Early life
Crain was born in Barstow, California, to George A. Crain, a school teacher, and Loretta Carr; she was of Irish heritage on her mother's side, and of English and distant French descent on her father's.She moved to Los Angeles, California, as a young child.An excellent ice skater, Crain first attracted attention when she was crowned Miss Pan Pacific at the Pan-Pacific Auditorium in Los Angeles. Later, while still in high school, she was asked to make a screen test opposite Orson Welles. She did not get the part, but in 1943, at age 18, she appeared in a bit part in the film The Gang's All Here.
Career
Crain first received critical acclaim when she starred in Winged Victory (1944). She co-starred in 1945 with Dana Andrews in the musical film State Fair, in which Louanne Hogan dubbed Crain's singing numbers. After that, Crain often had singing parts in films, and they were invariably dubbed, in most cases by Hogan. Also in 1945, Crain starred in Leave Her to Heaven with Gene Tierney. Her ice skating ability was on display in the 1946 film, Margie, in which she and Conrad Janis danced around the ice rink as her boyfriend, Alan Young, slipped and stumbled his way along the ice.
In 1949, Crain appeared in three films — A Letter to Three Wives, The Fan and Pinky, the latter earning her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. Pinky was controversial, since it told the story of a light-skinned African-American woman who passes for white in the Northern United States. Although Lena Horne and other black actresses were considered, Darryl F. Zanuck chose to cast a white actress for fear of racial backlash.
Crain starred opposite Myrna Loy and Clifton Webb in the 1950 biographical film Cheaper by the Dozen. Next, Crain paired up with Cary Grant for the Joseph L. Mankiewicz production of the offbeat drama People Will Talk (1951). Despite Jeanne heavily campaigning for the female lead, Anne Baxter was initially cast in the part, but when she had to forfeit due to pregnancy, Crain was given the role after all. Shortly after, she starred in Charles Brackett's first film The Model and the Marriage Broker (1951). Cast in May 1951, Crain was Brackett's first choice for the role. Crain was reunited with Loy for Belles on Their Toes (1952), the sequel to Cheaper by the Dozen.
While still at 20th Century Fox, Crain played a young wife quickly losing her mind amidst high-seas intrigue in Dangerous Crossing (1953), co-starring Michael Rennie. Crain then starred in a string of films for Universal Pictures, including a notable pairing with Kirk Douglas in Man Without a Star (1955).
Crain showed her dancing skills in 1955's Gentlemen Marry Brunettes co-starring Jane Russell, Alan Young and Rudy Vallee. The production was filmed on location in Paris, France. The film was based on the Anita Loos sequel to Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Gentlemen Marry Brunettes was popular[citation needed] throughout Europe at the time and was released in France as A Paris Pour les Quatre (To Paris for the Four), and in Belgium as Cevieren Te Parijs. Later in the 1950s, Crain, Russell and another actress formed a short-lived singing and dancing lounge act on the Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada.
In 1956, Crain starred opposite Glenn Ford, Russ Tamblyn and Broderick Crawford in the Western film The Fastest Gun Alive directed by Russell Rouse. In 1957, she played a socialite who helps a floundering singer and comedian (Frank Sinatra) redeem himself in The Joker Is Wild.
In 1959, Crain appeared in a CBS special television production of Meet Me in St. Louis. Also starring in the broadcast were Loy, Walter Pidgeon, Jane Powell and Ed Wynn, with top billing going to Tab Hunter. Film roles became fewer in the 1960s as Crain went into semi-retirement. She appeared as Nefertiti in the Italian production of Nefertiti, Queen of the Nile (1961) with Edmund Purdom and Vincent Price. During this period Crain appeared - for the second time - as one of the mystery guests on the game show What's My Line? and made several guest appearances on Burke's Law, a detective television series. She starred again with Dana Andrews in Hot Rods To Hell (1967). Her last films were Skyjacked (1972) and The Night God Screamed (1975).
Personal life
At the top of her stardom, in the late 1940s and early 1950s, Crain was nicknamed 'Hollywood's Number One party girl', and she was quoted saying that she was invited to at least 200 parties a year.Against her mother's wishes, on December 31, 1946, Crain married Paul Brinkman, a former RKO Pictures contract player credited as Paul Brooks. The first of their seven children was born the following April.
During the early 1950s, Crain was earning approximately $3,500 per week. Crain and her husband bought a large home for their growing family on Roxbury Drive in Beverly Hills, California. The home can be seen and is described by Bette Davis in candid footage of a driving sequence in the film The Star (1952).
