Joyce Elaine MacKenzie Hassing (October 13, 1925 – June 10, 2021) was an American actress who appeared in films and television from 1946 to 1961. She might be best remembered for being the eleventh actress to portray

Jane Jane may refer to: * Jane (given name), a feminine given name * Jane (surname), related to the given name Film and television * ''Jane'' (1915 film), a silent comedy film directed by Frank Lloyd * ''Jane'' (2016 film), a South Korean drama fil ...

. She played the role opposite

Lex Barker Alexander Crichlow Barker Jr. (May 8, 1919 – May 11, 1973), known as Lex Barker, was an American actor. He was known for playing Tarzan for RKO Pictures between 1949 and 1953, and portraying leading characters from Karl May's novels, notably a ...

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adv ...

in '' Tarzan and the She-Devil'' (1953).

Early life through World War II

MacKenzie was the daughter of Dr and Mrs Norman MacKenzie. She was active in sports in high school, winning an award for "her all-round sports ability." During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, MacKenzie worked as a carpenter's helper in shipyards in San Francisco. Her opportunity for acting came when she was discovered on her job as cashier at the

Pasadena Playhouse The Pasadena Playhouse is a historic performing arts venue located 39 S. El Molino Avenue in Pasadena, California, United States. The 686-seat auditorium produces a variety of cultural and artistic events, professional shows, and community engage ...

in the summer of 1948.

Film actor

MacKenzie starred in a film noir, ''

Destination Murder ''Destination Murder'' is a 1950 American crime film noir directed by Edward L. Cahn. The drama features Joyce MacKenzie, Stanley Clements and Hurd Hatfield. Plot During a five-minute movie intermission, Jackie Wales leaves a theater, gets in ...

'' (1950). She appeared with

James Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military pilot. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morality h ...

in the western '' Broken Arrow'' (also 1950), as the wife of

Robert Mitchum Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He rose to prominence with an Academy Award nomination for the Best Supporting Actor for ''The Story of G.I. Joe'' (1945), followed by his starring in ...

in the crime drama '' The Racket'' (1951) and as a publisher's daughter trying to wrest control of editor

Humphrey Bogart Humphrey DeForest Bogart (; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American film and stage actor. His performances in Classical Hollywood cinema films made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film In ...

's newspaper in ''

Deadline - U.S.A. Deadline(s) or The Deadline(s) may refer to: * Time limit A time limit or deadline is a narrow field of time, or a particular point in time, by which an objective or task must be accomplished. Once that time has passed, the item may be considered ...

'' (1952). MacKenzie's character and

Jane Russell Ernestine Jane Geraldine Russell (June 21, 1921 – February 28, 2011) was an American actress, singer, and model. She was one of Hollywood's leading sex symbols in the 1940s and 1950s. She starred in more than 20 films. Russell moved from th ...

's exchanged identities in a musical, ''

The French Line ''The French Line'' is a 1953 American musical film starring Jane Russell made by RKO Radio Pictures, directed by Lloyd Bacon and produced by Edmund Grainger, with Howard Hughes as executive producer. The screenplay was by Mary Loos and Richard ...

'' (1954).

Later years

Her final appearance was in the role of Nancy Gilman in the ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a c ...

'' television series episode, "The Case of the Duplicate Daughter" (1961). After her acting career ended, MacKenzie was an English teacher; one of her students was radio host Anthony Cumia of ''

Opie and Anthony ''Opie and Anthony'' was an American radio show hosted by Gregg Hughes, Gregg "Opie" Hughes and Anthony Cumia that aired from March 1995 to July 2014, with comedian Jim Norton (comedian), Jim Norton serving as third mic from 2001. The show origina ...

''.

Personal life and death

On November 26, 1952, MacKenzie married Walter H. "Tim" Leimert Jr. in Hollywood, California; the couple had two sons but divorced in 1960. In 1961, Joyce married Robert L. (Keiki) Driver until their divorce in 1966. And finally, in 1972, she married Victor Benedict Hassing until his death on October 29, 1980 at the age of 64. MacKenzie died on June 10, 2021 in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...

, at the age of 95.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mackenzie, Joyce 1925 births 2021 deaths Actresses from California American film actresses American television actresses People from Redwood City, California 21st-century American women