This article is about the actress. Lana Turner's father was murdered when she was a child. [22] At age three, she performed an impromptu dance routine at a charity fashion show in which her mother was modeling. In 1958, during an intense argument between Ms. Tuner and Johnny Stompanato, Lana's 14-year-old daughter Cheryl came to her mother's defense and, according to court records, stabbed, and killed Stompanato. [33] She stated that she had "never seen myself walking before [It was] the first time [I was] conscious of my body. "[102], Turner returned to feature films with a lead role in the 1974 British horror film Persecution, in which she played a disturbed wealthy woman tormenting her son. [97] Topping proposed to her at the 21 Club in New York City by dropping a diamond ring into her martini, and they married shortly after in April 1948 at the Topping family mansion in Greenwich, Connecticut. Pamela Tiffin Harrison had surgery and radiation in 1998. [97] She later claimed Topping's drinking problem and excessive gambling as her impetus for the divorce. Lana Turner dating history, 2023, 2022, list of Lana Turner relationships. There was something smoldering underneath that innocent face. [281] She was suffering from an alcohol addiction that had begun in the late 1950s,[270] was missing performances and weighed only 95 pounds (43kg). Actress Lana Turner (born Julia Jean Mildred Frances Turner) was one of America's most celebrated sex symbols during the 1940s and 1950s making over 50 films. "[321], According to her daughter, Turner's obsessive attention to detail often resulted in dressmakers storming out during dress fittings. After 18 years at MGM, I'm a free agentI used to go on a bended knee to the front office and say, please give me a decent story. [72][73] Ziegfeld Girl marked a personal and professional shift for Turner; she claimed it as the first role that got her "interested in acting",[74] and the studio, impressed by her performance, marketed the film as featuring her in "the best role of the biggest picture to be released by the industry's biggest company". Though Turner only appeared on screen for a few minutes,[46] Wilkerson wrote in The Hollywood Reporter that her performance was "worthy of more than a passing note". [344][345] In 2002, artist Eloy Torrez included Turner in an outdoor mural, Portrait of Hollywood, painted on the auditorium of Hollywood High School, her alma mater. cities. [263][264] Turner married a total of eight times to seven different husbands,[212] and later famously said: "My goal was to have one husband and seven children, but it turned out to be the other way around. [85] Meanwhile, the press continued to fuel rumors that Turner and Gable were romantic offscreen, which Turner vehemently denied. "Joan Rivers interviews Lana Turner". [277] Richard Christiansen of the Chicago Tribune praised her performance, writing that, "though she is still a very nervous and inexpert actress, she is giving by far her most winning performance". [67] Their marriage only lasted four months, but was highly publicized, and led MGM executives to grow concerned over Turner's "impulsive behavior". [128] As of early 1946, Turner was set for the role, but schedules with Green Dolphin Street almost prohibited her from taking it, and by late 1946, she was nearly recast. [96], In July 1942,[97] Turner met her second husband, actor-turned-restaurateur Joseph Stephen "Steve" Crane, at a dinner party in Los Angeles. lana turner cause of death. [276] During rehearsals, a stagehand told reporters that Turner was "the hardest working broad I've known". [42], In December 1936, Marx introduced Turner to film director Mervyn LeRoy, who signed her to a $50 weekly contract with Warner Bros. on February 22, 1937 ($942 in 2021 dollars [43]). [281] In 1980, Turner made her final feature-film appearance alongside Teri Garr in the comedy horror film Witches' Brew. In the film, she portrayed the daughter of a wealthy patriarch who pursues a relationship with a man in love with her sister. [286] Her appearance was a ratings success, and her character returned for an additional five episodes.[287]. [29], While baptized a Protestant at birth,[32] Turner attended Mass with the Hislops, a Catholic family with whom her mother had temporarily boarded her in Stockton, California. