EARLY DAYS PRODUCTIONS
Lake was born as Constance Frances Marie Ockelman on November 14, 1922 in Brooklyn, New York. Her father, Harry E. Ockelman, of Danish-Irish descent, worked for an oil company aboard a ship. Her father died in an industrial explosion in Philadelphia in 1932 when she was ten. Her mother, née Constance Charlotta Trimble (1902 to 1992), (listed as "Veronica F." on the 1920 census), married family friend Anthony Keane, a newspaper staff artist, a year later, and Lake began using his last name. Lake was sent to Villa Maria, an all-girls Catholic boarding school in Montreal, Canada, from which she was expelled. The Keane family later moved to Miami, Florida. Lake attended Miami Senior High School in Miami, where she was known for her beauty. She had a troubled childhood and was, according to her mother, diagnosed as schizophrenic.
1922 - 1973
Stats:
Birth Name:
Constance Frances Marie Ockelman
Height: 4' 11 1/2"
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Blue
Nickname: The Peek-a-boo Girl
Quote: "You could put all the talent I had into your left eye and still not suffer from impaired vision."
Birth Name:
Constance Frances Marie Ockelman
Height: 4' 11 1/2"
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Blue
Nickname: The Peek-a-boo Girl
Quote: "You could put all the talent I had into your left eye and still not suffer from impaired vision."
In 1938 Lake moved with her mother and stepfather to Beverly Hills, where her mother enrolled her in the Bliss-Hayden School of Acting. Her first appearance on screen was for RKO, playing a small role among several coeds in the 1939 film, "Sorority House". Similar roles followed, including "All Women Have Secrets" and "Dancing Co-Ed". During the making of "Sorority House" director John Farrow first noticed how her hair always covered her right eye, creating an air of mystery about her and enhancing her natural beauty. She was then introduced, while still a teenager, to the Paramount producer Arthur Hornblow, Jr.. He changed her name to Veronica Lake because the surname suited her blue eyes.
Her contract was subsequently dropped by RKO. She married art director John S. Detlie, 14 years her senior, in 1940. A small role in the comedy, "Forty Little Mothers", brought unexpected attention. In 1941 she was signed to a long-term contract with Paramount Pictures. Her breakthrough film was "I Wanted Wings" in 1941, a major hit in which Lake played the second female lead and was said to have stolen scene after scene from the rest of the cast. This success was followed by "Hold Back the Dawn" later that year. She had starring roles in more popular movies, including "Sullivan's Travels", "This Gun for Hire", "I Married a Witch", "The Glass Key", and "So Proudly We Hail!". Looking back at her career years later, Lake remarked, "I never did cheesecake; I just used my hair."
For more information about Veronica Lake please visit: Wikipedia
Veronica Lake's Selected Filmography
1939 Sorority House
1939 The Wrong Room
1939 Dancing Co-Ed
1939 All Women Have Secrets
1940 Young As You Feel
1940 Forty Little Mothers
1941 I Wanted Wings
1941 Hold Back the Dawn
1941 Sullivan's Travels
1942 This Gun for Hire
1942 The Glass Key
1942 I Married a Witch
1942 Star Spangled Rhythm
1943 So Proudly We Hail!
1944 The Hour Before the Dawn
1945 Bring on the Girls
1945 Out of This World
1945 Duffy's Tavern
1945 Hold That Blonde
1946 Miss Susie Slagle's
1946 The Blue Dahlia
1947 Ramrod
1947 Variety Girl
1948 Saigon
1948 The Sainted Sisters
1948 Isn't It Romantic?
1949 Slattery's Hurricane
1951 Stronghold
1966 Footsteps in the Snow
1970 Flesh Feast
1939 The Wrong Room
1939 Dancing Co-Ed
1939 All Women Have Secrets
1940 Young As You Feel
1940 Forty Little Mothers
1941 I Wanted Wings
1941 Hold Back the Dawn
1941 Sullivan's Travels
1942 This Gun for Hire
1942 The Glass Key
1942 I Married a Witch
1942 Star Spangled Rhythm
1943 So Proudly We Hail!
1944 The Hour Before the Dawn
1945 Bring on the Girls
1945 Out of This World
1945 Duffy's Tavern
1945 Hold That Blonde
1946 Miss Susie Slagle's
1946 The Blue Dahlia
1947 Ramrod
1947 Variety Girl
1948 Saigon
1948 The Sainted Sisters
1948 Isn't It Romantic?
1949 Slattery's Hurricane
1951 Stronghold
1966 Footsteps in the Snow
1970 Flesh Feast
Full Movie: I Married A Witch (1942)
A beautiful 17th-century witch returns to life to plague politician Wallace Wooley, descendant of her persecutor.
- Taken from IMDB
- Taken from IMDB
Lake's career stumbled with her unsympathetic role as Nazi spy Dora Bruckman in 1944's "The Hour Before the Dawn". During filming, she tripped on a lighting cable while pregnant and began hemorrhaging. She recovered, but her second child, William, was born prematurely on July 8, 1943, dying a week later from uremic poisoning. By the end of 1943 her first marriage ended in divorce. Meanwhile, scathing reviews of "The Hour Before Dawn" included criticism of her unconvincing German accent. Nonetheless, Lake was earning $4,500 per week under her contract with Paramount. She had begun drinking more heavily during this period and people began refusing to work with her. Paramount cast Lake in a string of mostly forgotten films. A notable exception was "The Blue Dahlia" (1946), in which she again co-starred with Ladd. During filming, screenplay writer Raymond Chandler referred to her as "Moronica Lake". Paramount decided not to renew her contract in 1948.
After a single film for 20th Century Fox, "Slattery's Hurricane" (1949), her career collapsed. By the end of 1951 she had appeared in one last film ("Stronghold", which she later described as "a dog"), and filed for bankruptcy. The IRS seized the remainder of her assets for unpaid taxes. After breaking her ankle in 1959, Lake was unable to continue working as an actress. A New York Post reporter found her working as a barmaid at the all-women's Martha Washington Hotel in Manhattan. At first, Veronica claimed that she was a guest at the hotel and covering for a friend. Soon afterward, she admitted that she was employed at the bar. The reporter's widely distributed story led to some television and stage appearances. In 1966, she had a brief stint as a TV hostess in Baltimore, Maryland, along with a largely ignored film role in "Footsteps in the Snow".
Her physical and mental health declined steadily. By the late 1960s Lake was in Hollywood, Florida, apparently immobilized by paranoia (which included claims she was being stalked by the FBI). When Veronica: The Autobiography of Veronica Lake (Bantam, 1972) was published, she promoted the book with a memorable hour-long interview on The Dick Cavett Show. With the proceeds, she co-produced and starred in her last film, "Flesh Feast" (1970), a very low budget horror movie with a Nazi-myth storyline. Lake died on July 7, 1973 of hepatitis and acute renal failure (complications of her alcoholism) in Burlington, Vermont.
Her physical and mental health declined steadily. By the late 1960s Lake was in Hollywood, Florida, apparently immobilized by paranoia (which included claims she was being stalked by the FBI). When Veronica: The Autobiography of Veronica Lake (Bantam, 1972) was published, she promoted the book with a memorable hour-long interview on The Dick Cavett Show. With the proceeds, she co-produced and starred in her last film, "Flesh Feast" (1970), a very low budget horror movie with a Nazi-myth storyline. Lake died on July 7, 1973 of hepatitis and acute renal failure (complications of her alcoholism) in Burlington, Vermont.
Early Days Productions: Veronica Lake 04/26/2012
