June Travis
Encyclopedia
June Travis was a motion picture actress from Chicago, Illinois.
, vice-president of the Chicago White Sox
in the 1930s.
She had dark brown hair and green eyes. She stood 5'4" tall. She attended Parkside Grammar School in Chicago and later UCLA. When she returned to Illinois
she matriculated at the University of Chicago
.
.
vice-president noticed her in Miami, Florida
at a White Sox exhibition game. He offered Travis a
screen test when she came to Pasadena, California
, where the major league baseball team trained. The first time she was presented with a screen contract, she suffered from screen fright and turned it down. She returned to Chicago and school. The next winter she accepted a film studio offer in Palm Springs, California
.
Travis made her screen debut in Stranded (1935), a film which starred Kay Francis
and George Brent
. She played the role of "Mary Rand". She followed this with a part in Not On Your Life (1935), with Warren William
and Claire Dodd
. Howard Hawks
directed her in Ceiling Zero (1936), a Warner Bros.
feature. In preparation for her role, Travis learned flying, navigation, and parachute jumping from Amelia Earhart
. The aviatrix gave her instructions in September 1935. The film co-starred James Cagney
and Pat O'Brien
. In 1936
, she played secretary Della Street
to Perry Mason
as played by Ricardo Cortez
in The Case of the Black Cat.
Her most notable film role was likely the one she played in The Star (1952) starring Bette Davis
.
Travis became known as the Queen of the B-movies on the Warner Bros. lot. Later she said that if she had remained in Hollywood two more years, she would have been a star. However, following three years, she came home to Chicago for Christmas with her parents. She did not return to making motion pictures. Her final movie appearances were in 1938, when nine films were released. Some of the titles are Federal Man-Hunt, Little Orphan Annie,
The Night Hawk, The Gladiator, and Mr. Doodle Kicks Off.
she suffered weeks earlier. She was 93 years old.
Background
Born as June Dorothea Grabiner, she was the daughter of Harry GrabinerHarry Grabiner
Harry Mitchell Grabiner was an American professional baseball executive. A 40-year employee of the Chicago White Sox, he served the team's owners, founding president Charles Comiskey, son and successor J. Louis Comiskey, and Lou’s widow Grace, in a number of capacities, rising from peanut vendor...
, vice-president of the Chicago White Sox
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
in the 1930s.
She had dark brown hair and green eyes. She stood 5'4" tall. She attended Parkside Grammar School in Chicago and later UCLA. When she returned to Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
she matriculated at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
.
Marriage
On January 3, 1940, June married Fred Friedlob. They had two daughters, Cathy and June. Friedlob died in May 1979 in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
.
Screen Actress
A Paramount PicturesParamount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
vice-president noticed her in Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
at a White Sox exhibition game. He offered Travis a
screen test when she came to Pasadena, California
Pasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...
, where the major league baseball team trained. The first time she was presented with a screen contract, she suffered from screen fright and turned it down. She returned to Chicago and school. The next winter she accepted a film studio offer in Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs is a desert city in Riverside County, California, within the Coachella Valley. It is located approximately 37 miles east of San Bernardino, 111 miles east of Los Angeles and 136 miles northeast of San Diego...
.
Travis made her screen debut in Stranded (1935), a film which starred Kay Francis
Kay Francis
Kay Francis was an American stage and film actress. After a brief period on Broadway in the late 1920s, she moved to film and achieved her greatest success between 1930 and 1936, when she was the number one female star at the Warner Brothers studio, and the highest paid American film actress...
and George Brent
George Brent
George Brent was an Irish film and television actor in American cinema.-Early life:He was born George Brendan Nolan in Raharabeg, County Roscommon on the opposite bank of the River Shannon from the town of Shannonbridge, County Offaly, Ireland, the son of a British Army officer.During the Irish...
. She played the role of "Mary Rand". She followed this with a part in Not On Your Life (1935), with Warren William
Warren William
Warren William was a Broadway and Hollywood actor, popular during the early 1930s, who was later nicknamed the "king of Pre-Code". He was born Warren William Krech in Aitkin, Minnesota to parents Freeman E. and Frances Krech. He had a certain physical resemblance to John Barrymore. He attended the...
and Claire Dodd
Claire Dodd
Claire Dodd was an American film actress.Born as Dorothy Anne Dodd in Baxter, Iowa, Dodd was born to Walter W. Dodd, a farmer and veterinarian, and Ethel V. Cool Dodd, the daughter of Baxter Postmaster Peter J. Cool. As Dorothy Dodd, she attended school in Baxter...
. Howard Hawks
Howard Hawks
Howard Winchester Hawks was an American film director, producer and screenwriter of the classic Hollywood era...
directed her in Ceiling Zero (1936), a Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
feature. In preparation for her role, Travis learned flying, navigation, and parachute jumping from Amelia Earhart
Amelia Earhart
Amelia Mary Earhart was a noted American aviation pioneer and author. Earhart was the first woman to receive the U.S. Distinguished Flying Cross, awarded for becoming the first aviatrix to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean...
