Jeanne Crain collection of home movies and other materials, 1932-1976,

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Summary

Title:
Jeanne Crain collection of home movies and other materials,
Dates:
1932-1976,
Creators:
Crain, Jeanne, 1925-
Abstract:
This collection consists of home movies, feature films, shorts distributed for the home market, television shows and commercials, and audio tape reels. Approximately half of the collection consists of 16 mm. Kodachrome home movies that feature Crain in both her professional and personal life. The majority feature Crain with family and friends, with most of the footage focused on baptisms, graduations, and children's birthday parties. Locales as diverse as South Africa, France, Japan, Egypt, Iran, Hawaii, Italy, Jerusalem and Brazil can be seen in the home movies, including footage shot in Africa while Crain was on location for Duel in the jungle (1954). There is behind-the-scenes footage of her films including Apartment for Peggy (1948), A letter to three wives (1949), Gentlemen marry brunettes (1955) and Nefertiti, queen of the Nile (1961). Celebrities featured include Robert Cummings, Van Johnson, Ann Miller, Walter Pidgeon, Ann Sothern, Linda Darnell, Ann Blyth, Alan Young, Jane Russell, Rudy Valleฬe and a brief shot of director Joseph L. Mankiewicz. The 16 mm. feature films, which are in the early stages of safety deterioration due to mold, vinegar syndrome or stickiness, include Merrily we live (1938), Margie (1946), Hell town (1937), Desert gold (1936), Bad men of Arizona (i.e., Arizona raiders) (1936), Man of the forest (1933), and State fair (1949). Of these feature films only State fair (1949) and Margie (1946) pertain specifically to Crain's career. A number of the 16 mm. shorts feature Mickey Mouse and Woody Woodpecker and were distributed for the home market by Castle Films. These shorts were most likely purchased by Crain for her children during the 1950s. Television programs from the 1950s include episodes from The Howdy Doody show, The Eve Arden show and The Cisco Kid, plus a number of DeSoto commercials created between 1957 and 1958 in which Crain appears by herself or with other celebrities such as Groucho Marx and Gordon McRae. The collection also consists of two 35 mm. safety prints, one contains a reel of excerpts that is likely from the feature film Clay (1965) and the other is an untitled sequence highlighting a fire in the California desert. Content of the nine 1/4 in. audio tape reels is not known.
Extent:
101 film reels, 9 audio tape reels.
Language:
English
Preferred citation:
The Jeanne Crain Collection at the UCLA Film Television Archive.

Background

Biographical / historical:
Jeanne Crain (1925-2003) was born in Barstow, California. Not long after her birth, her family moved to Los Angeles where her father accepted the position of high school English teacher. Crain's chance to play the lead in a junior high school play initially sparked her interest in acting and eventually led to her enrollment in the drama department at UCLA. Although Crain had done a screen test for Orson Welles while still in high school, her film career didn't take off until she signed a contract with Twentieth Century-Fox, where she began with a bit part in The gang's all here (1943) and quickly transitioned to starring roles in B-films. In 1945, Jeanne Crain became a household name following her appearance in the Technicolor musical State fair (1949) co-starring Dana Andrews, who frequently served as the romantic lead in other Crain vehicles. That same year, Crain married actor-turned-businessman Paul Brinkman (1918-2003), also known by the stage name as Paul Brooks. The couple had seven children, Paul Jr. (1947-), Michael (b. 1949), Timothy (1950-), Jeanine (1952-), Lisabette (1958-), Maria (1961-), and Christopher (b. 1965). Crain's rocky marriage to Brinkman ultimately ended in separation. Crain received her only Oscar nomination for her role as a light skinned black woman who passed for white in the controversial film Pinky (1949). In 1954, Crain left Fox and traveled to Africa for the filming of Duel in the jungle (1954) for Warner Brothers and eventually signed a five-year contract with Universal. During the 1960s, she increasingly made films overseas. Although Crain continued to act in films throughout the 1950s and 1960s, her career gradually went into decline. She retired from the screen in 1972, but remained active during retirement through her painting. She died of a heart attack on December 14, 2003 in Santa Barbara, California.
Acquisition information:

Jeanne Crain's daughter, Lisabette Brinkman;

Jeanne Crain's daughter, Lisabette Brinkman;

Arrangement:
Arranged in the following series: 1. Home movies. 2. Feature films. 3. Comedy and cartoon shorts distributed for the home market. 4. Television. 5. Audio tape reels and miscellaneous.
Physical description:
101 film reels, 9 audio tape reels.
Note:

APPOINTMENT REQUIRED FOR VIEWING MATERIALS ONSITE.

Inventory list available. Inquire at the Archive Research and Study Center.

Access and use

Restrictions:
APPOINTMENT REQUIRED FOR VIEWING MATERIALS ONSITE.
Terms of access:
Copyright has not been assigned to the UCLA Film Television Archive.
Preferred citation:
The Jeanne Crain Collection at the UCLA Film Television Archive.
Location of this collection:
302 East Melnitz
Box 951323
Los Angeles, CA 90095, US
Contact:
(310) 206-8013
archive@ucla.edu
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