The earlier life of Carol landis the good old days
September 23, 2017The Earlier life of Carol Landis
Carole was born Frances Lillian Mary Ridste in Wisconsin on January 2, 1919. Her father
deserted the family before Frances was born and two of her brothers died tragically (one burned to death and the other was accidentally shot and killed by a neighbor boy at the age of 11). Frances seeked love at quite an early age and when she was barely 15 she met her first husband Irving Wheeler, who was 19 at the time, and they married in 1934. Frances' mother Clara had the marriage annulled but the couple remarried when Frances was an adult. The marriage didn't last long and Frances went back to her mother. Carole had difficulties with living under the same roof with a man for more than two months and this would continue for the rest of her life.
Frances left school in no time and went to San Fransisco to seek stardom. She changed her name to Carole after her favorite actress Carole Lombard and found the name Landis in the telephone book. She dyed her hair from soft brown to blonde. It didn't took long for Carole to work her way up and within 18 months she went from a Hula dancer to a popular band singer with the Carl Ravazzo Orchestra at the St. Francis hotel. Carole was barely 17 when she headed for Hollywood in the late summer of 1935. And after spending only 6 months in Hollywood, she met Busby Berkely at an audition for Warner's "Variety Show". Berkely was able to get Carole a 7 year contract. She was being offered roles but mostly in B-movies. In 1938 the bubble bursted and her contract with Warner's ended. Carole went back to modelling, some stage plays and doing some radio. It was Hal Roach who gave Carole's career a push and it was back on track. He casted Carole as Loana in One Million B.C but her acting was obscured by Carole's beautiful body who was clad in animal skins only. She was then labeled as 'the ping girl'. Carole was not at all happy with that nickname as *ping* was meant as in the erection in a man's pants. Carole's body caused much controversy many times as she was a rather busty woman.
She started to be on happy with her looks and hair
Even now Hollywood makes you do that things never change
In 1939 Carole had plastic surgery to perfect her face. The tip of her nose and the tip of her chin were removed as they 'grew slightly towards eachother'. In 1940, Carole married a yacht salesman but the marriage only lasted for 4 months. And in 1941 Carole also got a contract at 20th Century Fox. In the contract was included a non-negotiable cause: sleeping with Fox's head Darryl F. Zanuck. He was known for sleeping with every actress he hired; those who declined did not work for Fox. In 1941, Carole was also very buzy for the war effort; she spent much time touring army bases. Carole spend more time with the troops than any other Hollywood star and her husband had much difficulties with it. These tours almost costed Carole her life: near-fatal pneumonia, amoebic dysentery and malaria. But Carole was a true trouper. Carole wrote a book about the tours called Four Jills in Jeep in which she writes her experiences along with with Kay Francis, Mitzi Mayfair and Martha Rye. Four Jills in a jeep was later made into a movie. In 1943 Carole married Air Force Captain Thomas Wallace in England. But just like the others, this marriage collapsed too in 1944. Wallace had much difficulties in being married with a movie star. Carole dyed her hair brown; something she refused for a leading role in the movie Sand and Blood (1941). They actually wanted Hedy Lamarr for the part but her studio refused to loan her out. Carole did not want to become a second rate Hedy and refused to dye her hair brown also because she made fame as a blonde. It has been said that this role would have given her the Hollywood career she dreamed of. Eventually it was Rita Hayworth who was cast for the part. Not a brunette either. 
However, when Carole did dye her hair years later, she did it for the war effort. Carole never went back to blonde and thought also that, by dying her hair brown, she would be offered more serious roles. Nothing was less true.
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