Carole Landis
| Carole Landis | |
|---|---|
Landis in Topper Returns (1941)
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| Born |
Frances Lillian Mary Ridste January 1, 1919 Fairchild, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Died | July 5, 1948 (aged 29) Pacific Palisades, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Suicide |
| Resting place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale |
| Education | San Bernardino High School |
| Occupation | Actress, Singer |
| Years active | 1937–1948 |
| Spouse(s) |
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Carole Landis (January 1, 1919 – July 5, 1948) was an American film and stage actress, who worked as a contract-player for Twentieth Century-Fox in the 1940s. Her breakthrough role was as the female lead in the 1940 film One Million B.C., with United Artists. Landis was known as "The Ping Girl" and "The Chest" because of her curvy figure.
Landis committed suicide on July 5, 1948, at the age of 29.
Landis was born Frances Lillian Mary Ridste in Fairchild, Wisconsin. She was the youngest of five children (two of whom died in childhood) born to Clara Ridste (née Stentek), a Polish farmer's daughter, and Norwegian-American Alfred Ridste, a "drifting railroad mechanic" who abandoned the family after Landis' birth. According to Landis' biographer E.J. Felming, circumstantial evidence supports that Landis was likely the biological child of her mother's second husband, Charles Fenner. Fenner left Landis' mother in April 1921 and remarried a few months later.
In 1923, Landis' family moved to San Bernardino, California. Landis's mother worked menial jobs to support the family. At the age of 15, Landis dropped out of San Bernardino High School and set forth on a career path to show business. She started out as a hula dancer in a San Francisco nightclub and later sang with a dance band. She bleached her hair blonde and changed her name to "Carole Landis" after her favorite actress, Carole Lombard. After saving $100 she moved to Hollywood.
Landis made her film debut as an extra in the 1937 film A Star Is Born; she also appeared in various horse operas. She posed for hundreds of cheesecake photographs. She continued appearing in bit parts until 1940 when Hal Roach cast her as a cave girl in One Million B.C.. The movie was a sensation and turned Landis into a star. A press agent nicknamed her "The Ping Girl" (because "she makes you purr").
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