Gale Storm

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Gale Storm in My Little Margie

Gale Storm (born Josephine Owaissa Cottle ; born April 5, 1922 in Bloomington , Victoria County , Texas ; † June 27, 2009 in Danville , California ) was an American actress and singer.

The first years

Gale's father, William Walter Cottle, died when she was 13 months old. Her mother, Minnie Corina Cottle, then had to try to raise her five children alone. She tried sewing, then opened a fashion parlor near McDade , but it was unsuccessful. The family then moved to Houston .

Josephine became an accomplished roller skater and dancer. In junior high and high school , she attended the drama group. When she was 17 and was in high school her senior year, two of her teachers drove her to compete in the Gateway to Hollywood Contest hosted by CBS Radio Station in Hollywood , as the first prize was a one-year contract with a film studio was. Eventually she won and was henceforth called "Gale Storm" while her performing partner Lee Bonell of South Bend , whom she later married, became Terry Belmond.

Hollywood career

After Storm won the competition, she received a studio contract with RKO Pictures . After she got only a few good roles there, however, she worked from then on mainly for B-movie film studios such as Monogram Pictures and Republic Pictures . She then starred in a total of almost 50 films, usually in the role of the amiable young woman with whom the main actor falls in love. In 1945 she played the title role of Sue Casey in the romantic musical comedy Sunbonnet Sue , where she sang, danced and taped.

However, Gale Storm only experienced her big breakthrough with television, which became popular in the USA in the 1950s : From 1952 to 1955, she played very successfully in the television series My Little Margie , which had 126 episodes. Immediately after the series ended, The Gale Storm Show (also known as Oh! Susanna ) followed, which ran a total of 143 episodes between 1956 and 1960. Both shows were later repeated several times on American television.

Randy Wood , president of Dot Records , became aware of Gale Storm in 1954 when his ten-year-old daughter watched a Sunday night comedy show with Storm singing a song. Randy Wood liked her singing so much that he hurriedly signed her (supposedly he called her during the show). Their first record, "I Hear You Knocking" (a cover of a rhythm and blues hit song by Smiley Lewis , whose song is based on the old Buddy Bolden classic "The Bucket's Got A Hole In It" ) sold over a million copies . In 1957 a ballad about lost love followed, " Dark Moon " , which landed at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 . In her career, Gale Storm had several top 10 songs and appeared in numerous stage plays.

After their Gale Storm Show ended in 1960, Storm still gave concerts and appeared in plays, but their popularity declined noticeably. She eventually withdrew to a large extent into private life to take care of her family. Gale Storm has had three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame since 1960 for her radio, music and television achievements.

Later life and family

In 1981 Gale published her autobiography, "I Ain't Down Yet", in which she described, among other things, the fight against her alcohol addiction .

Gale Storm was married from 1941 until his death to the actor and later businessman Lee Bonnell (1918-1986), with whom she has four children. Two years after Bonnell's death, she married Paul Masterson (1917–1996), who also died before her. Gale Storm died in June 2009 at the age of 87 after a lengthy illness.

Filmography (selection)

  • 1940: Tom Brown's School Days
  • 1942: Smart Alecks
  • 1943: Revenge of the Zombies
  • 1945: GI Honeymoon
  • 1945: Sunbonnet Sue
  • 1946: Swing Parade of 1946
  • 1947: A Life Like a Millionaire (It Happened on 5th Avenue)
  • 1948: Warning! Nuclear spies! (Walk a Crooked Mile)
  • 1948: Adventures in the Wild West (The Dude Goes West)
  • 1950: The Rocket City gang boss (The Underworld Story)
  • 1950: Ostracized (The Kid from Texas)
  • 1951: Border Police in Texas (The Texas Rangers)
  • 1952–1955: My Little Margie (TV series, 126 episodes)
  • 1956–1960: The Gale Storm Show: Oh! Susanna (TV series, 126 episodes)
  • 1979/1987: Love Boat (TV series, 2 episodes)
  • 1989: Murder Is Her Hobby ( Murder, She Wrote ; TV series, episode Something Borrowed, Someone Blue )

Singles

  • 1955: Something's Gotta Give
  • 1956: I Hear You Knocking / Never Leave Me (Dot 15412) (# 2)
  • 1956: Memories Are Made of This / Teenage Prayer (Dot 15436)
  • 1956: Why Do Fools Fall in Love / I Walk Alone (Dot 15448)
  • 1956: I Ain't Gonna Worry / Ivory Tower (Dot 15458) (# 6)
  • 1956: Tell Me Why / Don't Be That Way (Dot 15474)
  • 1956: Now Is The Hour / A Heart Without A Sweethear t (Dot 15492)
  • 1956: My Heart Belongs To You / Orange Blossoms (Dot 15515)
  • 1957: Lucky Lips / On Treasure Island (Dot 15539)
  • 1957: Dark Moon / A Little Too Late (Dot 15558) (# 4)
  • 1957: On My Mind Again / Love By The Jukebox Light (Dot 15606)
  • 1957: Go 'Way From My Window / Winter Warm (Dot 15666)
  • 1957: I Get That Feeling / A Farewell To Arms (Dot 15691)
  • 1957: You / Angry (Dot 15734)
  • 1957: South Of The Border / Soon I'll Wed My Love (Dot 15783)
  • 1958: Oh Lonely Crowd / Happiness Left Yesterday (Dot 15861)
  • 1958: I Need You So / On Treasure Island (Dot 16057)
  • 1958: Please Help Me I'm Falling / He Is There (Dot 16111)

Awards

Web links

Commons : Gale Storm  - Collection of Images

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Gale Storm | Biography, Movie Highlights and Photos. Retrieved January 24, 2020 (American English).
  2. ^ Gale Storm | Biography, Movie Highlights and Photos. Retrieved January 24, 2020 (American English).
  3. ↑ Gale Storm. Retrieved January 24, 2020 .
  4. ^ Gale Storm: Actress and singer who became the leading lady of choice. July 2, 2009, accessed January 24, 2020 .
  5. ↑ 1950s TV star Gale Storm dies. Accessed January 24, 2020 (English).
personal data
SURNAME Storm, Gale
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Cottle, Josephine Owaissa (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American actress and singer
DATE OF BIRTH April 5, 1922
PLACE OF BIRTH Bloomington , Texas , United States
DATE OF DEATH June 27, 2009
Place of death Danville , California , United States