
Frances Gifford
Biography
Frances Gifford had a somewhat unorthodox introduction to the movie business. Born and raised in Long Beach, California, she had no ambition to be an actress, and in fact had applied to UCLA when, at age 16, she and a friend got to visit the Samuel Goldwyn Studios, where they watched a movie being shot. A studio exec saw her and asked if she would take a screen test. She did, the studio was impressed with the result and put her under contract. Nothing much came of it, however, other than bit parts, and she moved to RKO. Nothing much happened there, either. She had married actor James Dunn and decided to retire, which she did, in 1938. Off the screen for almost two years, she got a small part in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), and her career began to revive. She was signed by Paramount, which soon loaned her to Republic, where she made the film she is probably most remembered for: the serial Jungle Girl (1941), based on an Edgar Rice Burroughs story.
Unfortunately, her career never really took off, and she bounced around among several studios. In 1948 she was involved in an auto accident in which she received severe head injuries. Although she seemed to recover physically, her career took a nosedive, and she made her last film in 1953. In 1958 newspaper stories reported that as a result of the injuries sustained in the accident, she was admitted to a California state mental hospital. Nothing further was heard from her or about her until 1983, when a writer for a film magazine found her in Pasadena. She had apparently fully overcome her physical and mental problems and was working for the city library. She died of emphysema in Pasadena in 1994.
Acting (35 movies)

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
1939

American Empire
1942

The Reluctant Dragon
1941

The Arnelo Affair
1947

Having Wonderful Time
1938

The Glass Key
1942

Border Vigilantes
1941

Cry 'Havoc'
1943

Tarzan Triumphs
1943

Sky Commando
1953

Star Spangled Rhythm
1942

Maid's Night Out
1938

Stage Door
1937

Our Vines Have Tender Grapes
1945

Riding High
1950

Little Mister Jim
1947

Hold That Woman!
1940

Jungle Girl
1941

Thrill of a Romance
1945

She Went to the Races
1945

Night Spot
1938

Living on Love
1937

New Faces of 1937
1937

Henry Aldrich Gets Glamour
1943

Tombstone: The Town Too Tough to Die
1942

Beyond the Blue Horizon
1942

West Point Widow
1941

My Heart Belongs to Daddy
1942

Luxury Liner
1948

Forty Little Mothers
1940

There Goes the Groom
1937

The Remarkable Andrew
1942

Twenty Years After
1944

Marriage Is a Private Affair
1944

Walt Disney's Fables - Vol.6
2004
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