June Walker
June Walker (June 14, 1900 – February 3, 1966) was an American stage and film actress.
June Walker | |
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Walker in 1920 | |
Born | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | June 14, 1900
Died | February 3, 1966 65) Los Angeles, California, U.S. | (aged
Occupation | Stage, film, television actress |
Spouse(s) | Geoffrey Kerr |
Children | John Kerr |
- For the American activist and former Hadassah leader, see June Walker (Hadassah)
Stage career
She appeared on Broadway in such plays as Green Grow the Lilacs, The Farmer Takes a Wife, and Twelfth Night. She was the first actress to portray the character of Lorelei Lee, in the 1926 Broadway production of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. As the first actress to portray Lorelei Lee, Walker was instrumental in an interpretation that helped define the character. She was said to have "played a role that was as much her creation as that of Anita Loos." "Tossing her golden curls, blinking her eyes and twirling her waist-length string of pearls," Walker's version of Lorelei embodied the flapper of the Roaring Twenties. The success of the play launched Walker's career, and she had further Broadway successes. She played Linda Loman to Thomas Mitchell's Willy in the 1949 touring company of Death of a Salesman. She toured as Vinnie in Life with Father
Personal life
In 1926, she married British actor Geoffrey Kerr (born January 26, 1895 — died July 1, 1971). The couple divorced in 1943; their son is actor John Kerr[1] (born 1931 – died 2013). She appeared with her son in a 1954 episode of NBC's Justice. It was his first acting engagement.[2]
Death
After her death in 1966, aged 65, from undisclosed causes, Walker was interred in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles.[3]
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1921 | Coincidence | Phoebe Howard | |
1930 | War Nurse | Babs | |
1942 | Thru Different Eyes | Margie | |
1960 | The Unforgiven | Hagar Rawlins | |
1963 | A Child Is Waiting | Mrs. McDonald | Uncredited |
References
- McFarlane, Brian (2016). The Encyclopedia of British Film: Fourth edition. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9781526111968. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
- "Justice". The Classic TV Archive. Retrieved February 8, 2011.
- M., Ginny (May 5, 2015). "June Walker". Find a Grave. Retrieved January 14, 2018.