GEDCOM Note

Marilyn's given was Marvel Marilyn. When she was put under contract to MGM-she dropped her first name and was known professionally by her middle name.

GEDCOM Note

(Medical):She had suffered from high blood pressure and pulmonary problems.

Her mother Anna had traveled the nation as accompanist for dancer Ruth St. Denis. Daughter Marilyn went with her & at the age of three, made her first state appearance in a dance number.

GEDCOM Note

MARILYN MAXWELL
After her parent's divorce, she went to Hollywood with her mother. (She had studied dance from the age of 3) Our family continued to hear about her, of course, but were closer to her father Hal and his second wife Sadie. Marilyn went with her mother who was the accompaist for dancer Ruth St. Denis. Marilyn made her first appearance at the age of 3 in a dance number. Marilyn worked as a band singer and appeared on numerous radio shows and also in clubs, including the Latin Quarter in New York. She sang with Perry Como & Ted Weems orchestra. In 1940 there was noted: "Among the new programs this year is a Sunday night quiz show on NBC called Beat the Band.,,The show's energetic young emcee is Gary Moore, and the music is provided by the Ted Weems orchestra, Perry Como, *Marvel Maxwell and Elmo ("the Whistling Troubadour") Tanner."

• She was still using her given name of Marvel. She was signed by MGM and placed in the 'starlet pool' at MGM which included Ava Gardner...In Gardner's autobiography, she says that The Hollywood Reporter decided that Marilyn Maxwell and Ava Gardner were two of "the smoothest young sirens to be found", were "superb and should delight the studio with their histrionic conduct here". She appeared in such movies as 'Champion' with Kirk Douglas and sang the now perennial Christmas favorite 'Silver Bells' in 1951's 'The Lemon Drop Kid' with Bob Hope with whom she had a romantic relationship. It was written for Hope and her by Jay Livingston and it became one ot the most recorded songs in America and since its release has sold 150 million copies. Marilyn also accompanied Hope on USO tours to entertain the troupes and appeared on his TV Show. Other TV appearances included The Red Skelton Show, Gunsmoke and Playhouse 90. A biography of Frank Sinatra stated: "One of the most dazzling MGM actresses was Marilyn Maxwell, an ex-band singer who was every man's fantasy of a movie star: tall and voluptuous, with white porcelain skin, long platinum hair, and a smile so inviting that only monks could resist...She was gorgeous, simply gorgeous, and nice too." Marilyn had expected to marry Frank Sinatra, but at the time his wife was refusing to divorce him. After his marriage to Ava Gardner.."at a Club opening, Ava thought Frank was singing to Marilyn Maxwell and stormed out." She also dated actor Peter Lawford. She was his date at a party at Louis B. Mayer's Santa Monica beach house and it was here that it was here that she introduced Lawford to Frank Sinatra. A biography of Peter Lawford states that "All three sat together at dinner...and laughed a lot under their breaths at what they saw going on around them". A biography of Peter Lawford states that both Sinatra & Lawford were friends of Marilyn Maxwell & that she introduced them "during an extremely boring dinner". it goes on to say that Marilyn had been a band singer who was considered "both beautiful and one of the nicest actresses to try to succeed in Hollywood. She never had the vicious agressiveness that characterized so many actresses trying to rise to the top. She was once compared to Marilyn Monroe and reportedly replied, "Hey I'm the blonde with her clothes on." She had been married to John Conte, an actor from whom she was getting a divorce. She had been dating Sinatra who was still married to Nancy who refused to consider divorce & Frank flaunted his relationship with Marilyn..." Lawford and Sinatra became fast friends--Lawford later married a sister of John