Joan Crawford

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The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition

Joan Crawford

Joan Crawford 1908-77, American movie star, b. San Antonio, Tex., as Lucille le Sueur. After working as a Broadway chorus dancer, Crawford began making films in 1926, eventually moving from musicals to drama. In 1945, she won an Academy Award for her performance in Mildred Pierce. Her best-known films include Grand Hotel (1932), The Women (1939), and Johnny Guitar (1955). Her later films, many in the horror genre, include a memorable teaming with Bette Davis in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962). When her fourth husband died (1959), she succeeded him as a director of the Pepsi-Cola Co.

Bibliography: See her autobiographies (1962 and 1972) and study by L. J. Quirk (1970).

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Crawford, Joan

World Encyclopedia | 2005 | Â© World Encyclopedia 2005, originally published by Oxford University Press 2005. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Crawford, Joan (1904–77) US film actress, b. Lucille Fay le Sueur. Determined and versatile, Crawford remained a star for almost 50 years. She started in musicals, such as Our Dancing Daughters (1928), before graduating to dramatic roles in films such as Grand Hotel (1932) and The Women (1939). She won a best actress Academy Award for Mildred Pierce (1945). Other films include Possessed (1947), Johnny Guitar (1954), and What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962).

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Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Joan Crawford, unvarnished: Christina Crawford talks about TCM's new documentary on Joan Crawford, which doesn't sidestep the diva's dark side. (television).(Brief Article) Magazine article from: The Advocate (The national gay & lesbian newsmagazine); 7/23/2002
	FRANK AND FEARLESS.(photographing actress Joan Crawford by photojournalist Eve Arnold)(Critical Essay) Magazine article from: CineAction; 3/22/2001
	Gentlemen preferred Haines: a new documentary traces the life of 1920s movie idol Billy Haines, who quit acting rather than closet himself, then became interior designer to the stars--including Joan Crawford. (television).(Out of the Closet, Off the Screen: The Life of William Haines)(Brief Article)(Critical Essay) Magazine article from: The Advocate (The national gay & lesbian newsmagazine); 2/5/2002

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	Joan Crawford, unvarnished: Christina Crawford talks about TCM's new documentary on Joan Crawford, which doesn't sidestep the diva's dark side. (television).(Brief Article) Magazine article from: The Advocate (The national gay & lesbian newsmagazine); 7/23/2002; ; 445 words ; When the new special Joan Crawford: The Ultimate Movie Star premieres...Not to worry. The fascinating Joan Crawford is a lot more E! True Hollywood...exhaustively covers Crawford's life. Joan Crawford tracks the onetime Lucille LeSueur... Read more
	FRANK AND FEARLESS.(photographing actress Joan Crawford by photojournalist Eve Arnold)(Critical Essay) Magazine article from: CineAction; 3/22/2001; ; 700+ words ; THE EVE ARNOLD-JOAN CRAWFORD SESSIONS '...love and eternal trust...Retrospect Eve Arnold photographed Joan Crawford in 1959 in Los Angles and New York...women. By the time Arnold photographed Joan Crawford in 1959, the star had become a legend... Read more
	Gentlemen preferred Haines: a new documentary traces the life of 1920s movie idol Billy Haines, who quit acting rather than closet himself, then became interior designer to the stars--including Joan Crawford. (television).(Out of the Closet, Off the Screen: The Life of William Haines)(Brief Article)(Critical Essay) Magazine article from: The Advocate (The national gay & lesbian newsmagazine); 2/5/2002; ; 672 words ; ...proved what his dear friend Joan Crawford always said: Jimmie and Billy...accused of child molestation, Crawford was equally supportive. Haines, in turn, was invaluable to Crawford. They knew each other from...credit Haines with creating Crawford's image. He was on call to...bring out her ... Read more
	Capital campaign kicks off; Crawford Library committee aims to raise $1 million by May.(NEWS) Newspaper article from: Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, MA); 2/11/2007; 398 words ; ...received a $2 million pledge from Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Crawford. (Mr. Crawford is the son of Pearle Crawford, for whom the library is named.) The initial stage is...individuals have come forward, including other members of the Crawford family and Marilyn Fels, a library supporter. But we...Jack ... Read more
	Nearly separated by travel, couple builds business on better excursions. (Bill and Joan Keller, Le Travel Store) (company profile) Magazine article from: San Diego Business Journal; 1/15/1990; ; 700+ words ; ...budget can squelch a budding romance. Just ask Bill and Joan Keller, co-owners of Horton Plaza's Le Travel Store. During a trip to Mexico in the summer 1973, Joan and Bill, then Grossmont College students, were forced to...helped fizzle the couple's rocky relationship. Bill and Joan split up and set off ... Read more
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	21st century gay icons: three out experts speculate about which new stars are ready to fill the shoes of Hollywood's legends and the walls of adoring gay fans. (The Hollywood Issue). Magazine article from: The Advocate (The national gay & lesbian newsmagazine); 3/18/2003; 558 words ; JOAN CRAWFORD Jenni Olson Julianne Author, critic, producer...anymore? Winona Ryder could be a budding Joan clone if she could get it together. Anderson...master of his own idealized image, just like Joan. He seems to have produced children only... Read more
	Help for obsessive-compulsive disorder.(Brief Article) Magazine article from: USA Today (Magazine); 8/1/1995; 700+ words ; Actress Joan Crawford was suffering from it when she asked her maid to wax a tree. Millionaire industrialist Howard Hughes had it when he stuffed window... Read more
	Hot Hollywood designer recalls his days of glory.(20 Years that Changed Los Angeles: 20 Extraordinary Lives)(costume designer Nolan Miller) Magazine article from: Los Angeles Business Journal; 7/19/1999; ; 700+ words ; ...women - Barbara Stanwyck, Lana Turner, Joan Crawford, Bette Davis and Jane Wyman. While the...still designs clothing for some stars - Joan Collins chief among them - most of today...eight fittings a day. And it would be Crawford, Stanwyck, Eleanor Parker, Lana Turner...problem I had was making ... Read more
	(video recording review) (video recording reviews) Magazine article from: The Advocate (The national gay & lesbian newsmagazine); 5/13/1997; ; 438 words ; Just as the post-Mommie Dearest perception of Joan Crawford turns her films into metaphorical minstrel shows, common knowledge about Rock Hudson's life and death can't help but transform... Read more