Diana Lynn

2025-10-18T16:40:26Z

2601:188:CB82:D170:589A:E21C:7CE7:F834: /* Recognition */ Heading cleanup.

{{short description|American actress (1926–1971)}}
{{Use American English|date=July 2020}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2020}}

{{Infobox person
| name = Diana Lynn
| image = Diana Lynn 1952.JPG
| imagesize =
| caption = Lynn in 1952
| birth_name = Dolores Eartha Loehr
| birth_date = {{birth date|1926|7|5|mf=y}}
| birth_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|1971|12|18|1926|7|5}}
| death_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S.
| resting_place = Church of Heavenly Rest, New York
| awards = [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]]
| occupation = [[Actress]]
| years_active = 1939–1971
| spouse = {{marriage|John C. Lindsey|1948|1953|reason=div}}<br />{{marriage|Mortimer Hall|1956}}
| children = 4, including [[Dolly Hall]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com/show/170/Diana+Lynn/register.php|title=Diana Lynn - The Private Life and Times of Diana Lynn. Diana Lynn Pictures.|website=www.glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com}}</ref>
}}
'''Diana Marie Lynn''' (born '''Dolores Eartha Loehr,''' July 5, 1926<ref>Copy of birth certificate at [http://www.astro.com/astro-databank/File:Lynn_Diana_bc.png Astrodatabank]. The frequently reported date Oct. 7 appears to be incorrect.</ref> – December 18, 1971) was an American actress. She built her career by starring in [[Paramount Pictures]] films and various television series during the 1940s and 1950s. Two stars on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] are dedicated to her name.

==Early years==
Lynn was born in Los Angeles, California. Her father, Louis Loehr, was an oil supply executive, and her mother, Martha Loehr, was a concert pianist.<ref name=scs/> Lynn was considered a [[child prodigy]].<ref name=sj/> She began taking piano lessons at age 4,<ref name=bsdh/> and by the age of 12 was playing with the Los Angeles Junior Symphony Orchestra.

Lynn made her film debut playing the piano in ''They Shall Have Music''{{hsp}}<ref name=bsdh>{{cite news|last1=Coons|first1=Robbin|title=Dolly Gets Into Pictures And Is Now Diana Lynn|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2689710/big_spring_daily_herald/|work=Big Spring Daily Herald|date=June 4, 1943|page=2|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|access-date = June 25, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref> and was once again back at the keyboard, accompanying [[Susanna Foster]], in ''There's Magic in Music'', when it was decided that she had more potential than she had been allowed to show. [[Paramount Pictures]] changed her name to "Diana Lynn" and began casting her in films that allowed her to show her personality and developed her skills as an actress.

Her comedic scenes with [[Ginger Rogers]] in ''[[The Major and the Minor]]'' were well received, and in 1944 she co-starred in [[Preston Sturges]]' ''[[The Miracle of Morgan's Creek]]'' with [[Betty Hutton]]. She appeared in two [[The Aldrich Family|Henry Aldrich]] films and played writer [[Emily Kimbrough]] in two films ''[[Our Hearts Were Young and Gay (film)|Our Hearts Were Young and Gay]]'' and ''Our Hearts Were Growing Up'' both co-starring [[Gail Russell]].
[[File:Diana Lynn.jpg|thumb|left|Lynn in 1946]]
After a few more films, she was cast in one of the year's biggest successes, the comedy ''[[My Friend Irma (film)|My Friend Irma]]'' with [[Marie Wilson (American actress)|Marie Wilson]] as Irma, and [[Dean Martin]] and [[Jerry Lewis]] in their film debuts. The group reprised their roles for the [[sequel]] ''[[My Friend Irma Goes West]]'', and five years later Lynn was reunited with [[Martin and Lewis]] for one of their last films, ''[[You're Never Too Young]]''.

