Actress. A sultry-voiced blonde, she was initially cast as the "pretty girl" before moving on to more challenging parts. Born Dorothy Eloise Maloney, her father worked as a telephone company auditor, she experienced modeling during her childhood. While in high school, she participated in stage productions and later continued to perform on campus shows while attending Southern Methodist University. Spotted by a Hollywood scout, she was signed to a contract with RKO Pictures and over the next five years, she appeared in minor parts before playing a bookstore owner in the Humphrey Bogart picture "The Big Sleep" (1946). She achieved stardom when she received an Academy Award for playing the nymphomaniac Marylee Hadley in "Written on the Wind" (1956). She will be remembered by TV audiences for playing 'Constance Mackenzie Carson' in the soap opera "Peyton Place" (1964 to 1968). Her final film role was as 'Hazel Dobkins' in the thriller "Basic Instinct" (1992). She was formerly married to actor Jacques Bergerac. She died from natural causes.
Actress. A sultry-voiced blonde, she was initially cast as the "pretty girl" before moving on to more challenging parts. Born Dorothy Eloise Maloney, her father worked as a telephone company auditor, she experienced modeling during her childhood. While in high school, she participated in stage productions and later continued to perform on campus shows while attending Southern Methodist University. Spotted by a Hollywood scout, she was signed to a contract with RKO Pictures and over the next five years, she appeared in minor parts before playing a bookstore owner in the Humphrey Bogart picture "The Big Sleep" (1946). She achieved stardom when she received an Academy Award for playing the nymphomaniac Marylee Hadley in "Written on the Wind" (1956). She will be remembered by TV audiences for playing 'Constance Mackenzie Carson' in the soap opera "Peyton Place" (1964 to 1968). Her final film role was as 'Hazel Dobkins' in the thriller "Basic Instinct" (1992). She was formerly married to actor Jacques Bergerac. She died from natural causes.
Bio by: C.S.
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