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner's office, Ronnie died due to "complications of metastatic. Lana Turner was married to seven men, including bandleader Artie Shaw. . [172][173] The production was rushed to accommodate a Christmas release and was completed in only three months, but it received unfavorable reviews from critics. Her acting skills were more than adequate, but first and foremost, how the camera loved her. From a Times Staff Writer. Lana was 74 years old at the time of death. Her estate was estimated in court documents to be worth $1.7 million. Miss Turner, who had been treated for throat cancer, apparently died of natural causes, a police spokeswoman, Ramona Baety, confirmed to The Associated Press. "[314] In addition, Basinger credits Turner as the first mainstream female star to "take the male prerogative openly for herself", publicly indulging in romances and affairs that in turn fueled the publicity surrounding her. [291][292] During her contract with MGM, photographs that showed her holding cigarettes had to be airbrushed at the studio's request in an effort to conceal her smoking. Lana Turner spoke these words as aspiring actress Lora Meredith in Imitation of Life (1959), but they could have been uttered by almost any of her characters over her 4 decades in Hollywood. [323] Turner often purchased her favorite styles of shoes in every available color, at one time accumulating 698 pairs. [155] The Merry Widow proved more commercially successful than Turner's previous musical, Mr. Imperium, despite receiving unfavorable critical reviews. [218], Turner has been noted by historians as a sex symbol, a popular culture icon[4][314] and "a symbol of the American Dream fulfilled Because of her, being discovered at a soda fountain has become almost as cherished an ideal as being born in a log cabin. For the fashion stylist and collector, see, 19481952: Studio rebranding and personal struggles, 19531957: MGM departure and film resurgence, 19581959: Johnny Stompanato homicide scandal, 19661985: Later films, television and theatre. Lana Turner was married to seven men, including bandleader Artie Shaw. Cancer And Death. [205] Around 8:00p.m. on Friday, April 4, Stompanato arrived at Turner's rented home at 730 North Bedford Drive in Beverly Hills. [76] After completing the film, Turner and co-star Garland remained lifelong friends, and lived in houses next to one another in the 1950s. "[177] At the time of her contract termination, Turner's films had earned the studio more than $50 million. [127], Turner's next film was the romantic drama Cass Timberlane, in which she played a young woman in love with an older judge, a role for which Jennifer Jones, Vivien Leigh and Virginia Grey had also been considered. "[109] Critic Anita Loos praised Turner's performance in the film, writing: "Lana Turner typifies modern allure. [322] No matter the setting, Turner also took care to ensure she was always "camera-ready", wearing jewelry and makeup even while lounging in sweatpants. [61] Turner's onscreen sex appeal in the film was reflected by a review in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in which she was characterized as "the answer to 'oomph'". [209], Because of Turner's fame and the fact that the killing involved her teenage daughter, the case quickly became a media sensation. Lana Turner was born Julia Jean Turner[6][7][b] on February 8, 1921,[c] at Providence Hospital[13] in Wallace, Idaho, a small mining community in the Idaho Panhandle region. [261] Pellar denied the accusations and no charges were filed against him. "[33] Several years after the film's release, Modern Screen journalist Nancy Squire wrote that Turner "made a sweater look like something Cleopatra was saving for the next visiting Caesar". [68] In the spring of 1940, after the two had divorced, Turner discovered she was pregnant and had an abortion. The death was categorized as natural. The project was shelved for several months, and Turner told journalists in December 1949: "Everybody agrees that the script is still a pile of junk. "[163] Upon returning to the United States in September 1953, Turner married actor Lex Barker,[97] whom she had been dating since their first meeting at a party held by Marion Davies in the summer of 1952. [333][334][335] In a 1973 Films in Review retrospective on her career, Turner was referred to as "a master of the motion picture technique and a hardworking craftsman". On the evening of April 4, 1958, 14-year-old Cheryl Crane stabbed 32-year-old Johnny Stompanato, the boyfriend of her mother, actress Lana Turner, at Turner's rented home in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California. [50][51], In late 1937, LeRoy was hired as an executive at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), and asked Jack L. Warner to allow Turner to relocate with him to MGM. [92], Arriving to sell bonds in her hometown of Wallace, Idaho, she was greeted with a banner that read "Welcome home, Lana", followed by a large celebration during which the mayor declared a holiday in her honor. Lana Turner (1921 - 1995) They Won't Forget (1937) [Mary Clay]: Beaten to death (off-screen) by an unknown assailant in the school building; her body is shown afterwards (barely visible in the darkness) when the police investigate in the basement. Turner was a regular drinker[270] and cigarette smoker for most of her life. [341] The Stompanato murder and its aftermath were also the basis of the Harold Robbins novel Where Love Has Gone (1962). Harrison was smoker. [121] In the midst of filming Green Dolphin Street, Turner began an affair with actor Tyrone Power,[123][124] whom she considered to be the love of her life. Getty