Vintage Hollywood Halloween Pin-ups

Dusty Anderson was an actress and popular pinup model during WWII.

The beautiful Dusty began her career as a model but it was in the 1944 Rita Hayworth film, Cover Girl that she made her big screen debut, thought it was just a minor role as one of the cover girls.

During the next several years, she would appear in other films, but usually in a minor capacity. She married director Jean Negulesco in 1946 and retired from acting having worked on only a handful of films.

Nancy Carroll, born Ann Veronica Lahiff in New York City was an American actress who began her career on Broadway and eventually moved into the movie industry making her first film in 1927. She made a number of films before retiring from the movie business in 1938 to head back to work on the stage. This may have been necessary because she had a reputation as being a "difficult" actress as she simply refused to take just any role that came her way.

Nancy died at age 61 in 1965 after suffering an aneurysm.

Certainly not the most alluring of Halloween pinup photos, we find Joan Crawford being a little bit silly in this pose. Her film career began in 1925 when she acted under the name of Lucille LeSueur. A few years later, it was decided that her last name sounded to much like "la sewer" so a contest was held in movie magazine "Movie Weekly" to pick her new name which was to have been Joan Arden. But another actress laid claim to that, so Crawford was the second choice. Joan hated the last name because it reminded her of "crawfish", but it was hers to keep for the remainder of her career.

In 1977 at the age of 72, Joan passed away.

Taking the role of Lily Munster on the 60's TV series, "The Munsters", gave Yvonne an entirely new generation of fans. But, by the time Lily came along Yvonne had been in the entertainment business for over 2 decades having gotten her big break in the film Salome, Where She Danced. in 1945.

She played Lily Munster for 2 seasons beginning in 1964. Sadly, lovely Yvonne passed away January 8, 2007.

Margherita Evans, who would become known in the world of movies as Madge Evans came into this world on July 1, 1909. Her career in entertainment began as a print model at the tender age of 6 months as the baby used in print ads for Fairy Soap . She continued as a child model for several years, before at the age of 8 getting work in Broadway in the play Peter Ibbetson . As a child star she appeared in dozens of films. As she grew older the studios cast her in roles that didn't have much substance, usually as a young innocent girl who finds herself in danger or as the fiance of the leading man.

In 1930, she married playwright Sidney Kingsley and she left Hollywood for life in New Jersey and would do occasional work in New York City on TV and radio and often turned down offers to appear in more movies. She officially retired in 1971 and died on April 26, 1981 at the age of 71.

Muriel began her career in silent films in 1926. She was able to transition into talkies and worked steadily during the 1930's in both comedies and westerns. By 1940, when she was just 30 years old, she had finally had enough of the movie business and retired, but she did do some radio work but she never resumed her career.

Muriel died at age 90 on October 26, 2000 of colon cancer.

Ava was considered one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood and talented as well, winning an Oscar nomination for best actress in the film Mogambo (1953). Ava is also known for the men she married, at age 19 she married Mickey Rooney, the marriage lasted a year, she then married Artie Shaw, another short-lived marriage and her third and final marriage to Frank Sinatra which lasted from 1951 to 1957.

Ava died at age 67 of pneumonia and is buried in Sunset Memorial Park, Smithfield, North Carolina.

Nancy began her career at age 15 with an uncredited role in the 1942 film The Magnificent Ambersons . She would begin to get work in other films, mostly B movies (mostly sci fi and westerns).

By the time she retired from acting in 1969 she had starred in 34 films and serials. On TV she had made over 55 appearances on shows like Rawhide, Bonanza, Gunsmoke , Mod Squad, and Perry Mason to just name a few.

Beautiful Betty Grable was an actress, singer and dancer. She also had one of the most popular pin up poses of World War II, with her bathing suit pose. Her legs were reportedly insured for $1,000,000 through Lloyds of London. Her acting career began at age 13 in 1923 and slowly she worked her way into sex symbol status. By the time the 50's rolled around, she was ready to relinquish her sex symbol status to Marilyn Monroe, with whom she worked in the classic "How to Marry a Millionaire". She reportedly told her "go and get yours, honey! I've had mine".

Betty died young, at age 56 on July 2, 1973 from lung cancer.

Adele gained prominence when she was named "Miss World's Fairest" in the New York Worlds Fair in 1939 and in 1944 she signed a contract with Columbia Studios. She dyed her hair blond and soon began to be cast in movie roles that required her to play chorus girls or floozies. She passed away of natural causes at age 84 on November 22, 2002.

A fun piece of trivia for you, Adele acted with Marilyn Monroe in the 1948 film, "Ladies of the Chorus", she played Marilyn's mother in the film, despite the fact that she was only nine years older.

Veronica Lake was born November 14, 1922 and her first movie role was a bit part in the 1939 film "Sorority House". Other roles followed and it was in 1941 that she had her breakthrough role in "I Wanted Wings". In the 40's she became known for her pairing with actor Alan Ladd in four films. Lake had a reputation for being a difficult actress to work, this may in fact have been due to mental problems as years earlier,according to Lake's mother, she had been diagnosed as schizophrenic.

In 1951 Lake's film career was almost over so she moved to stage and television work, but by 1959 she was working as a barmaid at a hotel in Manhattan. Her mental and physical health were on the decline and she died at age 50 on July 7, 1973 of hepatitis in Burlington Vermont.

