Hello Body House Members;
We’re heading into autumn and the nights are getting chillier, but I’ve got a lovely and glamorous classic movie star to keep you warm.
This month we’ve got Rhonda Fleming, am American actress and singer.
She was nicknamed the “Queen of Technicolor” for the way her striking red hair, green eyes, and porcelain complexion lit up the screen at the inception of color film.
It could be said that Fleming was born to be a star as she came into this world in Hollywood, CA.
She rose to fame in the 1940s and 1950s, she appeared in more than forty films, including thrillers, westerns, and adventure stories.
Some of her most notable leading men were Gregory Peck, Kirk Douglas, and Bing Crosby.
Rhonda was not just busy making movies, she was also a busy wife — she was married SIX times!
She had one child during her first marriage to Thomas Lane, a son named Kent Lane, who later became an actor and writer.
Clearly she took great care of herself during her life as Fleming passed away in 2020 at age 97.
Discover more about RHONDA FLEMING below…
Thank you for your interest in The Body House.
Stay Sensual, Dyann Bridges – Writer and VO Actor
In the Beginning…
Rhonda Fleming was born Marilyn Louis on August 10, 1923 in Hollywood, California and passed on October 14, 2020 at the age of 97, in Santa Monica, California.
Her death was from complications from aspiration pneumonia—a condition where foreign material, such as food or liquids, enters the lungs, potentially leading to serious infection or respiratory distress
Fleming was an American film and television actress and singer who performed in more than 40 films, mostly in the 1940s and 1950s.
Fleming became renowned as one of the most glamorous actresses of her day, nicknamed the “Queen of Technicolor” because her red hair, green eyes and porcelain skin photographed extremely well in that medium.
Rhonda Fleming grew up in Hollywood, just blocks away from the major film studios.
Her mother, Effie Graham, had been a model and actress in silent films, which influenced Rhonda’s early interest in show business.
Rhonda attended Beverly Hills High School. Even at that young age, she was known for her beauty and poise. These traits would later become integral to her Hollywood image.
Early Career & Rise to Fame
Rhonda’s entry into film came somewhat serendipitously, if not surprisingly.
While still a teenager, she was spotted by Hollywood talent agent Henry Willson, who was known for discovering and renaming young talent.
Fleming would later say, “It’s so weird … He stopped me crossing the street. It kinda scared me a little bit – I was only 16 or 17. He signed me to a seven-year contract without a screen test. It was a Cinderella story, but those things could happen in those days.”
He changed her name from Marilyn Louis to Rhonda Fleming and went on to debut in a small, uncredited role in “In Old Oklahoma” (1943). It starred John Wayne. From there, she began to land more substantial parts.
A pivotal moment in her career came when famed director Alfred Hitchcock, cast her in “Spellbound“ (1945), starring Ingrid Bergman and Gregory Peck.
Though her role was relatively minor, because it was a highly successful Hitchcock film, it helped raise her profile in the industry.
Soon after, she signed a contract with Paramount Pictures, and later with Universal-International. It was at Universal where she gained attention in a long string of Technicolor films. Her features— red hair and green eyes — made her stand out dramatically.
It earned her the nickname “The Queen of Technicolor.” **Although there seems to be a number of beautiful actresses that garnered this name of the time.**
Her real breakthrough role though was in “Out of the Past“ (1947), opposite Robert Mitchum—a film that is now considered a film noir classic.
This solidified her reputation not just as a beautiful screen presence, but also as a talented and charismatic actress.
Final Years and Legacy
Fleming made 40 movies in her career and worked on many memorable projects.
Such as. Out of the Past (1947), A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court (1949), The Spiral Staircase (1946), and Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957).
Her career also extended into television and stage work in the 1960s and ’70s, though she gradually stepped away from acting by the early 1980s.
In May 1957, Fleming began performing a successful nightclub act at the Tropicana in Las Vegas. (The Tropicana was demolished in 2024).
Fleming later said, “I just wanted to know if I could get out on that stage – if I could do it. And I did! … My heart was to do more stage work, but I had a son, so I really couldn’t, but that was in my heart.”
In 1960, Fleming described herself as “semi-retired,” having earned money through real-estate investments. That year, she continued her nightclub touring. This time in Palm Springs as well as, Las Vegas.
Television & Music
During the 1950s, 1960s and into the 1970s, Fleming frequently appeared on television in many guest-starring roles.
Some of the shows include; The Red Skelton Show, The Best of Broadway, The Dick Powell Show, Wagon Train, Police Woman, Ellery Queen and The Love Boat.
In 1958, Fleming recorded her only LP, entitled Rhonda.
For the album, which was released by Columbia Records, she blended current songs such as “Around the World” with standards such as “Love Me or Leave Me” and “I’ve Got You Under My Skin“. Conductor-arranger Frank Comstock provided the musical direction.
Later Career
In the 1960s, Fleming became involved with other businesses and began performing regularly on stage and in Las Vegas.
One of her final film roles was a bit part as Edith von Secondburg in the comedy The Nude Bomb (1980) starring Don Adams. She also appeared in Waiting for the Wind (1990).
Fleming has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
In 2007, a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars was dedicated to her.
RHONDA FLEMING’S TOP 3 MOVIES
OUT OF THE PAST (1947)
STARRING ROBERT MITCHUM, KIRK DOUGLAS & JANE GREER
DIRECTED BY JACQUES TOURNEAU
CRY DANGER (1951)
STARRING – DICK POWELL
DIRECTED BY – ROBERT PARISH & DICK POWELL
SPELLBOUND (1945)
STARRING GREGORY PECK & INGRID BERGMAN
DIRECTED BY ALFRED HITCHCOCK
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RHONDA FLEMING PHOTO GALLERY
RHONDA FLEMING’S LOVE LIFE
She was married SIX times!
HUSBAND #1 – Thomas Wade Lane Jr. (m. 1940–c. 1947): Her high‑school sweetheart and an interior decorator. They had one son, Kent Lane, born in 1941. Divorced.
HUSBAND #2 – Dr. Lewis V. Morrill (m. 1952–1958): A Beverly Hills surgeon. Divorced.
HUSBAND #3 – Lang Jeffries (m. 1960–1962): An actor whom she met while filming. Divorced.
HUSBAND #4 –Hall Bartlett (m. 1966–1972): A producer-director. Divorced.
HUSBAND #5 – Ted Mann (m. 1977/78–2001): The movie‑theater mogul behind Mann Theatres, their marriage lasted until his death. They lived in luxurious, privacy‑valued adjacent condos in Century City.
HUSBAND #6 – Darol Wayne Carlson (m. 2003–2017): Her final marriage. Darol was Fleming’s 5th husband’s — Ted Mann’s — best friend Carlson passed away in 2017.
Legacy…
At the time of Rhonda Fleming’s passing, she was survived by Kent, her son and only child, her grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren.
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Discover more beautiful classic movies stars here:
GALE ROBBINS
MERLE OBERON
POLA NEGRI
ANNE BAXTER
GLORIA GRAHAME
ROMY SCHNEIDER
ROSALIND RUSSELL
Don’t Forget to Get That Beautiful Mug on a Mug!
