Betty Grable

Who was Betty Grable?

Betty Grable was an American actress, dancer, and singer and popular contract star for 20th Century-Fox during the 1940s and 1950s.

Grable began her film career in 1929 at age twelve, after which she was fired from a contract when it was learned she signed up under false identification. She had contracts with RKO and Paramount Pictures during the 1930s, and appeared in a string of B-movies, mostly portraying co-eds. Grable came to prominence in the Broadway musical Du Barry Was a Lady, which brought her to the attention of 20th Century-Fox. She replaced Alice Faye in Down Argentine Way, her first major Hollywood film, and became Fox's biggest film star throughout the remaining decade. Fox cast Grable in a succession of Technicolor musicals during the decade that were immensely popular, co-starring with such leading men as Victor Mature, Don Ameche, John Payne, and Tyrone Power. In 1943, she was the number one box office draw in the world and, in 1947, she was the highest-paid entertainer in the United States. Two of her biggest film successes were the musical Mother Wore Tights and the comedy How to Marry a Millionaire, one of her last films. Grable retired from screen acting in 1955 after she withdrew from her Fox contract, although she continued to perform on the stage and on television.