Mamie Van Doren Biography

Fast Facts

• Did tours with the USO during the Vietnam War and visited amputees and burn victims in hospitals
• The first film she ever saw was a Shirley Temple movie that her parents took her to
• Quote: "Movies reflect what the audience wants to see, and today people are less interested in the glamor of, say, Dinner at Eight," than they are in the reflections of their own lives․""
• Quote: "[on her performances] "I'm really proud of them all․ They're like children--some turned out great, some good, some just okay--but I am fond of them all․""
• Brought the style of rock 'n' roll music alive in the musical "Untamed Youth" and starred in other films of the same exotic nature
• Considered a bombshell in the 1950s, she appeared in many films that capitalized on her looks
• Stated that some of her favorite films are "Blade Runner," "Duel in the Sun" and "Blind Date․"
• Laughed out loud when she first saw the homage to her in "Pulp Fiction" while she was sitting in the theater with her husband
• Wrote an autobiography called "Playing the Field: Sex, Stardom, Love, and Life in Hollywood․"
• Cited George Seaton, Albert Zugsmith, Ridley Scott and Clint Eastwood as directors who changed her life