Images The murder of mobster Johnny Stompanato was ultimately ruled a "justifiable homicide.". He was convicted of killing actress Lana Clarkson in 2003 at his castle-like mansion on the edge of Los Angeles. Three out of four head and neck cancers are linked to tobacco use, and men are . I'm anxious to get started. [256] According to Turner, Pellar (also known as Ronald Dante or Dr. Dante)[257] falsely claimed to have been raised in Singapore and to have a Ph.D. in psychology. Turner, who had been treated for throat cancer, apparently died of natural causes, a police spokeswoman, Ramona Baety, confirmed to The Associated Press. [59], Mayer helped further Turner's career by giving her roles in several youth-oriented films in the late 1930s, such as the comedy Rich Man, Poor Girl (1938) in which she played the sister of a poor woman romanced by a wealthy man, and Dramatic School (1938), in which she portrayed Mado, a troubled drama student. [65][66] Though they had only briefly known each other, Turner recalled being "stirred by his eloquence", and after their first date the two spontaneously decided to get married. During the course of the book it's evident Turner led a charmed life of opportunity with the perks of showbiz royalty on one hand and on the other hand she had a dramatic dark personal life with more twists and turns than most daytime drama scripts. According to Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner's office, Ronnie died from complications of metastatic colon carcinoma, an advanced-stage type of cancer which originates in the colon and. [194][195] Turner would also claim that on one occasion he drugged her and took nude photographs of her while unconscious, potentially to use as blackmail. "[121] It was her first starring role that did not center on her looks. [113] She was then cast as the female lead in Week-End at the Waldorf, a loose remake of Grand Hotel (1932) in which she portrayed a stenographer (a role originated by Joan Crawford). [183] Released in December 1957, Peyton Place was a major blockbuster success, which worked in Turner's favor as she had agreed to take a percentage of the film's overall earnings instead of a salary. [261] In addition, she later accused him of stealing $100,000 worth of jewelry from her. This was a total shock," Crane told Daily Variety columnist Army Archerd. [62] In her next film, Dancing Co-Ed (1939), Turner was given first billing portraying Patty Marlow, a professional dancer who enters a college as part of a rigged national talent contest. [198] To avoid further confrontation, Turner and her makeup artist, Del Armstrong, called Scotland Yard in order to have Stompanato deported. Turner's notoriety was assured in 1958 when her lover, mobster Johnny Stompanato, was stabbed to death with a kitchen knife by her daughter Cheryl Crane. Multiple accounts have the ashes still in Cheryl's possession, while other accounts say the ashes were scattered in the ocean, but which ocean and location varies by the sources. [326] Turner maintained her glamorous image into her late career; a 1966 film review characterized her as "the glitter and glamour of Hollywood". "[89], At the advent of US involvement in World War II, Turner's increasing prominence in Hollywood led to her becoming a popular pin-up girl,[90] and her image appeared painted on the noses of U.S. fighter planes, bearing the nickname "Tempest Turner". [34] She soon became a protge of LeRoy, who suggested that she take the stage name Lana Turner, a name she would come to legally adopt several years later. Following her film debut in . CONTACT DETAILS Web Site: . [190] He pursued Turner aggressively, sending her various gifts. [148], In response to the poor reception for A Life of Her Own, MGM attempted to rebrand Turner by casting her in musicals. In a role that allows her the gamut from tomboy to the pangs of childbirth and from being another man's woman to remorseful wife, she seldom fails to acquit herself creditably. [270] A review in The Philadelphia Inquirer noted: "Miss Turner always could wear clothes well, and her Forty Carats is a fashion show in the guise of a frothy, little comedy. The detectives advised Stompanato to leave and escorted him out of the house and to the airport, where he boarded a plane back to the U.S.