Marjorie Joy "Marjie" Millar (August 10, 1931 – April 16, 1966) was an American television and film
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 ...
. She was born Marjorie Joy Miller to George W. and Eunice Miller in
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, Washington, Olympia, and northwest of Mount ...
. Millar's father had changed his surname to "Miller", but she later returned to the original spelling.
Early career and education
During World War II, she was named "Sweetheart of the
41st Division", having performed more than 7,000 hours singing for soldiers at nearby Ft. Lewis.
In 1946, she hosted a variety show for patients at Madigan Army Hospital at Ft. Lewis on the unique radio station for the hospital known as "Voice of Madigan".
She attended Ann Wright Seminary, Washington Grammar School, and Mason Junior High School, and graduated in 1950 from
Stadium High School
Stadium High School is a public high school in Tacoma, Washington, and a historic landmark. It is part of Tacoma Public Schools, or Tacoma School District No. 10 and is located in the Stadium District, near downtown Tacoma. The original buildin ...
in Tacoma. In 1949, she enrolled at
Stephens College
Stephens College is a private women's college in Columbia, Missouri. It is the second-oldest women's educational establishment that is still a women's college in the United States. It was founded on August 24, 1833, as the Columbia Female Acade ...
, an all-women's school in
Columbia, Missouri
Columbia is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is the county seat of Boone County and home to the University of Missouri. Founded in 1821, it is the principal city of the five-county Columbia metropolitan area. It is Missouri's fourth ...
, where she was a double major in radio/drama and psychology, graduating in 1951.
Marriages
Millar was married to
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...
college student James Sidney Rollins Jr. (1950–?); photographer and television director
John Florea
John Florea (born in Alliance, Ohio on May 28, 1916; died in Las Vegas on August 25, 2000) was an American television director and a photographer.
Career
Florea started as a photographer for the San Francisco Examiner, then was signed onto the ...
(1954–1957); author and sportswriter
John McCallum
John McCallum (born 9 April 1950) is a Canadian politician, economist, diplomat and former university professor. A former Liberal Member of Parliament ( MP), McCallum was the Canadian Ambassador to China from 2017 to 2019. He was asked for h ...
(1961–64), whom she met when he was writing her biography, and
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
and former classmate Lt. Commander Charles Candoo.
Career
She appeared in the
television series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...
''
Dragnet'' (in 1956) and ''
The Millionaire''.
While working in Los Angeles, she reunited and lived with her roommate from Stephens College, Boni Ann Buehler. Millar later assisted Buehler during her recovery after two limbs were amputated by a boat propeller (Beuhler was represented by Melvin Belli in the famous civil suit against Conrad Hilton).
Millar's biggest film role was playing
Dean Martin
Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...
's love interest in the 1953
Martin and Lewis
Martin and Lewis were an American comedy duo, comprising singer Dean Martin and comedian Jerry Lewis. They met in 1945 and debuted at Atlantic City's 500 Club on July 25, 1946; the team lasted ten years to the day. Before they teamed up, Martin w ...
film ''
Money from Home
''Money From Home'' is a 1953 American comedy film starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. The comedy was the first for the Martin and Lewis team to be shot in color and was their only film in 3-D. The picture was premiered as a special preview ...
''. She also had a major role in ''
About Mrs. Leslie
''About Mrs. Leslie'' is a 1954 American drama film directed by Daniel Mann and starring Shirley Booth and Robert Ryan. It was nominated for a BAFTA Award in 1955.
Plot
Vivien Leslie, a Beverly Hills, California rooming house owner, reminisces i ...
'', a drama starring
Shirley Booth and
Robert Ryan
Robert Bushnell Ryan (November 11, 1909 – July 11, 1973) was an American actor and activist. Known for his portrayals of hardened cops and ruthless villains, Ryan performed for over three decades. He was nominated for the Academy Award for ...
as the romantic leads. It was not a success at the box office despite its prominent cast.
In the early 1960s, for a short time she was choreographer for the Tacoma instrumental rock group
The Ventures
The Ventures are an American instrumental rock band formed in Tacoma, Washington, in 1958, by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle. The band, which was a quartet for most of its existence, helped to popularize the electric guitar across the world during the ...
.
Injury and later life
Injuries sustained in a 1957 auto accident on
Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard is a boulevard in the central and western part of Los Angeles, California, that stretches from the Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades east to Figueroa Street in Downtown Los Angeles. It is a major thoroughfare in t ...
,
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, resulted in infection and gangrene of her left leg. After reporting to work on ''Dragnet'' she went back to her apartment and after became too weak to lift the phone, was found by a neighbor who noticed several days' accumulation of milk bottles and newspapers. She was taken to a hospital and saved by massive blood transfusions after an appeal to the public for blood. Her leg was not amputated, but she was forced to end her acting career. She divorced husband
John Florea
John Florea (born in Alliance, Ohio on May 28, 1916; died in Las Vegas on August 25, 2000) was an American television director and a photographer.
Career
Florea started as a photographer for the San Francisco Examiner, then was signed onto the ...
, and moved back to
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, Washington, Olympia, and northwest of Mount ...
, where she operated a dance school and later started a
Puget Sound
Puget Sound ( ) is a sound of the Pacific Northwest, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, and part of the Salish Sea. It is located along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected ma ...
-area-produced television program with her third husband, author
John McCallum
John McCallum (born 9 April 1950) is a Canadian politician, economist, diplomat and former university professor. A former Liberal Member of Parliament ( MP), McCallum was the Canadian Ambassador to China from 2017 to 2019. He was asked for h ...
. After marrying her fourth husband, she followed him to his duty station in
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 ...
.
Death
She died at Coronado Hospital in
San Diego, California
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
, in 1966 as a result of
cirrhosis of the liver
Cirrhosis, also known as liver cirrhosis or hepatic cirrhosis, and end-stage liver disease, is the impaired liver function caused by the formation of scar tissue known as fibrosis due to damage caused by liver disease. Damage causes tissue repai ...
and chronic
pancreatitis
Pancreatitis is a condition characterized by inflammation of the pancreas. The pancreas is a large organ behind the stomach that produces digestive enzymes and a number of hormones. There are two main types: acute pancreatitis, and chronic pancr ...
after enduring at least 14 surgeries on her injured leg.
[Profile](_blank)
imdb.com; accessed September 26, 2014.[Ex-Tacoma Dance Star Dies At 36, Tacoma News Tribune, April 18, 1966.]
Filmography
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Millar, Marjie
20th-century American actresses
1966 deaths
1931 births
Actresses from San Diego
American film actresses
Actresses from Tacoma, Washington
Deaths from pancreatitis
Deaths from cirrhosis
Stephens College alumni
Alcohol-related deaths in California