Janet's career began in the 1940's and her best known movie role is probably as Marion Crane in the classic Hitchcock film, "Psycho". On a more happy note, she was married to Tony Curtis and together they were the proud parents of actress Jamie Lee Curtis who made a name for herself in horror films during the 1980's.

Juanita Horton who would become actress Bessie Love was born in Midland Texas on September 10, 1898. Her silent screen career began in 1915 when director D.W. Griffith (who was also responsible for giving her her screen name) cast her in a role in his classic film, "Birth of a Nation". He would cast her again in his 1916 film, "Intolerance".

She was one of the few silent screen actors to transaction smoothly into "talkies" and in 1929 she was nominated for an Oscar for her role in "The Broadway Melody", but by 1932, her film career was in decline so she moved to England where she worked on films and stage, with an occasional role back in the US.

Bessie died in London of natural causes on April 26, 1986 at the age of 87.

Ida began her career in England in 1931 and by 1933 was ready to give Hollywood a go where she worked in a lot of drama's and even called herself the "poor man's Bette Davis". Eventually, Ida got into directing and screen writing, but she always managed to work in front of the camera clear into the 1970's.

But, here we see a vintage pose of Ida, from the 1930's, a really sweet pose.

Ann Miller, one of the screens greatest tap dancers began her dancing career as a child and at age 17 began her career in movies, but it wasn't until 1948 when she made quite an impression with her dancing skills in the film Easter Parade . She was never used to her fullest potential by MGM, but it has been said of her that she always brightened up the most dreary of films.

Her movie career didn't last long, in fact it ended in 1956, but she did go on to work in nightclubs, television and Broadway.

Ann died in 2004 at the age of 80.

Ruth's first role was in the 13 part serial Jungle Queen in 1945 and in 1951 she was in what is probably her most widely known film, Alfred Hitchcock's "Strangers on a Train". Ruth never really achieved the stardom that many believed she deserved, but she did work steadily clear into the 1980's. She died in her sleep September 9, 1999 at age 76.

This pose, taken around 1950, was done by Warner Brothers' photographer Bert Six.

Elsy Steinberg, who would become better known as actress Elaine Stewart gives us this nice Halloween pose. Elaine began her entertainment career by winning the title of "Miss See" in See Magazine in 1952. During the 1950's she was cast in films usually portraying characters who were schemers or a temptress, which is understandable since Elaine was a beautiful red head. By the 60's her film career slowed but she continued to work in lots of TV shows.

Elaine passed away at age 81 on June 27, 2011.

Vera began dancing at an early age and at age 16 she won a talent contest that propelled her on toward a career in the entertainment field. She made her theater debut in the 1939 Broadway show Very Warn For May which lead to other roles in Broadway shows. She caught the attention of Samuel Goldwyn who cast her opposite Danny Kay in the film Wonder Man .

She would go on to be partnered with both Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire and became famous for working the the classic 1954 film White Christmas along side Rosemary Clooney, Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye.

In 1957, she would retire from films and completely gave up the entertainment business in 1963 after the death of her three month old daughter.

Vera died in 1981 of cancer, she was just 60 years old.

Martha's first screen role was an uncredited part in "Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman" in 1941. She would play in minor roles in films for most of the 1940's and toward the end of that decade she had managed to move up to supporting roles. However mid way through the 50's her career stalled but she did manage to do work on television and pretty much retired from acting in 1960 and not much more was heard from her or about her until her death at age 46 of cancer of esophagus on November 2, 1971.

Beautiful Lillian is probably best known as being a model in the 1950's and 60's. Can anyone else fill in more details about her life and career?

A very special thanks goes to Jim Vines, who is the son of Lillian, for providing a brief bio of his mom for this page!

My name is Jim Vines. Lillian Wells was my mom. For any of you who might be interested, allow me to provide a very quick history of her life and career. Mom was a starlet at Columbia Pictures around 1946 and 1947, with brief parts in a string of movies including, "Down to Earth," with Rita Hayworth and "Dead Reckoning," with Humphrey Bogart. She was also a model and did quite a bit of print work. Shortly thereafter, she married and in 1950, my sister Cathy was born. Four years later, brother Rick joined her. Nine years (plus a divorce and a second husband) later, I came along.

My dad was a top announcer for CBS in New York, so we had a very comfortable life. In 1968 we all moved from Manhattan, to the Benedict Canyon section of Los Angeles. My sister went off to college, my parents separated, and a few years later, my brother went off to college. (My brother and sister went on to enjoy very successful careers.) In 1972, Mom and I moved into a great little house in Beverly Hills and not long after, I got started on what was to become my filmmaking career.

"Wendy," as my mom was known, had lots of friends, was always the life of the party, and played tennis all the time. Sadly, she passed away from cancer in December 1977. She was only 50. But I still feel her around me all the time. I feel her love and her gentle guidance. I've always said that I'd rather have had her as my mom for a mere fourteen years, than have any other, for fifty years. She was always a lot of fun, always very loving, and all through the years, she remained just as beautiful and glamorous as ever. I know she appreciates any interest shown in the brief movie career she had and, on her behalf, I would like to say...thank you!

If anyone has any questions for Jim or just want to read his blog, go to The Working Screenwriter.