F. Kennedy and became part of the "Rat Pack" at the Sands Hotel: Sinatra, with Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Joey Bishop, and Lawford. (In 1960 Joey Bishop performed at a Shrine Family Show during my dad's term as Potentate and we all had our pictures taken backstage) 'The Golden Age of Las Vegas' I was lucky enough to see 'the Rat Pack' perform at what they called "the Summit" on several occasions.Frank Sinatra, Peter Lawford, Sammy Davis Jr. & Joey Bishop-What a hoot is was! There was an electric atmosphere when they were in town to perform. Tickets were impossible for the public to get but we got great seats. That period in Vegas is now considered the peak of the Vegas' "Golden Age". (The hotels loved having the Shriners come to town and it didn't hurt being the daughter of the Potentate or Past Potentate). My friends and I were treated very well and went to all the shows. What a good time we had! That "golden era" of Vegas is gone forever. When There was nothing like it and «u»never«/u» will be again. «u»You had to be there«/u»! I met Marilyn once on one of those Las Vegas visits. She was appearing in a show at the Desert Inn. I saw her in the casino and introduced myself as a cousin. She offered to get me seats for the show-I had already seen it and told her I'd enjoyed it. She was very pleasant and we talked briefly about the family. Marilyn and Rock Hudson One of her most interesting relationships was with Rock Hudson. In «i»Rock Hudson, His Story«/i» by Sara Davidson is the following: ...it was said..that there never was a woman staying over at (Rock's) house, with the exception of Marilyn Maxwell. Rock and Marilyn had met in the early fifties and had been instantly attracted to each other, but did not become romantically involved until 1961, when she broke up with her husband, Jerry Davis, and started spending time with Rock. People who saw them together said they laughed and played "like little kids." Rock would put on Marilyn's favorite forties big-band records and say, "Show me the shimmy one more time." He called her Max and she called him Big Sam. They would sit down at the piano playing four-handed....fracturing the Moonlight Sonata...and would fall to the ground in hysterics. Rock became close to Marilyn's son Matthew and...gave him a party at his home.. for his sixth birthday. When Marilyn nearly died in 1963 from an ovarian cyst, she had gone to her brother's house in Armonk, New York to recuperate, but felt uncomfortable there, so Rock flew there and brought her and Matthew back to his house where she stayed until she was better....She said, "He...literally saved my life...He is...the best friend I've ever had." He bought her numerous presents. Her secretary of 26 years-Jean Greenberg says, "I know for a fact they were having an affair. Marilyn confided everything in me... She was in love with him. in [I contacted Ms. Greenberg later and she sent me some nice photos and information.] They talked marriage even about having children...but Marilyn knew that he would always be seeing other men....they continued to be lovers, on and off, and devoted friends. In March of 1972, Marilyn died of a heart attack...Rock was one of the first people called. Her son who was now fifteen had come home from school and found her slumped on the floor of the closet. He went into shock...went into the maid's room and sat in a big red chair...refusing to leave. Rock came in and picked him up...took him to his car and back to his home...putting him to bed in a guest room... Rock was a pallbearer at the funeral. A few days later, he found Marilyn's old 78 recordings of every radio show she had ever done. He had them transferred to tape and gave them to Matthew. Matthew has said that he was the "best friend my mother ever had". After her death, actress Gloria deHaven said: "You never heard a bad word about her. She was a dear, dear love. I adored her. What a friend, what a loss!"

