Patricia Dane (born Thelma Patricia Pippins, August 4, 1917 – June 5, 1995) was an American film actress of the 1940s.

Early life

Patricia Dane in Life Begins for Andy Hardy trailer

Dane was born Thelma Patricia Pippins to William Pippins and Emma F. Montford. Sources differ as to her birth year (1917 - 1919) and birthplace (Jacksonville, Florida or Blountstown, Florida). She was later known as Thelma Patricia Burns and Thelma Patricia Byrnes after her mother's second husband, whose surname was Burns. She attended the University of Alabama for almost three years. In 1938 she moved to New York, where she worked as a model for a dress design firm. During this period she met industrialist and film industry executive

Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...

, who encouraged her to move to Los Angeles and helped her find an apartment there.

Career

Dane was signed to a

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer 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 ...

contract in 1941. As she gained attention in Hollywood, gossip columnists Louella Parsons and Jimmy Fidler both noted her strong resemblance to

Hedy Lamarr Hedy Lamarr (; born Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler; November 9, 1914 January 19, 2000) was an Austrian-born American film actress and inventor. A film star during Hollywood's golden age, Lamarr has been described as one of the greatest movie actress ...

, who was also under contract to MGM. Dane's earliest appearances were two uncredited roles in ''

Ziegfeld Girl Ziegfeld Girls were the chorus girls and showgirls from Florenz Ziegfeld's theatrical Broadway revue spectaculars known as the '' Ziegfeld Follies'' (1907–1931), in New York City, which were based on the Folies Bergère of Paris. Desc ...

'' and '' I'll Wait for You'' (both 1941). She played the part of "Jennitt Hicks" in ''

Life Begins for Andy Hardy ''Life Begins for Andy Hardy'' is a 1941 American comedy film and the 11th installment of the 16 popular Andy Hardy movies. Directed by George B. Seitz, ''Life Begins for Andy Hardy'' was also the last Andy Hardy movie to feat ...

'' (1941) and her well-received performance earned her a long-term contract. Dane played "Garnet" in ''

Johnny Eager ''Johnny Eager'' is a 1941 film noir directed by Mervyn LeRoy and starring Robert Taylor, Lana Turner and Van Heflin. Heflin won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. The film was one of many spoofed in ''Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid'' (19 ...

'' (1942) directed by Mervyn LeRoy. The film starred Robert Taylor and

Lana Turner Lana Turner ( ; born Julia Jean Turner; February 8, 1921June 29, 1995) was an American actress. Over the course of her nearly 50-year career, she achieved fame as both a pin-up model and a film actress, as well as for her highly publicized pe ...

. Dane received favorable press for her acting in ''

Grand Central Murder ''Grand Central Murder'' is a comedy/mystery film released in 1942. It was based on Sue MacVeigh's 1939 novel of the same name, and stars Van Heflin as a private investigator who is one of the suspects in a murder on a private train car in Gran ...

'' (1942), in which she was billed second to

Van Heflin Emmett Evan "Van" Heflin Jr. (December 13, 1908 – July 23, 1971) was an American theatre, radio and film actor. He played mostly character parts over the course of his film career, but during the 1940s had a string of roles as a leading man. H ...

'' Dane married bandleader

Tommy Dorsey Thomas Francis Dorsey Jr. (November 19, 1905 – November 26, 1956) was an American jazz trombonist, composer, conductor and bandleader of the big band era. He was known as the "Sentimental Gentleman of Swing" because of his smooth-toned trombo ...

in Las Vegas on April 8, 1943. Dorsey did not want his wife to work, and she took a break from her film career. Her MGM contract lapsed in 1945. Dorsey's biographer described both parties to the marriage as temperamental. Their union was said to be "tempestuous from the start." They separated three times before Dane filed for divorce on July 3, 1947, citing "extreme mental cruelty" and Dorsey's constant travel with his touring orchestra. However, the divorce was essentially amicable, and they had various rendezvous in the years ahead. Following her divorce, Dane resumed her movie career at the low-budget Monogram Pictures studio with ''

Joe Palooka in Fighting Mad ''Joe Palooka in Fighting Mad'' is a 1948 American comedy film directed by Reginald Le Borg and starring Leon Errol, Joe Kirkwood, Jr. and Elyse Knox. It was part of the ''Joe Palooka'' series, produced and distributed by Monogram Pictures.Drew p ...

'' (1948). Her final film appearances were uncredited parts in ''

Road to Bali ''Road to Bali'' is a 1952 American comedy film directed by Hal Walker and starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, and Dorothy Lamour. Released by Paramount Pictures on November 19, 1952, the film is the sixth of the seven ''Road to …'' movies. It w ...

'' (1952) and '' The Harder They Fall'' (1956).

Later life

Tommy Dorsey died in 1956. He left Dane a $26,000 insurance policy after she informed him that she was unable to work due to injuries sustained in a 1956 boating accident. In 1973 she returned to Blountstown, where she lived with her mother and worked as a librarian. She never remarried.

Filmography

References

External links