Dorothy Provine(1935-2010)
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Flashy, leggy, bouffant blonde Dorothy Provine was a solid screen
representation of the Kennedyesque era when life seemed so full of
fun, so innocent and so optimistic. This sparkling beauty also gave TV
audiences a double dose blast to the past via her popular co-starring
roles on late 50s/early 60s series TV. A talented girl whose comedic
gifts were never sufficiently tapped into by Hollywood, Dorothy
nevertheless secured a dedicated fan base merely on her sunny smile,
creamy good looks and carefree radiance alone.
Graduating from the University of Washington with a degree in Theater
Arts. Hollywood folklore has it that the South Dakota-born (but raised
in San Francisco) actress landed the role of the notorious femme bank
robber in the low-budget "B" film
The Bonnie Parker Story (1958)
just three days after arriving in Hollywood. It certainly proved to be
a lucky break, although it didn't clinch the movie stardom she might
have expected. On the contrary, Dorothy was forced to languish in such
predicable programmers as
Riot in Juvenile Prison (1959)
and
Live Fast, Die Young (1958),
while playing the gigantic, radiation-exposed love interest in the
poorly-executed
The 30 Foot Bride of Candy Rock (1959)
opposite rolypoly comedian
Lou Costello in his only film
effort after breaking up with partner
Bud Abbott. Fortunately, TV made up for her
lack of success on film.
Signed up by Warner Bros. and seemingly better suited for the small
screen, Dorothy became one of the more visible female faces on TV and
would be best remembered for her period roles as 1890s saloon singer
Rocky Shaw, the friend of "Gold Rush" fortune seekers
Roger Moore and
Jeff York in
The Alaskans (1959) and, better
yet, as Pinky Pinkham, the Charleston-dancing flapper in the Warner
Bros. adventure series
The Roaring 20's (1960).
A vivacious guest on scores of other TV shows, Dorothy occasionally
reappeared in lightweight 1960s films wherein she generally projected a
squeaky-clean image playing various sparkly housewives, girlfriends and
sisters. She was part of the all-star zaniness in
It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963)
as Milton Berle's wife; appeared as
Jack Lemmon's bright-eyed better half in the
suburban comedy
Good Neighbor Sam (1964);
played Hayley Mills's beleaguered older sis
in the feline caper
That Darn Cat! (1965); had a
slam-bang cameo as Lily Olay the barroom singer who belts out the
memorable "He Shouldn't-A, Hadn't-A, Oughtn't-A Swang on Me" in the
slapstick farce
The Great Race (1965); showed up
as the true-blue gal pining for
Jim Hutton in the bank heist comedy
Who's Minding the Mint? (1967);
and made her last silver screen appearance alongside
Dick Van Dyke in the comedy
Never a Dull Moment (1968),
which did not live up to its title.
During this time Dorothy occasionally made use of her vocal talents on
the live stage, and appeared briefly as a duo with
George Burns in a 1963 Las Vegas
nightclub act, replacing Burns' ailing wife
Gracie Allen, who by this time had fully
retired due to serious heart problems. Eventually, however, she lost
interest in her career.
Dorothy abruptly left the business in 1969 after marrying director
Robert Day, who was involved in
several of the Tarzan movies. She showed up a couple of times on TV in
the 70s but, for the most part, found her self-imposed retirement
completely to her liking. The couple moved permanently to Bainbridge
Island, Washington in 1981, and there she found contentment simply
gardening and tending to her animals. They had one son,
Robert Day Jr., who became a musician.
Dorothy battled emphysema in her last years and died at a nearby
hospice on April 25, 2010, at age 75.
representation of the Kennedyesque era when life seemed so full of
fun, so innocent and so optimistic. This sparkling beauty also gave TV
audiences a double dose blast to the past via her popular co-starring
roles on late 50s/early 60s series TV. A talented girl whose comedic
gifts were never sufficiently tapped into by Hollywood, Dorothy
nevertheless secured a dedicated fan base merely on her sunny smile,
creamy good looks and carefree radiance alone.
Graduating from the University of Washington with a degree in Theater
Arts. Hollywood folklore has it that the South Dakota-born (but raised
in San Francisco) actress landed the role of the notorious femme bank
robber in the low-budget "B" film
The Bonnie Parker Story (1958)
just three days after arriving in Hollywood. It certainly proved to be
a lucky break, although it didn't clinch the movie stardom she might
have expected. On the contrary, Dorothy was forced to languish in such
predicable programmers as
Riot in Juvenile Prison (1959)
and
Live Fast, Die Young (1958),
while playing the gigantic, radiation-exposed love interest in the
poorly-executed
The 30 Foot Bride of Candy Rock (1959)
opposite rolypoly comedian
Lou Costello in his only film
effort after breaking up with partner
Bud Abbott. Fortunately, TV made up for her
lack of success on film.
Signed up by Warner Bros. and seemingly better suited for the small
screen, Dorothy became one of the more visible female faces on TV and
would be best remembered for her period roles as 1890s saloon singer
Rocky Shaw, the friend of "Gold Rush" fortune seekers
Roger Moore and
Jeff York in
The Alaskans (1959) and, better
yet, as Pinky Pinkham, the Charleston-dancing flapper in the Warner
Bros. adventure series
The Roaring 20's (1960).
A vivacious guest on scores of other TV shows, Dorothy occasionally
reappeared in lightweight 1960s films wherein she generally projected a
squeaky-clean image playing various sparkly housewives, girlfriends and
sisters. She was part of the all-star zaniness in
It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963)
as Milton Berle's wife; appeared as
Jack Lemmon's bright-eyed better half in the
suburban comedy
Good Neighbor Sam (1964);
played Hayley Mills's beleaguered older sis
in the feline caper
That Darn Cat! (1965); had a
slam-bang cameo as Lily Olay the barroom singer who belts out the
memorable "He Shouldn't-A, Hadn't-A, Oughtn't-A Swang on Me" in the
slapstick farce
The Great Race (1965); showed up
as the true-blue gal pining for
Jim Hutton in the bank heist comedy
Who's Minding the Mint? (1967);
and made her last silver screen appearance alongside
Dick Van Dyke in the comedy
Never a Dull Moment (1968),
which did not live up to its title.
During this time Dorothy occasionally made use of her vocal talents on
the live stage, and appeared briefly as a duo with
George Burns in a 1963 Las Vegas
nightclub act, replacing Burns' ailing wife
Gracie Allen, who by this time had fully
retired due to serious heart problems. Eventually, however, she lost
interest in her career.
Dorothy abruptly left the business in 1969 after marrying director
Robert Day, who was involved in
several of the Tarzan movies. She showed up a couple of times on TV in
the 70s but, for the most part, found her self-imposed retirement
completely to her liking. The couple moved permanently to Bainbridge
Island, Washington in 1981, and there she found contentment simply
gardening and tending to her animals. They had one son,
Robert Day Jr., who became a musician.
Dorothy battled emphysema in her last years and died at a nearby
hospice on April 25, 2010, at age 75.