She worked with famous leading men and notable directors in such films as The Flame and the Arrow (1950), directed by Jacques Tourneur and costarring Burt Lancaster The West Point Story (1950), again teamed with Cagney Captain Horatio Hornblower R. Mayo continued her demanding work schedule throughout the 1950s, a decade that saw her become a bona fide movie star. Her other film appearances in 1949 displayed her range throughout the popular film genres: Flaxy Martin, a mystery Colorado Territory, a western directed by Raoul Walsh the comedy The Girl from Jones Beach, starring opposite Ronald Reagan the film noir Red Light and the comedy Always Leave Them Laughing, with Milton Berle. In 1949 she starred in six films, including performing her most famous role as the unfaithful wife of a gangster played by James Cagney in the film noir classic White Heat. She moved to Warner Bros., and her hectic work pace continued in such films as the screwball comedy Out of the Blue (1947) The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947), costarring Kaye and Boris Karloff the crime drama Smart Girls Don’t Talk (1948) and another comedy with Kaye, A Song Is Born (1948), directed by Howard Hawks. Mayo married O’Shea on 7 July 1947 and ended her contract with MGM the same year. Often called the best film about post– World War II America, The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) gave Mayo two opportunities: her first significant dramatic role and, under the direction of William Wyler, her first experience working with an A-list Hollywood director. She then appeared in two popular comedies starring Kaye, Wonder Man (1945) and The Kid from Brooklyn (1946). Her first major role occurred in 1944 when she starred opposite Bob Hope in The Princess and the Pirate. She had a small role in Jack London (1943), an important film because while making it she met her future husband, the actor Michael O’Shea. By 1943 she was acting in bit parts she went uncredited in Follies Girl (1943) and the Danny Kaye comedy Up in Arms (1944). As a Goldwyn Girl she was groomed and trained to fit the mold of a young starlet. Mayo entered the movies at the height of the power of the studio system. As one of the Goldwyn Girls she was moved to Hollywood and given charm and acting lessons. Samuel Goldwyn, one of the founders of MGM Studios, gave her a screen test and then put her under contract. It was her work on stage in New York City that brought her to the attention of Hollywood. The show was a hit with promotional posters highlighting her role and calling her a “symphony for the eyes” and the winner of the “perfect legs contest.” By 1940 Mayo was on Broadway in a show called Banjo Eyes with Eddie Cantor. He wanted her to be the comic foil in an act called “Pansy the Horse.” She accepted and went on the road with the vaudeville team comprised of the Mayo brothers. While working at the municipal opera, she met Andrew Mayo, who asked her to join his vaudeville act. She graduated from Soldan High School in 1937 and that same year got a job performing at the St. Mayo continued to work on stage and took dancing lessons at the Sherman Park Funding School. During the Great Depression, her father lost his job on the paper and the family had to move in with relatives. Mayo was naturally drawn to singing and dancing and by the age of six was working on stages throughout St. Mayo’s exposure to the stage began early because of an aunt who gave drama and elocution lessons. The family traced their origins back to several heroes of the American Revolution and to one of the founders of the city of East St. Mayo was born Virginia Clara Jones to Martha Henrietta (Rautenstrauch), a homemaker, and Luke Ward Jones, a reporter for the St. Noted for her remarkable beauty, Mayo was once called “tangible proof of the existence of God” by the Sultan of Morocco. 17 January 2005 in Thousand Oaks, California), film and stage actress who starred in many Hollywood musicals and comedies as well as appearing in critically acclaimed dramatic roles.
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