[203], On the evening of March 26, 1958, Turner attended the Academy Awards to observe her nomination for Peyton Place and present the award for Best Supporting Actor. "[250] The role earned Turner a David di Donatello Golden Plaque Award for Best Foreign Actress that year. [100] After discovering she was pregnant in November 1942, Turner remarried Crane in Tijuana in March 1943. Indeed, there is cause for suspicion that they didn't even bother to think. Lana was born Julia Jean Mildred Frances Turner on February 8, 1921. But the marriage was not a success, and in October 2015, Turner filed for divorce seeking joint custody of their two children. Lana Turner (February 8, 1921 - June 29, 1995) was an American actress in 1937-1962. During the shoot, Turner began an affair with her co-star Fernando Lamas, which ended after Lamas physically assaulted her; the incident also caused Lamas to lose his MGM contract upon the production's completion. [120] Turner commented on her decision to take the role: I finally got tired of making movies where all I did was walk across the screen and look pretty. The film's curvaceous star, Lana Turner, in white shorts and a halter top that set off her tan, had never . On September 28, 1964 the date of his 28th wedding anniversary with wife Susan Flemming - Harpo Marx died at the age of 75 after undergoing an open-heart procedure. [125] She discovered she was pregnant with Power's child in the fall of 1947, but chose to have an abortion. [297], In September 1994, Turner made her final public appearance at the San Sebastin International Film Festival in Spain to accept a Lifetime Achievement Award,[298] and was confined to a wheelchair for much of the event. 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 personal life. [223], Released in the spring of 1959, Imitation of Life was among the year's biggest successes, and the biggest of Turner's career; by opting to receive 50% of the film's earnings rather than receiving a salary, she earned more than two million dollars. [139][140] Studio head Louis B. Mayer threatened to suspend her contract, but Turner managed to leverage her box-office draw with MGM to negotiate an expansion of her role in the film, as well as a salary increase amounting to $5,000 per week ($60,678 in 2021 dollars [43]). [216] The suit was settled out of court for a reported $20,000 in May 1962. [119] Life magazine named the film its "Movie of the Week" in April 1946, and noted that both Turner and Garfield were "aptly cast" and "take over the screen, [creating] more fireworks than the Fourth of July". [79] While the film was financially successful,[80] Time magazine panned it, calling it "a pretentious resurrection of Robert Louis Stevenson's ghoulish classic As for Lana Turner, fully clad for a change, and the rest of the cast they are as wooden as their roles. It wasn't much of a play even when Julie Harris was doing it, and it all but disappears under the old-time Hollywood glamor of Miss Turner's star presence. "[227] Critics and audiences could not help noticing that the plots of Peyton Place and Imitation of Life both seemed to mirror certain parts of Turner's private life, resulting in comparisons she found painful. Upon Turner's death, John Updike wrote in The New Yorker that she "was a faded period piece, an old-fashioned glamour queen whose fifty-four films, over four decades didn't amount, retrospectively to much As a performer, she was purely a studio-made product. [214] The scandal also coincided with the release of Another Time, Another Place, and the film was met with poor box-office receipts and a lackluster critical response. Despite being a comedian, May had a serious side to him. [215] Stompanato's family sought a wrongful death suit of $750,000 in damages against both Turner and her ex-husband, Steve Crane. [169] The film, released one month after The Prodigal, was a commercial success. Stompanato was known to have been physically abusive to Turner. [269], In the early 1970s, Turner transitioned to theater, beginning with a production of Forty Carats, which toured various East Coast cities in 1971. [57] The film was a box-office success,[58] and her appearance in it as a flirtatious high school student convinced studio head Louis B. Mayer that Turner could be the next Jean Harlow, a sex symbol who had died six months before Turner's arrival at MGM. / lana turner cause of death. She also struggled for a long period with alcoholism and smoking, both of which led to the throat cancer that would take her life. Liotta had previously talked about how the COVID-19 pandemic brought the two of them close together very quickly due to . [11] She was an admirer of Bette Davis, whom she cited as her favorite actress. "[249] Kaspar Monahan of the Pittsburgh Press lauded her performance, writing: "Her performance, I think, is far and away her very best, even rating Oscar consideration in next year's Academy Award race, unless the culture snobs gang up against her. [255] Weeks later, on May 9, 1969, she married Ronald Pellar, a nightclub hypnotist whom she had met at a Los Angeles disco. Even the love goddess Lana Turner, who co-starred with Burton in The Rains Of Ranchipur, enjoyed a fling with him in his trailer. [339], Turner has been depicted and referenced in numerous works across literature, film, music and art. [197] Their meeting was initially happy, but they soon began fighting. [112] In 1945, she co-starred with Laraine Day and Susan Peters in Keep Your Powder Dry, a war drama about three disparate women who join the Women's Army Corps. "[146] Although unenthusiastic about the screenplay, Turner agreed to appear in the film after executives promised her suspension would be lifted upon doing so.