Betty Hutton rose to fame in the 1940s as a contract player for Paramount Pictures, appearing primarily in musicals, and became one of the studio's most valuable stars of that decade.
52 Facts About Betty Hutton
2.
Betty Hutton was noted for her energetic and sometimes manic performance style.
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In 1940, Betty Hutton was cast in the Broadway productions Two for the Show and Panama Hattie, and attracted notice for her raucous and animated live performances.
4.
Betty Hutton relocated to Los Angeles in 1941 after being signed by Paramount Pictures, and concurrently recorded numerous singles for Capitol Records.
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Betty Hutton made her final feature film appearance in Spring Reunion.
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Betty Hutton continued to perform in stage productions, though her career faltered following a series of personal struggles, including chronic depression, alcoholism, and prescription drug addiction.
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Betty Hutton largely abandoned her performing career by the 1970s, and found employment in a Rhode Island rectory after becoming nearly destitute.
8.
Betty Hutton returned to the stage temporarily replacing Alice Ghostley in the original Broadway production of Annie in 1980.
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Betty Hutton was born Elizabeth June Thornburg on February 26,1921, in Battle Creek, Michigan, the youngest of two daughters of Percy Thornburg, a railroad brakeman, and Mabel Thornburg.
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Betty Hutton and her older sister, Marion, were raised by their single mother, who was an alcoholic.
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Betty Hutton attended Foch Intermediate School in Detroit before dropping out in ninth grade.
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Betty Hutton sang in several local bands as a teenager, and at 15 attempted to find stage work in New York City; her efforts proved unsuccessful, after which she returned to Detroit.
13.
In 1938, Betty Hutton was discovered by orchestra leader Vincent Lopez while she was performing as a singer in local Detroit nightclubs.
14.
In 1940, Betty Hutton was cast in the Broadway production Two for the Show, which ran for 124 performances and received rave reviews.
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Betty Hutton soon became known for her raucous performances onstage, summarized in a 1950 Time magazine article:.
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Betty Hutton thrashed about so violently that once she catapulted off the stage and onto a drummer in the orchestra pit.
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Betty Hutton was first cast in a featured role in The Fleet's In, starring Paramount's number-one female star Dorothy Lamour, alongside Eddie Bracken and William Holden.
18.
The film was popular and Betty Hutton was an instant hit with the moviegoing public.
19.
Betty Hutton was one of the many Paramount contract artists who appeared in Star Spangled Rhythm.
20.
The response was positive, and Betty Hutton was given co-star billing with Bob Hope in Let's Face It.
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Betty Hutton was next cast in Paramount's And the Angels Sing with Fred MacMurray and Dorothy Lamour, and Here Come the Waves with Bing Crosby.
22.
Betty Hutton was one of many Paramount stars in Duffy's Tavern, and was top billed in The Stork Club with Barry Fitzgerald, produced by DeSyvla.
23.
Betty Hutton went into Cross My Heart with Sonny Tufts, which she disliked.
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Betty Hutton did however enjoy the hugely popular The Perils of Pauline, directed by Marshall, where she sang a Frank Loesser song that was nominated for an Oscar: "I Wish I Didn't Love You So".
25.
The film, with the leading role retooled for Betty Hutton, was a smash hit, with the biggest critical praise going to Betty Hutton.
26.
Betty Hutton made an unbilled cameo in Sailor Beware with Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, a remake of The Fleet's In, in which she portrayed Dean's girlfriend, Hetty Button.
27.
Betty Hutton made Somebody Loves Me, a biography of singer Blossom Seeley, with Ralph Meeker.
28.
Betty Hutton transitioned to radio work, and appeared in Las Vegas, where she had a great success performing in live theater productions.
29.
Betty Hutton had the rights to a screenplay about Sophie Tucker, but was unable to raise funds.
30.
Betty Hutton's last completed film was a small one, Spring Reunion.
31.
Betty Hutton became disillusioned with Capitol's management and moved to RCA Victor.
32.
Betty Hutton hired the still-blacklisted and future film composer Jerry Fielding to direct her series.
33.
Betty Hutton continued headlining in Las Vegas and touring across the country.
34.
Betty Hutton guest-starred on shows such as The Greatest Show on Earth, Burke's Law, and Gunsmoke.
35.
Betty Hutton divorced her fourth husband, jazz trumpeter Pete Candoli, when she discovered he had fallen in love with Edie Adams, and attempted suicide, causing her to lose custody of her youngest daughter, Carolyn, then sixteen years old.
36.
Betty Hutton regained control of her life through rehabilitation, and the mentorship of a Roman Catholic priest, Father Peter Maguire.
37.
Betty Hutton converted to Roman Catholicism, and took a job as a cook and housekeeper at a rectory in Portsmouth, Rhode Island.
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Betty Hutton made national headlines when it was revealed she was practically penniless and working in a rectory.
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Later that year, a well-publicized "Love-In for Betty Hutton" was held at New York City's Riverboat Restaurant, emceed by comedian Joey Adams, with several old Hollywood pals on hand.
40.
The event raised $10,000 for Betty Hutton and gave her spirits a big boost, but steady work still eluded her.
41.
Betty Hutton appeared in an interview with Mike Douglas and a brief guest appearance in 1975 on Baretta.
42.
In September 1978, Betty Hutton was featured on The Phil Donahue Show, where she extensively discussed her life and career.
43.
Betty Hutton was then happily employed as hostess at a Newport, Rhode Island, jai alai arena.
44.
Betty Hutton appeared on Good Morning America, which led to a 1978 televised reunion with her two daughters.
45.
Betty Hutton began living in a shared home with her divorced daughter and grandchildren in California, but returned to the East Coast for a three-week return to the stage.
46.
Betty Hutton's last known performance, in any medium, was on Jukebox Saturday Night, which aired on PBS in 1983.
47.
Betty Hutton was once engaged to the head of the Warner Bros.
48.
Betty Hutton married husband Alan W Livingston in 1955, weeks after her divorce from O'Curran.
49.
Betty Hutton hoped to grow closer to her daughters and grandchildren, as she told Robert Osborne on TCM's Private Screenings in April 2000, though her children remained distant.
50.
Betty Hutton told Osborne that she understood their hesitancy to accept a now elderly mother.
51.
Betty Hutton lived in Palm Springs until her death March 12,2007, at 86, from colon cancer complications.
52.
Betty Hutton is buried at Desert Memorial Park in Cathedral City, California.