Carole Landis (January 1, 1919 – July 5, 1948) was an American film and stage actress, who worked as a contract-player for Twentieth Century-Fox in the 1940s. Her breakthrough role was as the female lead in the 1940 film One Million B.C., with United Artists.She died of an intentional drug overdose at the age of 29 in 1948. After her death, newspapers headlined stories about the actress, some with the title "The Actress Who Could Have Been...But Never Was."
| Full Name | Frances Lillian Mary Ridste |
| Net Worth | $6 Million |
| Date Of Birth | January 1, 1919 |
| Died | 1948-07-05 |
| Death Cause | Suicide or Murder |
| Place Of Birth | Fairchild, Wisconsin, USA |
| Height | 5' 5½" (1.66 m) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Profession | Actress, Soundtrack, Writer |
| Spouse | Irving Wheeler, Irving Wheeler, Willis Hunt Jr., Thomas C. Wallace, W. Horace Schmidlapp |
| Nicknames | Carole Landis, Landis, Carole |
| Known For | Topper Returns (1941), I Wake Up Screaming (1941), One Million B.C. (1940), Four Jills in a Jeep (1944) |
| Star Sign | Capricorn |
| # | Quote |
|---|
| 1 | Stardom is merely some talent, a few breaks and a lot of publicity. I have the talent, the publicity will come and so will the breaks. Just give me a couple of years. |
| 2 | A man can be an absolute heel and a woman, knowing it, can still be madly in love with him. |
| 3 | I want to be as good an actress as Bette Davis, and I'd like to be a great singer. But more than that, I'd like to be happily married and have some children. |
| 4 | We had a wonderful time everywhere overseas. But it was hard. For five months, we never gave less than five shows a day. It was too cold to sleep nights and there wasn't water enough to take a bath. I had to do my own washing. And I ate more sand and fog, than food. |
| 5 | Although I avoided dramatics - and everything else - in school. I wanted to be a success on the stage, the screen, or the radio. So I saved my money and when I had bus fare and $16.82 over, I told my mother, Clara, I was going to leave home. She was heartbroken, but she believed in me. |
| 6 | Every girl in the world wants to find the right man, someone who is sympathetic and understanding and helpful and strong, someone she can love madly. |
| 7 | I have no intention of ending my career in a rooming house, with full scrapbooks and an empty stomach. |
| 8 | [on Lupe Velez's suicide, which occurred years before her own] I know how Lupe Velez felt. You fight just so long and then you begin to worry about being washed up. You fear there's one way to go and that's down. |
| # | Fact |
|---|
| 1 | Her second husband, Willis Hunt, was stabbed to death by his 6th wife, Deannie Best, during a violent argument. Best, whose attorney claimed Hunt was "drunk and unstable" and picked up the butcher knife he was killed with, was acquitted in November 1970. |
| 2 | Had appeared with Cesar Romero in four films: Dance Hall (1941), A Gentleman at Heart (1942), Orchestra Wives (1942) and Wintertime (1943). |
| 3 | She was posthumously awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1765 Vine Street in Hollywood, California on February 8, 1960. |
| 4 | Her name was legally changed to Carole Landis on April 23, 1942. |
| 5 | Carole desperately wanted to become a mother but she suffered from endometriosis and could not have children. She had numerous other health problems during her life including dysentery, malaria, pneumonia and depression. |
| 6 | She chose the name Carole because she was a huge fan of Carole Lombard. |
| 7 | Spent more time visiting troops during World War II than any other Hollywood star. She nearly died from malaria she contracted while traveling overseas. |
| 8 | She was the youngest of five children. Two of her brothers died when they were toddlers. Jerome was burned by scalding water and Lewis was accidentally shot. |
| 9 | Actress Diana Lewis once gave Carole a gold cross as a gift. Carole wore the cross for the rest of her life and was even buried wearing it. |
| 10 | A feminist at a young age, she once tried to start a girls football team at school but got into trouble because it was considered "un-lady like". |
| 11 | Became friendly with future author Jacqueline Susann in 1944 when they appeared together in the Broadway revue "The Lady Says Yes". The character of fragile, blonde Jennifer North in "Valley of the Dolls" is partially based on Landis. |
| 12 | Following her untimely death, she was interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California, in the Everlasting Love area. |
| 13 | Rex Harrison, who had dined with her the previous night, discovered her body the day she committed suicide. |
| 14 | She initiated divorce proceedings against her last husband in March 1948 but the divorce was not final when she died. |