Its too bad Marilyn didn't write her biography. What a read that would have been. She had quite a life!

GEDCOM Note

Book Marilyn Monroe and Sinatra His Way Kitty Kelley Bantam Books 1986, paperback 1987 Y Y

GEDCOM Note

(Research): In his biography, singer, actor, songwriter Mel Tormé had numerous references to Marilyn. As an aspiring performer he says that "The [Ted] Weems band boasted two good singers: Perry Como and Marvel (later Marilyn) Maxwell. They were kind and encouraging." He dated her, having met her at a party in 1947. He says, ."...pre-Christmas parties were in full swing. At one of them I ran into Marilyn Maxwell. The beautiful blonde had signed with MGM in 1942 and was doing well in films. I reminded her of the first time we met, back in Chicago at the Edgewater Beach Hotel, when she had been Marvel Maxwell, the Ted Weem's girl singer, and I had been a high school student, winning contests with my trio...I was enjoying some attention thanks to Nat Cole's just released recording of "The Christmas Song." (which Mel Tormé wrote)....Marilyn and I made a date." He later writes about hosting a New Year's Eve party and being seated at the piano with Nat Cole, Donald O'Connor, Sid Miller and Marilyn singing with the party in full swing------------------------------------- «u» «/u» «u»From her obituary«/u»: ...Survivors, in addition to her son include a brother, Leland Maxwell, who with his wife flew to California from their Armonk, N.Y. home. A brother Paul and both parents preceded her in death... ...When her mother died she visited Clarinda relatives in 1951. She was a cousin of Fred and Ben Tomlinson, Mrs. Mildred Swanson, Mr. Fred McIntyre and Angus MacIntosh of the local area. Several members of the Tomlinson relatives will represent the family at the funeral to be held at the Beverly Hills Community Presbyterian Church. Mrs. Pearl Newell, Thomas & Frank Tomlinson are among the relatives in California. The family has designated Marilyn Maxwell Scholarship Fund, which has been established in her memory, for memorials. She had been on the Board of Directors of the Young Musicians Foundation, which group sponsored the fund. Honorary pall bearers at her funeral: Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra & Jack Benny.
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I added notes to her site on «i»findagrave.com
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«/i»This from 'Google Groups' by Sheryl Krieg «i»skrieg@news.sentinel.com «/i»Wed. Aug 3, 2005 Marilyn Maxwell will recieve belated recognition A soundman. A phone call. A distant memory out of the blue. A odd set of circumstances put into motion a quest to recognize an actress who has long since passed away from this generation's thoughts, but not from Fort Wayne's hearts. Late actress Marvel Marilyn Maxwell-Marilyn Maxwell at the urging of MGM's Louis B. Mayer's during the 1940s-will have her name added to the historic Embassy Theatre's Walk of Recognition. She joins other former area residents honored by the Embassy, such as Carole Lombard and Shelley Long, director and producer David Anspaugh, and sportscaster Chris Schenkel. The $200,000 Embassy sidewalk is similar in concept to Hollywood's Walk of Fame. A 1-foot square bronze recognizes a person with a Fort Wayne connection who has acheived outstanding success in the arts. The bronze diamond is normally dedicated in May. Maxwell's will be Friday to accomodate the family's reunion here this weekend. The actress, who died of a heart attack in 1972, would have been 85 years old today. As Lori Lobsiger, executive director of the Embassy Theatre, explained, Maxwell's addition to the Embassy sidewalk would not be possible if it were not for the phone call a year ago from Matt Davis, the son Maxwell had with her third husband, screenwriter and 'Bewitched' TV series producer Jerry David. "Her son called out of the blue, and had been looking for the family," Lobsiger said. "He had found his mother dead when he was 15 and wanted to know more about his mother." After Davis, a Los Angeles resident, was working on a production and started home to California, he traveled through Indiana and thought he would make a call to verify his memory. "Within an hour they absolutely gave me the king's tour," he said. "Here I was in shorts and a crummy T-shirt getting a tour of this magnificent theatre." During the tour, converation turned to the bronze diamond. Davis thought it was a wonderful idea and Lobsiger jumped on the opportunity to pay homage to the Hollywood actress who grew up at 1218 W. Washington Blvd. "It was a good feel kind of a day," Lobsiger said. Suddenly he was a little boy again. It was a private moment for him. A star is born. Born Aug. 3, 1920, in Clarinda, Iowa, Marilyn Maxwell was named Marvel because her mother Anne thought it was the perfect name for a movie star. Maxwell's father Harold deserted the family shortly after her birth. (Tha'ts not the way I heard it as Harold aka Hal stayed in the area and remarried. My family knew him and his second wife Sadie. We understood that Marilyn's mother moved on and had theatrical aspirations for her daughter-who knows?) Anne supported her children Paul. Leland and Marilyn by working in department stores, giving piano lessons and playing the organ for silent movie houses. Around 1930 the family moved to Fort Wayne to take care of Marvel's oldest brother Paul, an engineer at WOWO radio station who had a leg amputated in a car accident. The young Marilyn spent her formative years in Fort Wayne, attending Washington Elementary School and taking singing and dancing lessons. As a teenager. she performed at Berghoff Gardens, the Chatterbox and on WOWO's "Modern Home Forum". She left Central High School in her sophomore year to join Amos Ostot's band in Indianapolis. She later joined the orchestras of Ted Weems and Buddy Rogers. (She was underage for at least a part of this time. I wondered what happened to her mother-she must have permitted this? What about any chaperones?) Rogers and his wife Mary Pickford sent her to the Pasadena Playhouse for acting lessons. She landed her first role in 1942 opposite Robert Taylor in 'Stand By For Action'. She later starred in movies with Kirk Douglas, Van Johnson, Clark Gable and Bob Hope. In one of her most popular films, 'The Lemon Drop Kid', she played Hope's girlfriend Brainy Baxter, in a story about a racetrack bookie (Hope) who owes money to a gangster. She performed the song "Silver Bells" in the film, and made the song a Christmas classic. The first Hollywood actress to go overseas during the Korean War, she adorned Bob Hope's side as he entertained the U.S. troops. The pair also performed Nov. 22, 1953, as Bob Hope and Marilyn Maxwell Day. By the 1960s, however, Maxwell's star had begun to fade. At home, Davis 49, said his mother encouraged him in his musical pursuits, a love they both shared. When he expressed an interest in playing the guitar, his mother got a world-renowned classical guitarist Christopher Parkening to give him lessons. When he formed a band with some friends, his mother shooed away female admirers so the boys could practice. "She took it various serious. When I made a decision, she was right there." Davis still remembers when his mother gave him the surprise of a lifetime, one he has yet to figure out how she accomplished. He had wanted a clubhouse in his backyard, and when he awoke one Christmas morning, there it was. "She always did things first yet", he said. Davis, who has done background music for America's Funniest Videos (1990) and has done parody musical arrangements, said Rock Hudson was one of Maxwell's closest friends. Maxwell and Hudson were constant companions for the last 20 years of her life, matched by the studio to mask his homosexuality*. (However, according to her secretary Jean Greenberg-they were lovers, close friends and even had considered marriage. I contacted Jean Greenberg at one time and she sent me photos of Marilyn.) Hudson once threw a birthday party, complete with a merry-go-round, for Davis when he was about 5 or 6. Hudson would also come over to the house and play piano for hours with his mother. "They'd play Beethoven, make a mistake, and fall of the bench laughing," Davis recalled. It was Hudson who also restored sanity to Davis' life the day his mother died. The house was in utter chaos, and Hudson took care of Davis until he was reunited with his father. Maxwell's niece and namesake Marilyn Gaffen, of Enfield, Conn. fondly remembered a warm and friendly aunt. "She's a lot like Auntie Mame, a whoosh of energy and enthusiam." Gaffen said her family came the East to spend every summer at Winona Lake while they were growing up. The Summer of 1954 Marilyn brought Jerry Davis to meet the family, and Gaffen was the flower girl at their wedding. While home in Connecticut, Gaffen remembered Aunt Marv (for Marvel-Marilyn's real first name) coming to do summer stock there in 1962. It was the custom for stars to stay with family and friends instead of in hotel rooms, so Gaffen had to give up her bed for Rock Hudson. She was 17 years old at the time and the envy of all of her friends. "This was the high point in his career at the time because of the films he was doing," she said. Gaffen, who will attend the dedication ceremony on Friday, also remembered the time she received a congratulatory phone call from her aunt at the nurse's station after having giving birth to her first son Adam. "It was typical Aunt Marv." Unfortunately for Maxwell, she left MGM just days before the list of stars was submitted for consieration on Hollywood's Walk of Fame. Maxwell was devastated by the omission, but the Embassy Theatre's bronze diamond will come a long way toward recognizing the actress that Hollywood did not. Exhibit of Marilyn Maxwell's person belongings on loan from her family, unveiling and reception. Embassy Theatre, 121 W. Jefferson Blvd.

• A 'match' like that wouldn't have lasted 20 years. From «i»classicmoviechat.com «/i»'That Sexy Blonde Rock Hudson Loved': ...According to the book «i»Rock Hudson, His Story«/i» by Sara Davison: They had met in the early fifties and were instantly attracted to each other but didn't become romantically involved until 1961, when she broke up with husband Jerry Davis, and started spending time with Rock...Hudson called Maxwell 'Max' and she called him 'Big Sam' ... «i» «/i»(See General Notes: Marilyn and Rock Hudson) «i» «/i» «i» «/i»

GEDCOM Note

Book Marilyn Maxwell in Hollywood-Ava Ava Ava Gardner Bantam Books Hardcover November 1990, Softcover 1992 Y Y