Lana Turner (10 August SUTS)

This post is written in conjunction with the Summer Under the Stars Blogathon hosted by Sittin’ on a Backyard Fence and Scribe Hard on Film. Full listings for SUTS programming on Turner Classic Movies can be found HERE.

Did you know...?

Lana Turner was known as "The Sweater Girl"

She was married 8 times, twice to the same man.

Turner's father eloped with her 15-year-old mother - her grandparents objected until they learned she was pregnant with Lana, who would be their only child.

Her father was murdered in 1930 after a crap game.


Quotes

"My life has been a series of emergencies."

"A gentleman is simply a patient wolf."

"I would rather lose a good earring than be caught without makeup."

"I planned on having one husband and seven children, but it turned out the other way around."

"It's said in Hollywood you should always forgive your enemies - because you'll never know when you have to work with them."

Lana Turner Must-See Movie: THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE (1946)

The unsatisfied wife of a gas station/restaurant owner falls in love with the itinerant handyman (John Garfield) hired to do odd jobs around the place. The pair plot to murder her husband and must live with the consequences of their crime.

"So, you've given it a great deal of thought, your mind's made up? Without even talking it over with me, your mind's made up. Well, mine isn't!"

"It's my wedding present to him, but the way he wears it, you'd think it was a noose around his neck."

Frank (Garfield): "You know, there's something about this that's like, well it's like you're expecting a letter that you're just crazy to get, and you're hanging around the front door for fear you might not hear him ring. You never realize that he always rings twice."

Lana Turner Might-See Movie: IMITATION OF LIFE (1959)

Though I personally prefer the 1934 Claudette Colbert/Louise Beavers IMITATION OF LIFE, the Lana Turner version is as well-respected as its predecessor. A struggling white actress (Turner) living with her daughter (Sandra Dee) employs a homeless black housekeeper (Juanita Moore) who comes to live with them with her own light-skinned daughter (Susan Kohner). The two girls become friends, though racial tensions arise as they grow into adulthood.

"Well, I'm going up and up and up - and nobody's going to pull me down!"

To Sarah Jane: "You weren't being colored, you were just being childish."