Dorothy Janis

Dorothy Janis (born Dorothy Penelope Jones, February 19, 1912[1] – March 10, 2010) was an American actress.

Dorothy Janis
Dorothy Janis in 1929 by Ruth Harriet Louise
Born
Dorothy Penelope Jones

(1912-02-19)February 19, 1912
Dallas, Texas, U.S.
DiedMarch 10, 2010(2010-03-10) (aged 98)
Paradise Valley, Arizona, U.S.
OccupationActress
Years active1925–1930
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 1932; died 1985)​
Children2

Early life

Born as Dorothy Penelope Jones in Dallas, Texas, her short film career began when she was visiting a cousin, who was working on a film for Fox Film Corporation in 1927. Her beauty was noticed at once and she was asked to make a screen test. Janis went on to make six films: five silents and one talkie.

Film career

Janis' only talkie film was Lummox (1930) based on the Fannie Hurst novel. This film, released by United Artists, now only exists as a single nitrate print at the British Film Institute. Janis was best known for playing opposite Ramon Novarro in the MGM film The Pagan (1929), for which MGM publicity portrayed her as half-Cherokee. The Pagan, directed by W. S. Van Dyke, was a part-sound film, with music and sound effects only, and featured "Pagan Love Song" on the soundtrack.

Retirement, marriage, and later life

Janis retired in 1930 and married bandleader Wayne King in 1932. The vice president of the Music Corporation of America, W. H. Stein, was best man. Janis and King were married for 53 years, until King's death in 1985. She lived in Paradise Valley, Arizona from 2004 up until her death on March 10, 2010 at the age of 98. She had a son, Wayne, and a daughter, Penny Pape.[2] She was interred in the All Saints Episcopal Church Cemetery in Phoenix, Arizona.

Selected filmography

References
  1. While many sources credit her 1910 birth year, many obituaries also noted that she may have been born in 1912, a date supported by the Social Security Death Index.
  2. "Dorothy Jones King - Obituary". Telegraph Herald. March 14, 2010. Retrieved March 25, 2010.
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