Beverly Eileen Michaels (December 29, 1927 – June 9, 2007) was an American

B-movie A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double featur ...

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...

and cheesecake model of the 1950s.

Career

Michaels began her career at the age of 16 in 1944 as a showgirl at

Billy Rose Billy Rose (born William Samuel Rosenberg; September 6, 1899 – February 10, 1966) was an American impresario, theatrical showman and lyricist. For years both before and after World War II, Billy Rose was a major force in entertainment, with sh ...

's Diamond Horseshoe Nightclub in New York. Her stage debut, also at age 16, was in the play ''Glad to See You'' which ran in Philadelphia and Boston from November 1944 to January 1945. After that show closed, she was a dancer in Havana for about a year. Returning to the US, she worked as a chorus girl on Broadway. Arriving in Hollywood in 1948 at the age of 21 and standing at least 5 feet 9 inches tall (some sources cited 6 feet), Michaels quickly found modeling jobs, in which she was initially credited as "Beverley Michaels." Under contract to

MGM Studios Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

, she made her first screen appearance in Mervyn LeRoy's '' East Side, West Side'' (February 1950), starring Barbara Stanwyck, Ava Gardner, James Mason and Van Heflin.. Beverly Michaels

Michaels then appeared in two films by independent film director and producer Hugo Haas. The first, the 1951

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...

'' Pickup'', was a surprise hit, albeit a secondary B feature, and launched Haas's career as a Hollywood director. It also had a large part in starting the cycle of

bad girl movies Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Crime film, crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarde ...

of the 1950s, which usually starred blonde sexpots. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''' film reviewer commented: "Beverly Michaels, a comparative newcomer, is flashily attractive, hard and vulgar as his two-timing mate, but her histrionics are, like the cheap character she portrays, coarse and in need of polishing." Haas' follow-up release, '' The Girl on the Bridge'' (1951), was his last picture with Michaels. Michaels went on to win contracts with Columbia and, later,

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

. She also appeared in a Bowery Boys film, ''

No Holds Barred No holds barred or No Holds Barred may refer to: * ''No Holds Barred'' (1952 film), a film starring The Bowery Boys * ''No Holds Barred'' (1989 film), a film starring Hulk Hogan * ''No Holds Barred'' (Biohazard album) (1997) * ''No Holds Barred ...

'', released by low-budget studio Monogram Pictures in 1952. In late 1952 Michaels toured Alaska for the

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, singing Christmas carols for the troops. At about this time she met the director and screenwriter Russell Rouse, who later became her second husband. Rouse cast her in a starring role in his film noir '' Wicked Woman'' (1954). ''

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'' praised her performance as "wonderfully lurid," and included the movie in a list of the 25 most memorable cult films. Later roles included the 1955 noir film ''

Crashout ''Crashout'' is a 1955 American film noir crime film directed by Lewis R. Foster and starring William Bendix, Arthur Kennedy, Luther Adler, William Talman, Gene Evans, Marshall Thompson, and Beverly Michaels.. Plot Convict Van Duff is the le ...

'', Hammer Films' '' Women Without Men'' (1956) and guest-starring roles in television shows. In a 1954 newspaper interview, Michaels was questioned about her choice of racy roles:

"One of the penalties, she says, is that some people, especially the wolf type, can't forget it was just a movie. She has had, she says, to give several real-life brush-offs. However, Beverly says, they are things you have to accept. 'I get my share of wisecracks. But I ignore them. You have to. If you're going to play roles like I have, you have to expect to be a target for such remarks. I just pretend I don't hear them. If you're going to be supersensitive, you had better get out of the business. ... I always have hope that my next picture will make me a decent woman.'"

Personal life

Michaels was one of six children of Denzil and Catherine Michaels. Her father was a bus driver. She attended Cathedral City High School, where she played center on the girls' basketball team. In 1949, she married

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

executive Voldemar Vetluguin, producer of her first film '' East Side, West Side''. She was 21; he was in his 50s.''Marriage License'' Nr.SM-1442, State of California and ''Certificate of Marriage'', September 2, 1949, Judge of the Municipal Court, Santa Monica, Los Angeles. They divorced in 1952. In 1957, she married Russell Rouse, director and screenwriter of ''Wicked Woman'' and many other films. They had two sons. One, film editor Christopher Rouse, won an Oscar in editing for ''

The Bourne Ultimatum ''The Bourne Ultimatum'' is the third Jason Bourne novel written by Robert Ludlum and a sequel to ''The Bourne Supremacy'' (1986). First published in 1990, it was the last Bourne novel to be written by Ludlum himself. Eric Van Lustbader wrote a ...

'' in 2007. Michaels was a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

who supported Adlai Stevenson during the 1952 presidential election. In the 1980s, a cult following grew among fans of the "bad girl" 1950s melodrama genre. While this public interest centered mostly on

Cleo Moore Cleouna Moore (October 31, 1924Moore, Cleo 1924-1973
.

, Diana Dors and

Mamie Van Doren Mamie Van Doren (born Joan Lucille Olander; February 6, 1931) is an American actress, singer, and sex symbol. She is perhaps best known for the rock 'n' roll, juvenile delinquency exploitation film ''Untamed Youth'' (1957). Early life Van Do ...

, Michaels' contributions were duly noted, including a tribute to ''Wicked Woman'' written by

Lily Tomlin Mary Jean "Lily" Tomlin (born September 1, 1939) is an American actress, comedian, writer, singer, and producer. She started her career as a stand-up comedian as well as performing off-Broadway during the 1960s. Her breakout role was on the vari ...

in the short-lived magazine ''Movies''. With the exception of an appearance at a film noir festival to honor her second husband, Michaels mostly avoided follow-up interviews from that publicity or attempts to lure her back into the spotlight, opting instead to maintain her privacy in retirement.

Final years and death

After Rouse's death, Michaels moved from

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

, where she lived until her death from a stroke at the age of 79.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Michaels, Beverly 1928 births 2007 deaths 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American women Actresses from New York City American female models American film actresses American television actresses Arizona Democrats California Democrats Entertainers from the Bronx Female models from New York (state) New York (state) Democrats