Jane Russell (June 21, 1921 – February 28, 2011)

[Staph]

Sorry, gang, I meant to put this in the Obit thread, but I screwed up. Maybe it's time to start a new thread for obituaries.


"Jane Russell, the Hollywood silver-screen siren who ignited a tinder box with Howard Hughes’ bosom-heaving 1943 western The Outlaw, died on Monday at age 89. But the legacy she leaves behind will always be more than just the sum of her ample parts. The raven-haired beauty was only 19 and working as a receptionist in a doctor’s office when the notorious ladies’ man Hughes spotted her and cast her as Rio MacDonald, the smoldering girlfriend of Sheriff Pat Garrett, in The Outlaw. Overnight, she was catapulted from obscurity to infamy, thanks to the movie’s poster, which featured Russell reclining suggestively on a haystack, holding a pistol in one hand and implying a world of sin with her curves. Censors went apoplectic and the Roman Catholic Church protested the film, but it was too late — a star was born.

. . .

"During the ’50s and into the ’60s, Russell began to sing more and more in her films, which led her toward a fruitful singing career that included both pop and gospel songs. Her last big screen role was a smallish part in the 1970 detective thriller Darker Than Amber. Afterwards, she continued to perform in Las Vegas and occasionally on stage. But her biggest second act came from her role in the ’70s as a celebrity endorser for Playtex’s Cross-Your-Heart bras for “full-figured gals.” (The role fit her like a… glove.) Russell also became increasingly more active in spreading the gospel and conservative politics, which alienated some of her fans, but won her others. In 2003, she referred to herself as “a teetotal, mean-spirited, right-wing, narrow-minded, conservative Christian bigot, but not a racist.” Russell, who began her career as a divisive figure, remained one until the end."

http://popwatch.ew.com/2011/03/01/jane-russell-a-tribute-to-the-sultry-silver-screen-siren/

[CBHagman]

1. Fond memories of "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes."

Russell had a scene in which her character serenaded the entire men's U.S. Olympic Team.