| 15 | A keen amateur photographer, she developed her own pictures. |
| 16 | In her musicals, Carole usually sang in her own voice. |
| 17 | Carole protested strongly and publicly against the nonsensical nickname "The Ping Girl" (apparently short for "purring") coined by Hal Roach publicist Frank N. Seltzer in April 1940. |
| 18 | Had four older siblings, two of whom survived her. Lawrence Bernard Ridste (1912 - 1988), Lewis Andrew Ridste (1913 - 1925), Jerome Arthur Ridste (1916 - 1917), and Dorothy Anna Ridste Ross (1917 - 1997). Her brother Lewis died after being accidentally shot in the abdomen by a friend. Her brother Jerome died in infancy. |
| 19 | Parents were Alfred Ridste, a railroad mechanic, and Clara Stentek Ridste. They separated when Carole was a baby. |
| Title | Year | Status | Character |
|---|
| Reno | 1939 | Mrs. Humphrey (uncredited) |
| Cowboys from Texas | 1939 | June Jones |
| Daredevils of the Red Circle | 1939 | Blanche Granville |
| Three Texas Steers | 1939 | Nancy Evans |
| Girls on Probation | 1938 | Extra (uncredited) |
| Boy Meets Girl | 1938 | Commissary Cashier (uncredited) |
| Four's a Crowd | 1938 | Lansford's 2nd Secretary |
| Penrod's Double Trouble | 1938 | Girl at Fair (uncredited) |
| When Were You Born | 1938 | Ship Passenger (uncredited) |
| Men Are Such Fools | 1938 | June Cooper (uncredited) |
| Gold Diggers in Paris | 1938 | Golddigger |
| The Adventures of Robin Hood | 1938 | Guest at Banquet (uncredited) |
| Women Are Like That | 1938 | Cocktail Party Guest (uncredited) |
| Torchy Blane in Panama | 1938 | Miss Leopard 1938 (uncredited) |
| Over the Wall | 1938 | Peggy - Girl at Beach (uncredited) |
| Love, Honor and Behave | 1938 | Wheel Watcher at Party (uncredited) |
| A Slight Case of Murder | 1938 | Partygoer Leaning on Piano During Song. (uncredited) |
| Blondes at Work | 1938 | Carol |
| The Invisible Menace | 1938 | Woman Wanting to Go with Her Johnnie (uncredited) |
| The Patient in Room 18 | 1938 | Patient in Hospital (uncredited) |
| Hollywood Hotel | 1937 | Hat Check Girl with Coat (uncredited) |
| She Loved a Fireman | 1937 | Blonde Sunbather (uncredited) |
| Missing Witnesses | 1937 | Girl on Pier (uncredited) |
| The Adventurous Blonde | 1937 | Bit Role (uncredited) |
| Over the Goal | 1937 | Co-ed (uncredited) |
| Alcatraz Island | 1937 | Extra (uncredited) |
| Varsity Show | 1937 | Student (uncredited) |
| Broadway Melody of 1938 | 1937 | Chorus Girl (uncredited) |
| The Emperor's Candlesticks | 1937 | Bidder (uncredited) |
| Fly Away Baby | 1937 | Blonde at Airport (uncredited) |
| A Day at the Races | 1937 | Party Guest (uncredited) |
| A Star Is Born | 1937 | Girl in Beret at Santa Anita Bar (uncredited) |
| The King and the Chorus Girl | 1937 | Chorine (uncredited) |
| Gold Diggers of 1937 | 1936 | Chorus Girl (uncredited) |
| Brass Monkey | 1948 | Kay Sheldon |
| The Silk Noose | 1948 | Linda Medbury |
| Out of the Blue | 1947 | Mae Earthleigh |
| A Scandal in Paris | 1946 | Loretta de Richet |
| It Shouldn't Happen to a Dog | 1946 | Julia Andrews |
| Behind Green Lights | 1946 | Janet Bradley |
| Having Wonderful Crime | 1945 | Helene Justus |
| Secret Command | 1944 | Jill McGann |
| Four Jills in a Jeep | 1944 | Carole Landis |
| Wintertime | 1943 | Flossie Fouchere |
| The Powers Girl | 1943 | Kay Evans |
| Manila Calling | 1942 | Edna Fraser |
| Orchestra Wives | 1942 | Natalie Mercer |
| It Happened in Flatbush | 1942 | Kathryn Baker |
| My Gal Sal | 1942 | Mae Collins |
| A Gentleman at Heart | 1942 | Helen Mason |
| Cadet Girl | 1941 | Gene Baxter |
| I Wake Up Screaming | 1941 | Vicky Lynn |
| Dance Hall | 1941 | Lily Brown |
| Moon Over Miami | 1941 | Barbara Latimer |
| Topper Returns | 1941 | Ann Carrington |
| Road Show | 1941 | Penguin Moore |
| Mystery Sea Raider | 1940 | June McCarthy |
| Turnabout | 1940 | Sally Willows |
| One Million B.C. | 1940 | Loana |
| Title | Year | Status | Character |
|---|
| Brass Monkey | 1948 | performer: "I Know Myself Too Well" |
| A Scandal in Paris | 1946 | performer: "Flame Song" |
| Four Jills in a Jeep | 1944 | performer: "Crazy Me" - uncredited |
| Wintertime | 1943 | performer: "I Like It Here" - uncredited |
| Cadet Girl | 1941 | performer: "You Started Something" |
| I Wake Up Screaming | 1941 | performer: "The Things I Love" - uncredited |
| Dance Hall | 1941 | performer: "There's Something in the Air", "There's a Lull in My Life", "Hello, Ma! I Done It Again" uncredited |
| Moon Over Miami | 1941 | "You Started Something" 1941 / performer: "What Can I Do For You?" 1941, "Miami Oh Me, Oh Mi-Ami" 1941 |
| Road Show | 1941 | performer: "I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN YOU YEARS AGO" |
