Adele Mara, a film and TV actress who played opposite John Wayne in 1949's "Sands of Iwo Jima," died May 7 of natural causes at her home in Pacific Palisades. She was 87.
Mara, a dancer with Xavier Cugat and his orchestra in Detroit by the age of 15, was spotted by a Columbia talent scout in New York and signed in 1942.
The brown-eyed Spanish-American brunette went on to play brisk leading ladies in such 1942 B-movies as "Vengeance of the West" with Tex Ritter and "Alias Boston Blackie" starring Chester Morris.
A few years later, Mara was transformed into a sexy platinum blonde pin-up after signing up with Republic Studios and appeared as senoritas opposite Roy Rogers in "Bells of Rosarita" (1945) and Gene Autry in "Twilight on the Rio Grande" (1947).
She also appeared in crime dramas including 1947 pics "Blackmail" and "Web of Danger" and in adventures "Wake of the Red Witch" (1948) with Wayne...
Mara, a dancer with Xavier Cugat and his orchestra in Detroit by the age of 15, was spotted by a Columbia talent scout in New York and signed in 1942.
The brown-eyed Spanish-American brunette went on to play brisk leading ladies in such 1942 B-movies as "Vengeance of the West" with Tex Ritter and "Alias Boston Blackie" starring Chester Morris.
A few years later, Mara was transformed into a sexy platinum blonde pin-up after signing up with Republic Studios and appeared as senoritas opposite Roy Rogers in "Bells of Rosarita" (1945) and Gene Autry in "Twilight on the Rio Grande" (1947).
She also appeared in crime dramas including 1947 pics "Blackmail" and "Web of Danger" and in adventures "Wake of the Red Witch" (1948) with Wayne...
- 5/17/2010
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.