Joan Banks Explained

Joan Banks
Birth Date:October 30, 1918
Birth Place:Petersburg, West Virginia, U.S.
Death Place:Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation:Actress
Yearsactive:1950–1967
Children:2

Joan Banks (October 30, 1918 – January 18, 1998) was an American film, television, stage, and radio actress (described as "a soapbox queen"),[1] who often appeared in dramas with her husband, Frank Lovejoy.

Early life

Banks attended a school of Russian ballet as a little girl and excelled as a swimmer during high school.[2] Her talent earned her a scholarship to the American Academy of Dramatic Art,[3] and she attended Hunter College.

Career

Radio

Banks first appeared on radio with Walter O'Keefe in 1936, when she was 18.[2] At that same age, she became the first "feminine stooge" for Stoopnagle and Budd on their show.[4] Her other roles on radio programs include:

Program Role
Bringing Up FatherNora [5]
Buck Private and His Girl"snooty" deb[6]
Gangbustersvarious
Her Honor, Nancy Jamessecretary
John's Other WifeRoberta Lansing[7]
My Friend IrmaJane Stacy [8]
The Home of the Brave[9] N/A
The O'NeillsPeggy O'Neill Kayden
This Day Is OursEleanor MacDonald[10]
Valiant Lady Joan Hargrave-Scott[11]
Young Widder Brown Camilla [12]

Film

Banks began her Hollywood career with small roles in such films as Cry Danger (1951) and Washington Story (1952). She became better known in the 1950s and early 1960s for her many appearances as a supporting actress in films such as My Pal Gus.[13]

Television

On March 25, 1958, Banks co-starred with husband Lovejoy in an episode of his Meet McGraw program.[14] In 1972, Banks appeared in the CBS movie Return to Peyton Place.[15]

She made five appearances on Perry Mason, including four roles as the murderer: in 1957, she played Karen Alder in "The Case of the Negligent Nymph"; in 1958, she played Valerie Brewster in "The Case of the Fancy Figures"; in 1960, she played Mrs. Joseph Manley in "The Case of the Mythical Monkeys"; in 1961, she played Rhonda Houseman in "The Case of the Left-Handed Liar"; and in 1964, she played Nellie Conway in "The Case of the Woeful Widower". In 1958, she appeared as Clara Hood in the episode, "Fatal Memory," on the TV series "Wanted: Dead or Alive." She also made four appearances on National Velvet, two appearances on Alfred Hitchcock Presents,[1] and single appearances on shows such as Ford Theatre,[16] I Love Lucy, Private Secretary, Date with the Angels, The Rough Riders, Mr. Adams and Eve, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, Bewitched, and again two appearances on Hazel.

On October 2, 1962, Frank Lovejoy died of a heart attack in bed at the couple's New York residence. At the time, Banks and he were appearing together in a New Jersey stage production of Gore Vidal's play The Best Man, but they had been off the night he was stricken. Banks' career in radio continued after her work in television subsided, and she appeared in 33 episodes of CBS Radio Mystery Theater from 1974 to 1980.

Personal life

Banks married fellow actor Frank Lovejoy, whom she met when both had roles on the radio soap opera This Day Is Ours.[1] The couple had two children, Judy and Steve.[17] She died of lung cancer on January 18, 1998.[18]

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
1951Cry Danger Alice Fletcher
1951Bright Victory Janet Grayson
1952Washington Story Mrs. Vatek
1952My Pal Gus Ivy Tolliver
1956Alfred Hitchcock Presents Margaret Season 1 Episode 30: "Never Again"
1957Alfred Hitchcock Presents Lee Season 2 Episode 24: "The Cream of the Jest"
1957Mister Cory Lily
1960The Many Loves of Dobie GillisMrs. Edna GilroyEpisode: "Here Comes the Groom"
1960Let's Make Love Secretary Uncredited
1961Return to Peyton Place Mrs. Humphries Uncredited

Notes and References

  1. News: D'Arcy. Jeanne. Role She Enjoys Most Is Being Mrs. Lovejoy. The Logansport Press . The Logansport Press. March 19, 1958. 4. Newspapers.com. March 23, 2015.
  2. News: New Cast Members. Harrisburg Telegraph . Harrisburg Telegraph. May 24, 1941. 20. Newspapers.com. March 22, 2015.
  3. News: Stars on Parade. The Evening Independent . The Evening Independent. October 31, 1938. 10. Newspapers.com. March 21, 2015.
  4. News: Femme Stooge Makes Good . May 4, 2022 . Radio Daily . February 10, 1937 . 2.
  5. Book: Dunning, John. On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio. registration. 120. bringing up father radio.. 1998. Oxford University Press. 978-0-19-507678-3. Internet Archive.
  6. News: Just An Act. The Evening News . The Evening News. July 18, 1941. 18. Newspapers.com. March 23, 2015.
  7. Thursday's Highlights. Radio and Television Mirror. June 1940. 14. 2. 48. 1 March 2015.
  8. Dunning, John. (1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio. Oxford University Press. . p. 472.
  9. News: Hopes to Be Singer. The Evening News . The Evening News. January 27, 1941. 12. Newspapers.com. March 21, 2015.
  10. Senseney. Dan. What's New from Coast to Coast. Radio and Television Mirror. September 1940. 14. 5. 36–37, 72. 8 March 2015.
  11. Buxton, Frank and Owen, Bill (1972). The Big Broadcast: 1920–1950. The Viking Press. . p. 249.
  12. DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960. McFarland & Company, Inc. . p. 22.
  13. News: My Pal Gus ad. Freeport Journal-Standard . Freeport Journal-Standard. March 17, 1953. 9. Newspapers.com. March 23, 2015.
  14. News: Top Viewing Today. Independent . Independent. March 25, 1958. 26. Newspapers.com. March 23, 2015.
  15. News: Small Town Bigotry in 'Return to Peyton Place'. The Odessa American. March 12, 1972. 74. Newspapers.com. March 24, 2015.
  16. News: Vernon. Terry. Tele-Vues. Independent . Long Beach Independent. June 28, 1956. 44. Newspapers.com. March 23, 2015.
  17. News: Easter Sunday. The la Crosse Tribune . The La Crosse Tribune. March 25, 1958. 8. Newspapers.com. March 22, 2015.
  18. https://www.newspapers.com/image/160262380/?terms=Joan%20Banks&match=1 Los Angeles Times, January 28, 1998, p.18.