Happy Anniversary, Evelyn Keyes!

Happy Anniversary, Evelyn Keyes!

As a teenager, Keyes took voice, dance and piano lessons. Working as a chorus girl she performed for local clubs such as the Daughters of the Confederacy. Keyes moved to California at age twenty and shortly after her arrival in Los Angeles, a chance meeting with legendary director/producer Cecil B. Demille led to a Paramount contract. Her first role with DeMille was a small part in his pirate epic “The Buccaneer” (1938). After roles in a small handful of B movies she had another small part in a DeMille movie, the sprawling railroad saga “Union Pacific” (1939). It was David O. Selznick who gave her the part of Suellen O’Hara, who loses her beau to the more calculating Scarlett in “Gone with the Wind” (1939).

Keyes then signed with Columbia Pictures and in 1941, she played an ingenue role in “Here Comes Mr. Jordan”. She spent most of the early 1940s playing leads in many of Columbia’s B dramas and mysteries. She appeared as the female lead opposite Larry Parks in Columbia’s blockbuster hit “The Jolson Story” (1946) and as Kathy Flannigan in “Mrs. Mike” (1949). Keyes’ last major film role was a small part as Tom Ewell’s vacationing wife in “The Seven Year Itch” (1955), which starred Marilyn Monroe. Keyes officially retired in 1956, but continued to act, appearing occasionally on television in shows such as “Love Boat” and “Murder She Wrote” among others.

Evelyn Keyes was married four times. The first to Barton Oliver Bainbridge Sr. from 1938 until his death from suicide in 1940. She then married director Charles Vidor in 1943. They divorced in 1945. Her next marriage was to actor/director John Huston on July 23, 1946. They divorced in February of 1950. Keyes last marriage was to bandleader Artie Shaw in 1957 and lasted until their divorce in 1985. While married to Huston, the couple adopted a Mexican child, Pablo, whom Huston had discovered while on the set of “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre” (1948). Source: www.classiccinemagold.com

Evelyn Keyes is one of the six dames featured in Eddie Muller's book "Dark City Dames: The Wicked Women of Film Noir" (2001)

John Payne and Evelyn Keyes in "99 River Street" (1953) directed by Phil Karlson

"Tab Hunter's willingness to fly up from Santa Barbara to accept Muller's invitation to introduce '99 River Street' and 'Hell´s Half Acre' indicates a loving friendship with Evelyn Keyes, which made me respect him all the more. Hunter peppered his introduction with the memory of Evelyn Keyes looking at herself on the screen, exclaiming: "There's star quality! Look at those tits!"

Keyes was quite the character apparently and—according to author and Noir City 5 co-producer Alan K. Rode, with whom I had a charming chat last night—both Hunter and Muller cleaned up their remembrances somewhat, not wanting to offend their audience. Maybe one of these days over a lucky single malt, I'll get to hear what was respectfully omitted. For now, it was such a pleasure to experience Noir City 5's tribute to Evelyn Keyes; a double-punch I didn't mind taking on the chin." Source: twitchfilm.com

On Thursday, Jan. 17, author and noir expert Eddie Muller (Dark City: The Lost World of Film Noir) will join TCM host Robert Osborne to present five memorable thrillers from the 1950s.

The lineup is set to feature Cry Danger (1951), with Dick Powell and Rhonda Fleming; 99 River Street (1953), starring John Payne and Evelyn Keyes; Tomorrow is Another Day (1951), with Ruth Roman and Steve Cochran; The Breaking Point (1950), starring John Garfield and Patricia Neal;

and The Prowler (1951), starring Van Heflin and Evelyn Keyes. Source: mediaconnectiononline.com