (1948), the tomboy Jo in Little Women (1949), and Glenn Miller's wife in The Glenn Miller Story (1953).

On August 19, 1945, Allyson caused Hollywood studio chiefs some consternation by marrying Dick Powell, who was 13 years her senior and had been previously married to Mildred Maund and Joan Blondell. They had two children, Pamela Allyson Powell (adopted) and Richard Powell, Jr., and remained married until his death on January 2, 1963, which led to Allyson's effective retirement from the screen. Following Powell's death, she went though a bitter court battle with her mother over custody of son Ricky and Pamela. Reports at the time revealed that writer/director Dirk Summers, with whom Allyson was romantically involved from 1963-1975, was named legal guardian for Ricky and Pamela as a result of a court petition.

Members of the nascent jet-set, Allyson and Summers were frequently seen in Cap d'Antibes, Madrid, Rome and London. However, the relationship did not last and she married briefly to Glenn Maxwell. She has been married to David Ashrow, a dentist turned actor, since 1976.

For her contribution to the motion picture industry, June Allyson has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1537 Vine Street.

Filmography

• Ups and Downs (1937) (short subject)
• Pixilated (1937) (short subject)
• Swing for Sale (1937) (short subject)
• Dime a Dance (1937) (short subject)
• Dates and Nuts (1937) (short subject)
• Not Now (1938) (short subject)
• Sing for Sweetie (1938) (short subject)
• The Prisoner of Swing (1938) (short subject)
• The Knight Is Young (1938) (short subject)
• All Girl Revue (1940) (short subject)
• Best Foot Forward (1943)
• Thousands Cheer (1943)
• Girl Crazy (1943)
• Meet the People (1944)
• Two Girls and a Sailor (1944)
• Music for Millions (1944)
• Her Highness and the Bellboy (1945)
• The Sailor Takes a Wife (1945)
• Two Sisters from Boston (1946)
• Till the Clouds Roll By (1946)
• The Secret Heart (1947)
• High Barbaree (1947)
• Good News (1947)
• The Bride Goes Wild (1948)
• The Three Musketeers (1948)
• Words and Music (1948)
• Little Women (1949)
• The Stratton Story (1949)
• The Reformer and the Redhead (1950)
• Right Cross (1950)
• Too Young to Kiss (1951)
• The Girl in White (1952)
• Battle Circus (1953)
• Remains to Be Seen (1953)
• The Glenn Miller Story (1953)
• Executive Suite (1954)
• Woman's World (1954)
• Strategic Air Command (1955)
• The Shrike (1955)
• The McConnell Story (1955)
• Screen Snapshots: Hollywood, City of Stars (1956) (short subject)
• The Opposite Sex (1956)
• You Can't Run Away from It (1956)
• Interlude (1957)
• My Man Godfrey (1957)
• A Stranger in My Arms (1959)
• They Only Kill Their Masters (1972)
• Blackout (1978)
• That's Entertainment! III (1994)
• A Girl, Three Guys, and a Gun (2001)

This content from Wikipedia is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article June Allyson