Cathy Downs

Cathy Downs
in The Dark Corner (1946)
Born (1924-03-03)March 3, 1924
Port Jefferson, New York, U.S.
Died December 8, 1976(1976-12-08) (aged 52)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation Actress
Years active 1945–1965
Spouse(s) Robert Brunson (1956–1963) (divorced)
Joe Kirkwood, Jr. (1952–1955) (divorced)

Cathy Downs (March 3, 1924 – December 8, 1976) was an American film actress.

Biography

Downs was born in Port Jefferson, New York. She was the daughter of James Nelson Downs and Edna Elizabeth Newman.[1] A former Vogue cover model, she was brought to Hollywood in 1944 by a 20th Century-Fox talent scout.[2]

Downs began her film career with a small roles in State Fair (1945) and The Dolly Sisters (1945). In 1946 she played the title role in My Darling Clementine and Clifton Webb's unfaithful wife in The Dark Corner. Following the success of My Darling Clementine, Downs was cast in a prison drama For You I Die (1947), an Abbott and Costello comedy The Noose Hangs High, and several western films.

By the beginning of the 1950s, she was appearing in lower-budget films, including some science fiction stories, with one of these, Missile to the Moon, marking her last big-screen appearance, in 1958.

She appeared in a television episode of The Lone Ranger in 1952. Downs worked sporadically on TV during the 1960s, with her final appearance in 1965 on Perry Mason as murder victim and title character Millicent Barton in "The Case of the Hasty Honeymooner." She was unemployed the remaining 11 years of her life before she died in Los Angeles.

Downs has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contribution to television, at 6646 Hollywood Boulevard.[3]

Personal life

She was married first to Joe Kirkwood Jr. (1952–1955; divorced), who played the character Joe Palooka in films and on TV.[4] They had long been out of touch, when, in 1976, Kirkwood heard that Downs was in dire financial straits. Kirkwood was setting up a trust fund for her when he learned she had died of cancer at the age of 52.

She is interred at Woodlawn Cemetery, Santa Monica.[5]

Filmography

Year Film Role Other notes
1945 Diamond Horseshoe Miss Cream Puff Uncredited
State Fair Girl on carousel Uncredited
The Dolly Sisters Miss Mascara Uncredited
1946 The Dark Corner Mari Cathcart
Do You Love Me Clothes model Uncredited
My Darling Clementine Clementine Carter
1947 For You I Die Hope Novak
1948 The Noose Hangs High Carol Scott
Panhandle Jean 'Dusty' Stewart
1949 Massacre River Katherine 'Kitty' Reid
1950 The Sundowners Kathleen Boyce
Short Grass Sharon Lynch
1951 Joe Palooka in Triple Cross Anne Palooka
1952 Best Laid Plans Mary Seaton
Gobs and Gals Betty Lou Prentice
1953 Bandits of the West Joanne Collier
The Flaming Urge Charlotte Cruickshank
1955 The Big Tip Off Sister Mary Joan of Arc
Kentucky Rifle Amy Connors
The Phantom from 10,000 Leagues Lois King
1956 The Oklahoma Woman Susan Grant
The She Creature Dorothy Chappel
1957 Curfew Breakers Mrs. Bowman
The Amazing Colossal Man Carol Forrest
1958 Missile to the Moon June Saxton

References

  1. ↑ "Cathy Downs - The Private Life and Times of Cathy Downs. Cathy Downs Pictures". glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
  2. ↑ Women in the Films of John Ford
  3. ↑ "hollywoodusa.co.uk". hollywoodusa.co.uk. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
  4. ↑ Downs' biodata at New York Times
  5. ↑ Resting Places


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