Faye Emerson
Faye Margaret Emerson (July 8, 1917 – March 9, 1983) was an American film and stage actress and television interviewer who gained fame as a film actress in the 1940s before transitioning to television in the 1950s and hosting her own talk show. Born in Louisiana, Emerson spent the majority of her early life in San Diego, California. She became interested in theater while attending San Diego State College and then pursued an acting career, appearing in stock theater in California. She signed a contract with Warner Bros. and began appearing in its films in 1941. She starred in several films noir, including Lady Gangster (1942), and Howard Hawks's war film Air Force (1943). In 1944, she played one of her more memorable roles as Zachary Scott's former lover in The Mask of Dimitrios. From 1944 to 1950, she was married to Elliott Roosevelt, son of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. In 1949, Emerson began hosting The Faye Emerson Show, a late-night talk show series. Her prolific appearances on many talk shows and game shows throughout the 1950s earned her the nickname "The First Lady of Television". During the decade, she also appeared in numerous Broadway stage productions. Emerson formally retired from show business in 1963 and retired to Europe. She lived there until 1983, when she died of stomach cancer in Deià, Spain, aged 65. For her contributions to the motion picture industry, Emerson received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960. Her star is located at 6529 Hollywood Blvd. Early life Faye Margaret Emerson was born July 8, 1917, in Elizabeth, Louisiana, the fifth child of Lawrence L. and Jean Emerson. The family moved frequently during her early years, including El Paso, Texas, and New Mexico, when she was an infant. Her parents separated when Emerson was three years old, and she went to Chicago in 1924 to live with her father and stepmother. At age 10, she moved to San Diego, California, to live with her mother, where she spent the remainder of her formative years. She became interested in dramatics during her two years attending the Academy of San Luis Rey, a Roman Catholic convent and boarding school in Oceanside, California. She attended Point Loma High School, and for one year, San Diego State College. Emerson joined the San Diego Community Theatre, and the St. James Repertory Theater, performing in summer stock productions in California. Emerson married her first husband, William Wallace Crawford, Jr., a naval aviator, on October 29, 1938. The couple had a son, William Wallace "Scoop" Crawford, III, in 1940. Film career In 1941, while appearing in a stage production of Here Today at the San Diego Municipal Theater, Emerson was spotted by a talent agent from Warner Bros. studios. She subsequently signed a contract with the studio, appearing in bit parts before having supporting roles in Bad Men of Missouri and Nine Lives Are Not Enough (both released in 1941). She had her first starring role, as a female gangster, in