. The aviatrix gave her instructions in September 1935. The film co-starred James Cagney
James Cagney
James Francis Cagney, Jr. was an American actor, first on stage, then in film, where he had his greatest impact. Although he won acclaim and major awards for a wide variety of performances, he is best remembered for playing "tough guys." In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked him eighth...
and Pat O'Brien
Pat O'Brien (actor)
Pat O’Brien was an American film actor with more than one hundred screen credits.-Early life:O’Brien was born William Joseph Patrick O’Brien to an Irish-American Catholic family in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He served as an altar boy at Gesu Church while growing up near 13th and Clybourn streets...
. In 1936
1936 in film
The year 1936 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*May 29 - Fritz Lang's first Hollywood film Fury, starring Spencer Tracy and Bruce Cabot, is released.*November 6 - first Porky Pig animated cartoon...
, she played secretary Della Street
Della Street
Della Street was the fictional secretary of Perry Mason in the long-running series of novels, films, and radio and television programs featuring the fictional defense attorney created by Erle Stanley Gardner.-Description:...
to Perry Mason
Perry Mason
Perry Mason is a fictional character, a defense attorney who was the main character in works of detective fiction authored by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason was featured in more than 80 novels and short stories, most of which had a plot involving his client's murder trial...
as played by Ricardo Cortez
Ricardo Cortez
Jacob Krantz , known by his stage name Ricardo Cortez, was an American film actor who began his career during the silent era.-Life and career:...
in The Case of the Black Cat.
Her most notable film role was likely the one she played in The Star (1952) starring Bette Davis
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
.
Travis became known as the Queen of the B-movies on the Warner Bros. lot. Later she said that if she had remained in Hollywood two more years, she would have been a star. However, following three years, she came home to Chicago for Christmas with her parents. She did not return to making motion pictures. Her final movie appearances were in 1938, when nine films were released. Some of the titles are Federal Man-Hunt, Little Orphan Annie,
The Night Hawk, The Gladiator, and Mr. Doodle Kicks Off.
Filmography
- Stranded (1935)
- Don't Bet on Blondes (1935)
- Broadway GondolierBroadway GondolierBroadway Gondolier is a musical film directed by Lloyd Bacon. The film was released by Warner Bros, and featured Dick Powell, Joan Blondell and Adolphe Menjou.- Cast :* Dick Powell as Richard 'Dick' Purcell, aka Ricardo Purcelli...
(1935) - Bright LightsBright Lights (1935 film)Bright Lights is a 1935 film directed by Busby Berkeley....
(1935) - The Case of the Lucky LegsThe Case of the Lucky LegsThe Case of the Lucky Legs is a 1935 mystery film, the third in a series of Perry Mason films starring Warren William as the famed lawyer.-Plot:A woman wins a contest, but has trouble collecting her prize when the promoter turns up dead.-Cast:...
(1935) - Shipmates Forever (1935)
- Dr. Socrates (1935)
- Broadway Hostess (1935)
- Ceiling ZeroCeiling ZeroCeiling Zero is a 1936 adventure/drama film directed by Howard Hawks. It stars James Cagney as daredevil womanizing pilot "Dizzy" Davis and Pat O'Brien as Jake Lee, his war veteran buddy and the operations manager of an airline company. Based on a stage play of the same name, the film blends drama...
(1936) - Times Square Playboy (1936)
- Earthworm TractorsEarthworm TractorsEarthworm Tractors is a 1936 American film directed by Ray Enright.The film is also known as A Natural Born Salesman in the United Kingdom.- Plot summary :...
(1936) - Bengal Tiger (1936)
- Jailbreak (1936)
- The Big Game (1936)
- The Case of the Black CatThe Case of the Black CatThe Case of the Black Cat is a 1936 mystery film, based on the novel The Case of the Caretaker's Cat by Erle Stanley Gardner. The film stars Ricardo Cortez as Perry Mason, and co-stars June Travis and Jane Bryan...
(1936) - Join the Marines (1937)
- Circus Girl (1937)
- Men in Exile (1937)
- Love Is on the AirLove Is on the AirLove is on the Air is a 1937 film directed by Nick Grinde. The film stars Ronald Reagan, Eddie Acuff, supported by Robert Barrat, Raymond Hatton, and Willard Parker. This was Reagan's screen debut....
(1937) - Over the Goal (1937)
- Exiled to Shanghai (1937)
- The Kid Comes Back (1938)
- Over the Wall (1938)
- Go Chase Yourself (1938)
- Marines Are Here (1938)
- The Gladiator (1938)
- Mr. Doodle Kicks Off (1938)
- The Night Hawk (1938)
- Little Orphan AnnieLittle Orphan AnnieLittle Orphan Annie was a daily American comic strip created by Harold Gray and syndicated by Tribune Media Services. The strip took its name from the 1885 poem "Little Orphant Annie" by James Whitcomb Riley, and made its debut on August 5, 1924 in the New York Daily News...
(1938) - Federal Man-Hunt (1938)
- The Star (1952) with Bette DavisBette DavisRuth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
- Monster A Go-GoMonster A Go-GoMonster A Go-Go, is a 1965 science fiction horror film directed by Bill Rebane and Herschell Gordon Lewis . It's considered one of the worst films ever.- Production :The film had an unusual production history...
(1965)
Later Career-Stage Acting
By the late 1970s Travis was performing on stage. She admitted that the transition from acting on film was a difficult one.Death
On April 14, 2008, Miss Travis died in a hospital in Chicago, Illinois of complications from a strokeStroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
she suffered weeks earlier. She was 93 years old.