[[File:Guy Madison and Diana Lynn in "Texas, Brooklyn & Heaven".jpg|thumb|[[Guy Madison]] and Diana Lynn in [[Texas, Brooklyn & Heaven]], 1948]]
During the 1950s, Lynn acted in a number of films, portraying [[Spencer Tracy]]'s daughter in the crime drama ''[[The People Against O'Hara]]'' and the female lead in the much lampooned ''[[Bedtime for Bonzo]]'' opposite [[Ronald Reagan]]. Lynn co-starred as the schoolteacher in the 1955 film, ''[[The Kentuckian (1955 film)|The Kentuckian]]'', starring Burt Lancaster and Walter Matthau.
She also had many TV leading roles during the 1950s, particularly in the middle years of the decade. As a solo pianist, she released at least one single on [[Capitol Records]]<ref>{{cite web|last1=Abrams|first1=Steven|last2=Settlemier|first2=Tyrone|title=Capitol 500 – 1000, 78rpm numerical listing discography|url=http://www.78discography.com/Capitol500|work=The Online Discographical Project|access-date=October 12, 2012}}{{dead link|date=December 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> with backing by the [[Paul Weston]] orchestra.

==Stage==
[[File:Plunder of the Sun2-Diana Lynn&Glenn Ford.JPG|thumb|Diana Lynn and [[Glenn Ford]] in [[Plunder of the Sun]], 1953]]
In 1964, Lynn had a six-month stint on [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]], replacing [[Barbara Bel Geddes]] in ''[[Mary, Mary (play)|Mary, Mary]]''.<ref name=sj>{{cite news|title=Actress Diana Lynn Was Piano Playing Prodigy|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2687572/the_salina_journal/|work=The Salina Journal|date=February 17, 1965|page=16|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|access-date = June 25, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref> In the early 1950s, she starred with [[Maurice Evans (actor)|Maurice Evans]] in ''[[The Wild Duck]]'' on Broadway.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Hopper|first1=Hedda|title=Stanley Kramer to Produce Movie About 'U.N. Family'|url=http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1951/12/13/page/54/article/looking-at-hollywood|access-date=27 June 2015|work=Chicago Daily Tribune|date=December 13, 1951|page=Part 4-Page 8}}</ref>

She also starred in runs of ''[[The Moon Is Blue]]'' in the United States and the United Kingdom.<ref name=bp/>

==Recordings==
In 1947, a three-record album of Lynn's piano playing included Mozart's ''Rondo'', ''Laura'', and ''Body and Soul''.<ref>{{cite news|title=1940s star Diana Lynn died in December 1971|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2695187/the_kerrville_times/|work=The Kerrville Times|date=March 22, 1992|page=41|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|access-date = June 26, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref>

==Later years==
She acted frequently in television guest roles throughout the 1960s. By 1970, she had relocated to [[New York City]], where she was running a travel agency. She appeared in ''Company of Killers,'' a film made for television. Paramount then offered her a part in a new film, ''[[Play It as It Lays (film)|Play It as It Lays]]'', and after some consideration, Lynn accepted the offer and moved back to Los Angeles.<ref name=nyt/>

In 1968, Lynn invited her friend [[Mart Crowley]] to housesit for her while she was out of town. While at her house over those five weeks, Crowley wrote the majority of his groundbreaking play about [[LGBT]] life in America, [[The Boys in the Band (play)|''The Boys in the Band'']].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Brathwaite |first1=Lester Fabian |title=Mart Crowley Left Behind an Important if Imperfect Portrait of Gay Life |url=http://www.newnownext.com/mart-crowley-boys-in-the-band-playwright-dies/03/2020/ |website=NewNowNext.com |access-date=14 April 2020}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Lynn married architect John C. Lindsay December 18, 1948; they divorced in June 1953.<ref>{{cite news|title=Diana Lynn Divorces Criticizing Architect|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2695237/tucson_daily_citizen/|work=Tucson Daily Citizen|date=June 13, 1953|page=20|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|access-date = June 26, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref> Lynn was then married in 1956 to Mortimer Hall, son of ''New York Post'' publisher [[Dorothy Schiff]].<ref>{{Citation
| title = Nuptials on Dec. 7 for Diana Lynn
| newspaper = The New York Times
| pages = 119
| date = November 18, 1956
| url = http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70711FB35591B7B93CAA8178AD95F428585F9&scp=49&sq=diana%20lynn&st=cse}}</ref>

