Gail Russell
| Gail Russell | |
|---|---|
Russell, 1946
|
|
| Born |
Elizabeth L. Russell September 21, 1924 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | August 26, 1961 (aged 36) Brentwood, Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Liver damage resulting from alcoholism |
| Resting place | Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1943–1961 |
| Spouse(s) | Guy Madison (m. 1949; div. 1954) |
Gail Russell (September 21, 1924 – August 26, 1961) was an American film and television actress.
She was born Elizabeth L. Russell to George and Gladys (Barnet) Russell in Chicago, Illinois, and then moved to the Los Angeles, California, area when she was a teenager. Her father was initially a musician but later worked for Lockheed Corporation. Before she ventured into acting, she had planned to be a commercial artist.
Russell's beauty brought her to the attention of Paramount Pictures in 1942, and she signed a long-term contract with that studio when she was 18. Although she was almost clinically shy and had no acting experience, Paramount had great expectations for her and employed an acting coach to work with her.
At the age of 19 she made her film debut in the 1943 film Henry Aldrich Gets Glamour. Russell appeared in several more films in the early and mid-1940s, the most notable being The Uninvited (1944) with Ray Milland and Our Hearts Were Young and Gay (1944), in which she co-starred with Diana Lynn. Russell later appeared in the more popular films Calcutta (1947) with Alan Ladd and the two with John Wayne, Angel and the Badman (1947) and Wake of the Red Witch (1948).
She continued working after 1947 and married actor Guy Madison in 1949, but by 1950 it was well known that she had become a victim of alcoholism, and so Paramount did not renew her contract. She had started drinking on the set of The Uninvited to ease her paralyzing stage fright and lack of confidence. Alcohol made a shambles of her career, appearance and personal life. In January 1954, in a court in Santa Monica, California, Russell pleaded guilty to a charge of drunkenness, receiving a $150 fine. The fine was in lieu of a jail sentence, with the provision that she not use intoxicants or attend night spots for two years. In the same court session, she received a continuance on a charge of driving while drunk.
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