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Luana Walters

Known For
Acting

Known Credits
53

Gender
Female

Birthday
July 22, 1912 (113 years old)

Place of Birth
Los Angeles, California, USA

Luana Walters

Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Luana Walters (July 22, 1912 - May 19, 1963) was a motion picture actress from Los Angeles, California.

Walters was an expert horsewoman which led to her discovery as an actress at a rodeo in Palm Springs, California. She won a woman's bucking contest which was being watched by a movie scout, who noticed her.

Her film career began when she visited a friend on a United Artists lot. Douglas Fairbanks Sr. was excited about her screen possibilities and arranged for a film test. However, only three days later Fairbanks went to Europe, and the test was never completed. Not long afterwards Joe Schenck saw Walters on the dance floor at the Cocoanut Grove in Los Angeles, California. After viewing the abbreviated test made by Fairbanks, Schenck offered her a contract with United Artists. The studio did not make a movie in the next six months so Walters' option was not taken up.

Walters' screen credits start with an uncredited role in Reaching For The Moon (film) (1930). Her skill as an equestrian helped her in parts in westerns like Ride 'Em Cowboy (1936), Where The West Begins (1938), Mexicali Rose (1939), and Law Of The Wolf (1939).

On many occasions Walters made films in which her role was cut out. This began when she made Reaching for the Moon (film) with Fairbanks. Her parts were also deleted from Spawn of the North (1938) and Souls At Sea (1937). The former was a Carole Lombard feature and the latter paired Walters with Robert Cummings.

Walters was the first actress to portray Superman's biological mother Lara in a live-action format. She appeared in "Superman Comes to Earth", the first chapter of the 1948 Superman movie serial. Portions of this depiction appear in flashback in "At the Mercy of Atom Man!", the seventh chapter of the 1950 serial Atom Man vs. Superman.

In the latter portion of her career Walters was in a number of B-Movie films, most of them of the sci-fi and horror genres. She plays a female reporter on the trail of a fiend's story in The Corpse Vanishes (1942), with Bela Lugosi. She appears as a cellblock guard in Girls In Prison (1956). Her final role came in The She Creature (1956).

Luana Walters died of liver failure due to alcoholism in Los Angeles in 1963.

Description above from the Wikipedia article Luana Walters, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Known For

Acting

1991Halloween Monster Bashas Patricia Wilder (archive footage)
1956Girls in Prisonas Cellblock guard
1948Arthur Takes Overas Newspaper Woman
1947Shoot to Killas Marian Langdon (as Susan Walters)
1943Drums of Fu Manchuas Mary Randolph
1942Bad Men of the Hillsas Laurie Bishop
1942Thundering Hoofsas Nancy Kellogg
1942Down Texas Wayas Mary Hopkins
1942The Corpse Vanishesas Patricia Hunter
1942Inside the Lawas Dora Mason
1942Lawless Plainsmenas Baltimore Bonnie Dixon
1942Captain Midnightas Fury Shark
1942The Lone Star Vigilantesas Marcia Banning
1941No Greater Sinas Sandra James
1941Arizona Boundas Ruth Masters
1941Across the Sierrasas Anne Woodworth
1941The Kid's Last Rideas Sally Rowell
1940Misbehaving Husbandsas Jane Forbes
1940Blondie Plays Cupidas Millie
1940The Range Bustersas Carol Thorp
1940The Tulsa Kidas Mary Wallace
1940The Durango Kidas Nancy Winslow
1940The Return of Wild Billas Kate Kilgore
1940Drums of Fu Manchuas Mary Randolph
1940Millionaire Playboyas Resort Girl
1939Eternally Yoursas Girl at Shower (uncredited)
1939Honeymoon in Balias Girl Having Her Fortune Told (uncredited)
1939Mutiny on the Blackhawkas
1939Law of the Wolfas Ruth Adams
1939Hotel Imperialas Nurse (uncredited)
1939Mexicali Roseas Anita Loredo
1939King of Chinatownas Nightclub Girl (uncredited)
1939Cafe Societyas Cigarette Girl
1939Paris Honeymoonas Angela
1939Fangs of the Wildas Carol Dean
1938Say It in Frenchas Hat Check Girl
1938Thanks for the Memoryas Model (uncredited)
1938Marie Antoinetteas Woman in Gaming House (uncredited)
1938Assassin of Youthas Joan Barry
1938The Buccaneeras Suzette
1938Where the West Beginsas Lynne Reed
1937Youth on Paroleas Salesgirl (uncredited)
1937Under Strange Flagsas Dolores de Vargas
1936Shadow of Chinatownas Sonya Rokoff
1936Shadow of Chinatownas Sonya Rokoff
1936Ride 'Em Cowboyas Lillian Howard
1936Aces and Eightsas Juanita Hernandez
1936The Speed Reporteras May
1934The Third Sexas Elinor Gordon
1933Fighting Texansas Jo Ann Carver
1932End of the Trailas Luana
1932Two Secondsas Tart (uncredited)
1932Miss Pinkertonas First Nurse (uncredited)

Production