Joan Leslie

Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Joan Leslie (born Joan Agnes Theresa Sadie Brodel; January 26, 1925 – October 12, 2015) was an American actress, dancer, and vaudevillian who, during the Hollywood Golden Age, appeared in such films as High Sierra, Sergeant York, and Yankee Doodle Dandy. Joan Agnes Theresa Sadie Brodel was born on January 26, 1925, in Highland Park, Michigan, the youngest child of John and Agnes Brodel. At 15, Leslie had her first significant role as the crippled girl in High Sierra (1941), starring Humphrey Bogart and Ida Lupino. The same year she played in Sergeant York as York's fiancée. Leslie had a supporting role in The Male Animal (1942) as Olivia de Havilland's younger sister. In Yankee Doodle Dandy (also 1942) she portrayed George M. Cohan's girlfriend/wife. By now, Leslie had become a star whose on-screen image was described as "sweet innocence without seeming too sugary." Leslie was in four motion pictures released during 1943: The Hard Way, starring Ida Lupino and Dennis Morgan; The Sky's the Limit (1943), starring with Fred Astaire; the wartime film This Is the Army (1943) with Ronald Reagan; and finally Thank Your Lucky Stars. During World War II, she was a regular volunteer at the Hollywood Canteen, where she danced with servicemen and signed hundreds of autographs. She was featured with Robert Hutton, among many others, in the Warner Bros. film Hollywood Canteen (1944). In 1946 Leslie's career took a dive when she took Warner Brothers to court in order to get released from her contract based on moral and religious grounds because of the parts they kept giving her. She wanted more serious and mature roles. In 1947, the Catholic Theatre Guild gave Leslie an award because of her "consistent refusal to use her talents and art in film productions of objectionable character." As a result of this, Jack Warner used his influence to blacklist her from other major Hollywood studios. From this point on Leslie had a more irregular film career. In 1947, she signed a two-picture contract with the poverty row studio Eagle-Lion Films. The first one was Repeat Performance (1947), a film noir. The other was Northwest Stampede (1948) in which she performed with James Craig. In 1952, she signed a short-term deal with Republic Pictures. One of the films she made for Republic was Flight Nurse (1953). Her last film was The Revolt of Mamie Stover (1956). However, she continued making sporadic appearances in television shows while her children were at school. She retired from acting in 1991, after appearing in the TV film Fire in the Dark. Leslie died on October 12, 2015, in Los Angeles, California. She was 90. Her survivors include her two children and one sister, Betty. On October 8, 1960, Joan Leslie received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1560 Vine Street. In 1999, she was one of the 250 actresses nominated for the American Film Institute's selection of the 25 greatest female screen legends to have debuted before 1950. On August 12, 2006, she received a Golden Boot Award for her contributions to Western television shows and movies.

Known For

Mary

Yankee Doodle Dandy

Self

Curtains for Roy Earle

Velma

High Sierra

Sheila Page

Repeat Performance

Katherine 'Katie' Blaine

The Hard Way

Self

Hollywood Gangster

Laurie Bidwell Isham

Man in the Saddle

Donna Foster

Born to Be Bad

Julie Adams

Rhapsody in Blue

Pat Dixon

Thank Your Lucky Stars

Joan Manion

The Sky's the Limit

Eileen Dibble

This Is the Army

Gracie Williams

Sergeant York

Self

Hollywood Canteen

(archive footage)

Showbiz Goes to War

Patricia Stanley

The Male Animal

Mary Coster

The Wagons Roll at Night

Annalee Johnson

The Revolt of Mamie Stover

Self

Public Enemies: The Golden Age of the Gangster Film

Sally Maris

Woman They Almost Lynched

Mary Clover

The Great Mr. Nobody

Garnet Hale

Jubilee Trail

Ellen Hanley

Hellgate

Mary Kimber

Toughest Man in Arizona

Janie Conway

Janie Gets Married

Mary Matthews

Thieves Fall Out

Young Patricia Falconer

Men with Wings

Patsy

High School

Connie Reed

Two Guys from Milwaukee

Lt. Polly Davis

Flight Nurse

Judy Jones

Cinderella Jones

Receptionist (uncredited)

Nine Lives Are Not Enough

Alice Purdee (as Joan Brodel)

Alice in Movieland

Shelley Stanton

Laddie

Chris Johnson

Northwest Stampede

Mary Keegan

The Keegans

Wendy Conway (as Joan Brodel)

Two Thoroughbreds

Party Guest (uncredited)

Susan and God

College Girl (uncredited)

Star Dust

Mayme, Journalism Student (uncredited)

Nancy Drew... Reporter

Autograph Seeker (uncredited)

Love Affair

Daphne Lattimer

The Skipper Surprised His Wife

Self

James Cagney: Top of the World

Claudia

Hill Number One: A Story of Faith and Inspiration

Sally Sawyer

Too Young to Know

Sarah Moffit

Hell's Outpost

Jones' Sister (uncredited)

Foreign Correspondent

Betsy Phillips

Winter Carnival

Marie Jeanette (uncredited)

Camille

Sandy Hannah

Charley Hannah

Sergeant York: Of God and Country

Self (uncredited)

I Am an American

Self

Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History

Party Guest

Turn Back the Clock

Self (segment 'Yankee Doodle Dandy') (archive footage)

The Voice That Thrilled the World

Stars on Horseback

Self (archive footage) (uncredited)

So You Want to Be in Pictures

Girl (as Joan Brodel)

Young as You Feel

Ruthie

Fire in the Dark

Herself

Parade of Aquatic Champions

Sally Smith / Prudence / Katrina

Where Do We Go from Here?

Self

Inside the Dream Factory

Self

Gary Cooper: The Face of a Hero

Self

Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1930s: Dancing Away the Great Depression