The marriage was rocky for some years. In the mid-1950s, Crain obtained an interlocutory divorce decree, each spouse claiming the other had been unfaithful (she also claimed Brinkman had been abusive), but the couple reconciled on the eve of their 11th wedding anniversary.
In the early 1960s she was one of many conservative actors who spent their time fervently fighting for the Republican cause. Others included James Stewart, Walter Pidgeon, Donna Reed, Jerry Lewis, Wendell Corey, and Troy Donahue.
Crain and her husband remained married, although they lived separately in Santa Barbara, California, until Brinkman's death in October 2003.
Crain died a few months later and it was later confirmed that the cause was a heart attack.Crain's funeral Mass was held at the Old Santa Barbara Mission. Crain is buried in the Brinkman family plot at Santa Barbara Cemetery. The Brinkmans were survived by five adult children, including Paul Brinkman Jr., a television executive, most known for his work on the television series JAG.
Legacy
Crain's career is fully documented by a collection of memorabilia about her assembled by Charles J. Finlay, a longtime publicist at 20th Century Fox. The Jeanne Crain Collection resides at the Cinema Archives at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. These archives also hold the papers of Ingrid Bergman, Frank Capra, Clint Eastwood and others.Filmography Film Year Film Role Notes 1943 The Gang's All Here Chorus Girl/Pool Party Guest uncredited 1944 Home in Indiana 'Char' Bruce In the Meantime, Darling Margaret 'Maggie' Preston Winged Victory Helen 1945 State Fair Margy Frake a.k.a. Rodgers and Hammerstein's State Fair also Soundtrack Leave Her to Heaven Ruth Berent 1946 Centennial Summer Julia Rogers also Soundtrack Margie Marjorie 'Margie' MacDuff also Soundtrack 1948 You Were Meant for Me Peggy Mayhew Apartment for Peggy Peggy Taylor also Soundtrack 1949 A Letter to Three Wives Deborah Bishop The Fan Lady Margaret 'Meg' Windermere a.k.a. Lady Windermere's Fan Pinky Patricia 'Pinky' Johnson Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actress 1950 Cheaper by the Dozen Ann Gilbreth I'll Get By Jeanne Crain uncredited Cameo appearance 1951 Take Care of My Little Girl Elizabeth 'Liz' Erickson People Will Talk Deborah Higgins The Model and the Marriage Broker Kitty Bennett 1952 Belles on Their Toes Ann Gilbreth a.k.a. Belles on Their Toes: The Further Adventures of the Gilbreth Family O. Henry's Full House Della Young Segment The Gift of the Magi 1953 Dangerous Crossing Ruth Stanton Bowman Vicki Jill Lynn City of Bad Men Linda Culligan 1954 Duel in the Jungle Marian Taylor 1955 Man Without a Star Reed Bowman Gentlemen Marry Brunettes Connie Jones/Mitzi Jones also Soundtrack The Second Greatest Sex Liza McClure also Soundtrack 1956 The Fastest Gun Alive Dora Temple 1957 The Tattered Dress Diane Blane The Joker Is Wild Letty Page a.k.a. All the Way 1960 Guns of the Timberland Laura Riley 1961 Twenty Plus Two Linda Foster a.k.a. It Started in Tokyo Nefertiti, Queen of the Nile Tenet/Nefertiti Original title: Nefertiti, regina del Nilo 1962 Madison Avenue Peggy Shannon Pontius Pilate Claudia Procula Original title: Ponzio Pilato 1963 Invasion 1700 Helen Original title: Col ferro e col fuoco a.k.a. Daggers of Blood a.k.a. With Fire and Sword 1967 Hot Rods to Hell Peg Phillips a.k.a. 52 Miles to Terror 1971 The Night God Screamed Fanny Pierce a.k.a. Scream 1972 Skyjacked Mrs. Clara Shaw a.k.a. Sky Terror Television Year Title Role Notes 1955 Star Stage Nancy 1 episode 1956 The Ford Television Theatre Joyce Randall 1 episode 1958 Playhouse 90 Daisy Buchanan 1 episode Schlitz Playhouse of Stars Ruth Elliot 1 episode 1959 Meet Me in St. Louis Rose Smith TV movie Goodyear Theatre Lila Babrek Barnes 1 episode Riverboat Laura Sutton 1 episode 1960-62 G.E. True Theater Hope/Marion Miller 3 episodes 1963 The Dick Powell Theatre Elsie 1 episode 1964-65 Burke's Law Amy Booth / Lorraine Turner / Polly Martin 3 episodes 1968 The Danny Thomas Hour Frances Merrill 1 episode The Name of the Game Mrs. McKendricks 1 episode 1972 Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law Lily MacMurdy 1 episode