Lynn's daughter [[Dolly Hall]] is a film producer.{{Citation needed |date=August 2022}}

Another daughter, Margaret "Daisy" Hall,<ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=http://www.contactmusic.com/movie-review/treasureisland1999|title=Treasure Island (1999)|author=Max Messier|work=Contactmusic.com|date=November 2005 }}</ref> is an alumna of the [[Emma Willard School]] for Girls in Troy, New York, and as an actress, has starred in numerous French- and lesser-known American-produced films, during the 1980s, '90s, and 2000s.<ref>{{cite web
|last = Rader
|first = Ron
|title = Dolly Hall - bio info
|publisher = DollyHall.net
|year = 2006
|url = http://dollyhall.net/bioinfo.html
|access-date = 2007-08-19
|url-status = dead
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070927040423/http://dollyhall.net/bioinfo.html
|archive-date = 2007-09-27
}}</ref><ref name="auto"/>

==Death==
Before filming started on ''Play It as It Lays'', Lynn suffered a stroke and died on December 18, 1971,<ref name=ls>{{cite news|title=Actress Diana Lynn Dies|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2689792/the_lincoln_star/|work=The Lincoln Star|date=December 19, 1971|page=2|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|access-date = June 25, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref> at the age of 45.<ref name=nyt>{{Citation
| title = Diana Lynn Dies; Actress Was 45
| newspaper = The New York Times
| pages = 60
| date = December 19, 1971
| url = http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F50B11F83C5E127A93CBA81789D95F458785F9&scp=42&sq=diana%20lynn&st=cse}}</ref> Lynn was cremated. A funeral service was held at Church of the Heavenly Rest in New York City, and a memorial service was held at All Saints' Episcopal Church in Beverly Hills, California.<ref name=bp>{{cite news|title=Actress Diana Lynn Dies From a Stroke at Age 45|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2689834/the_bridgeport_post/|work=The Bridgeport Post|date=December 19, 1971|page=111|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|access-date = June 25, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref><ref name=scs>{{cite news|title=Stroke Kills Actress Diana Lynn At 45|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2694893/santa_cruz_sentinel/|work=Santa Cruz Sentinel|date=December 19, 1971|page=52|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|access-date = June 26, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref>

==Legacy==
In 1942, ''Parents'' magazine named Lynn "the most talented juvenile actress."<ref>{{cite news|title=First Evening Gown Thrills Diana Lynn|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2688070/beatrice_daily_sun/|work=Beatrice Daily Sun|date=August 29, 1943|page=8|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|access-date = June 25, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref> She has two stars on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]]: for motion pictures, at 1625 Vine Street and for television at 6350 Hollywood Boulevard.<ref>{{cite web|title=Diana Lynn|url=http://www.walkoffame.com/diana-lynn|website=Hollywood Walk of Fame|access-date=25 June 2015}}</ref>

