1915-12-23 Houston, Texas, USA
Fluent in Spanish, Jean Brooks began professionally by singing with Enric Madriguera and Orchestra in New York. She had a small role in the New York City-filmed The Crime of Doctor Crespi (1935) and the second lead in a Broadway play, "Name Your Poison" (1938), with Lenore Ulric, all under her real name of Jeanne Kelly. She was signed by an independent film production company that had gone under by the time she got to Hollywood. She spent several years at Universal as a leading lady in "B" pictures, including several Johnny Mack Brown westerns, but her option was dropped in late 1941. By this time she had married writer (later director) Richard Brooks and, with a certain Broadway hoofer having just signed at MGM, dropped the Kelly and became Jean Brooks. She signed with RKO, where film buffs know her for her three appearances for cult producer Val Lewton, particularly her stunning performance as a haunted devil worshiper in The Seventh Victim (1943). Her clipped delivery and intense, forceful acting style made her a promising bet for stardom, but RKO lost interest in her by mid-'44 and her roles got gradually smaller until she was dropped in 1946. She and Brooks divorced (his later studio biographies omitted her name as one of his ex-wives). For many years she was listed as a "Lost Player" championed in several magazine articles by writer Doug McClelland. She was eventually located in San Francisco, where she had moved after her film career petered out, and was employed as a classified ad solicitor on the "San Francisco Examiner" newspaper. She had married a printer called Leddy. Her death at the Kaiser Hospital in Richmond, California, in 1963 was due to nutritional problems caused by alcoholism, a sad ending for a stylish and talented performer who didn't get the breaks she deserved, both personally and professionally. Date of Death 25 November 1963, Richmond, California (extreme malnutrition & alcoholism)
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Women in the Night | Maya | 1948-01-02 |
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The Falcon's Alibi | Baroness Lena | 1946-04-12 |
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The Bamboo Blonde | Marsha | 1946-07-15 |
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Two O'Clock Courage | Barbara Borden | 1945-04-13 |
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Youth Runs Wild | Mary Hauser Coates | 1944-09-01 |
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A Night of Adventure | Julie Arden | 1944-06-02 |
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The Falcon in Hollywood | Roxanna Miles | 1944-12-08 |
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The Seventh Victim | Jacqueline Gibson | 1943-08-21 |
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The Falcon and the Co-Eds | Vicky Gaines | 1943-11-10 |
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The Leopard Man | Kiki Walker | 1943-05-19 |
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The Falcon in Danger | Iris Fairchild | 1943-07-17 |
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Klondike Fury | Rae Langton | 1942-03-20 |
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Boot Hill Bandits | May Meadows | 1942-04-24 |
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The Boss of Big Town | Iris Moore | 1942-12-07 |
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Riders of Death Valley | Mary Morgan (as Jeanne Kelly) | 1941-07-01 |
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Buck Privates | Camp Hostess | 1941-01-31 |
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Meet the Chump | Madge Reilly (as Jeanne Kelly) | 1941-02-14 |
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A Dangerous Game | Anne Bennett (as Jeanne Kelly) | 1941-08-21 |
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Man from Montana | Linda Thompson | 1941-09-05 |
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Badlands Of Dakota | Bella Union Girl | 1941-09-15 |
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Fighting Bill Fargo | Linda Tyler (as Jeanne Kelly) | 1941-12-09 |
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Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe | Olga (uncredited) | 1940-03-03 |
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Junior G-Men | Waitress (uncredited) | 1940-11-01 |
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Son of Roaring Dan | Eris Brooke (as Jeanne Kelly) | 1940-07-25 |
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The Devil's Pipeline | Laura Larson (as Jeanne Kelly) | 1940-10-31 |
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The Invisible Man Returns | Minor Role (uncredited) | 1940-01-12 |
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The Green Hornet Strikes Again! | Gloria Manning | 1940-12-24 |
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The Invisible Killer | Gloria Cunningham | 1939-11-14 |
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Miracle on Main Street | Nina | 1939-12-19 |
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Frankie and Johnnie | Cabaret Girl | 1936-04-30 |
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Obeah | 1935-02-01 | |
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The Crime of Doctor Crespi | Nurse Gordon (as Jeanne Kelly) | 1935-09-23 |
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Tango Bar | Young Ship's Passenger on Lower Deck (uncredited) | 1935-02-22 |
