1. Josephine "Joan" Davis was an American comedic actress whose career spanned vaudeville, film, radio, and television.
16 Facts About Joan Davis
1. 2.
Joan Davis appeared with her husband Si Wills in vaudeville.
3.
Joan Davis' first film was a short subject for Educational Pictures titled Way Up Thar, featuring a then-unknown Roy Rogers.
4.
Joan Davis appeared steadily in Fox features for several years, playing supporting roles in major pictures and larger, featured roles in minor ones.
5.
Joan Davis began freelancing, first at Universal Pictures with Abbott and Costello, then Republic, then RKO with Kay Kyser and then Eddie Cantor.
6.
Joan Davis entered radio with an August 28,1941, appearance on The Rudy Vallee Show and became a regular on that show four months later.
7.
Joan Davis then began a series of shows that established her as a top star of radio situation comedy throughout the 1940s.
8.
Joan Davis was heard on CBS July 3 through August 28,1950.
9.
Joan Davis was a frequent and popular performer on Tallulah Bankhead's radio variety show The Big Show.
10.
Joan Davis was a regular on Eddie Cantor's Time to Smile program.
11.
However, by the start of its third year, not only were the ratings beginning to slip, but Joan Davis was experiencing fatigue from heart issues.
12.
Joan Davis was granted her request to be released from her contract, and the series was canceled in the spring of 1955.
13.
The premise of this series had Joan Davis playing a musical-comedy entertainer who had raised a daughter on her own.
14.
On May 23,1961, Joan Davis died of a heart attack at age 48 at her home in Palm Springs, California.
15.
Joan Davis was interred in the Holy Cross Cemetery mausoleum in Culver City, California.
16.
Joan Davis has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for her contribution to the motion picture industry at 1501 Vine Street and one for radio in the 1700 block of Vine.