==Partial filmography==
{{div col|colwidth=23em}}
*''[[They Shall Have Music]]'' (1939) – Pianist (uncredited)
*''[[The Hard-Boiled Canary]]'' (1941) – Dolly Loehr
*''[[The Major and the Minor]]'' (1942) – Lucy Hill
*''[[Star Spangled Rhythm]]'' (1942) – Herself (uncredited)
*''[[Henry Aldrich Gets Glamour]]'' (1943) – Phyllis Michael
*''[[The Miracle of Morgan's Creek]]'' (1944) – Emmy Kockenlocker
*''[[And the Angels Sing]]'' (1944) – Josie Angel
*''[[Henry Aldrich Plays Cupid]]'' (1944) – Phyllis Michael
*''[[Our Hearts Were Young and Gay (film)|Our Hearts Were Young and Gay]]'' (1944) – Emily Kimbrough
*''[[Out of This World (1945 film)|Out of This World]]'' (1945) – Betty Miller
*''[[Duffy's Tavern (film)|Duffy's Tavern]]'' (1945) – Diana Lynn
*''[[The Bride Wore Boots]]'' (1946) – Mary Lou Medford
*''[[Our Hearts Were Growing Up]]'' (1946) – Emily Kimbrough
*''[[Easy Come, Easy Go (1947 film)|Easy Come, Easy Go]]'' (1947) – Connie Donovan
*''[[Variety Girl]]'' (1947) – Diana Lynn
*''[[Ruthless (1948 film)|Ruthless]]'' (1948) – Martha Burnside / Mallory Flagg
*''[[Texas, Brooklyn & Heaven]]'' (1948) – Perry Dunklin
*''[[Every Girl Should Be Married]]'' (1948) – Julie Howard
*''[[My Friend Irma (film)|My Friend Irma]]'' (1949) – Jane Stacey
*''[[Paid in Full (1950 film)|Paid in Full]]'' (1950) – Nancy Langley
*''[[Rogues of Sherwood Forest]]'' (1950) – Lady Marianne de Beaudray
*''[[My Friend Irma Goes West]]'' (1950) – Jane Stacey
*''[[Peggy (1950 film)|Peggy]]'' (1950) – Peggy Brookfield
*''[[Bedtime for Bonzo]]'' (1951) – Jane Linden
*''[[The People Against O'Hara]]'' (1951) – Virginia 'Ginny' Curtayne
*''[[Meet Me at the Fair]]'' (1952) – Zerelda Wing
*''[[Plunder of the Sun]]'' (1953) – Julie Barnes
*''[[Track of the Cat (film)|Track of the Cat]]'' (1954) – Gwen Williams
*''[[An Annapolis Story]]'' (1955) – Peggy Lord
*''[[You're Never Too Young]]'' (1955) – Nancy Collins
*''[[The Kentuckian (1955 film)|The Kentuckian]]'' (1955) – Susie Spann
*''Company of Killers'' (1970, TV Movie) – Edwina DeSalles (final film role)
{{div col end}}

==Television==
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
*''[[The Investigators (1961 TV series)|The Investigators]]'' (1961) – episode "In a Mirror, Darkly"
*''[[Checkmate (American TV series)|Checkmate]]'' (1961) – episode "Juan Moreno's Body"
{{div col end}}

==Radio appearances==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year !! Program !! Episode/source
|-
| 1952|| ''[[The United States Steel Hour#Theatre Guild on the Air|Theatre Guild on the Air]]'' || "The Silver Whistle"<ref>{{cite news|last1=Kirby|first1=Walter|title=Better Radio Programs for the Week|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2426009/the_decatur_daily_review/|work=The Decatur Daily Review|date=April 6, 1952|page=52|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|access-date = May 16, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref>
|-
| 1953|| ''Theatre Guild on the Air'' || ''[[Quiet Wedding (play)|Quiet Wedding]]''<ref>{{cite news|last1=Kirby|first1=Walter|title=Better Radio Programs for the Week|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2676130/the_decatur_daily_review/|work=The Decatur Daily Review|date=March 15, 1953|page=46|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|access-date = June 25, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref>
|}

==References==
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons}}
* {{IMDb name|528658}}
* {{IBDB name}}
{{Portalbar|Biography|Film}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lynn, Diana}}
[[Category:1926 births]]
[[Category:1971 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American actresses]]
[[Category:American film actresses]]
[[Category:American stage actresses]]
[[Category:American television actresses]]
[[Category:Actresses from Los Angeles]]
[[Category:Capitol Records artists]]
[[Category:Paramount Pictures contract players]]
[[Category:Schiff family]]
[[Category:20th-century American women pianists]]
[[Category:20th-century American pianists]]
[[Category:California Democrats]]
[[Category:New York (state) Democrats]]
[[Category:Emma Willard School alumni]]
[[Category:20th-century American Episcopalians]]

Vero - Wikipedia - User contributions [en]

Diana Lynn