June Havoc, 1913-2010

I was sorry to read this morning of the passing of actress June Havoc. She was better known for her work on Broadway, but she did appear in supporting roles in the movies, notably in Gentleman's Agreement, (from which the photo at left is taken) where she plays Gregory Peck's secretary, a woman who is hiding the fact that she's Jewish (and who has to remind herself to "stop being so kikey", one of the odder lines in the movie).

Havoc's personal story is quite interesting too. She was a child star, having been pushed into vaudeville by her mother, along with her sister, Louise; Louise would later go on to become Gypsy Rose Lee. Louise wrote her autobiography, which was turned into a musical and later movie. June, however, is only in the beginning of the movie, as in real life she ran off at a young age to elope (and presumably to get away from her mother). One of June's memoirs, about that period after she eloped, forms the basis for the movie They Shoot Horses, Don't They.