all the king's women # 31 - suzanna leigh

Suzanna Leigh was born on July 26, 1945 in Belgrave, England, where she later attended convent school. her first film gig was as an extra in Tom Thumb (1958), followed by a small role in Oscar Wilde (1960) with Robert Morley. in 1965, producer Hal Wallis saw some photos of Suzanna dressed as Madame Du Barry for a London costume ball which tickled his fancy, so he signed her to a contract. Leigh's first Hollywood role came in Boeing Boeing (1965), starring Tony Curtis and Jerry Lewis.


Suzanna's next venture with Wallis would bring her to work with the king himself in one of my favourite of his films: Paradise, Hawaiian Style (1965). this is not one of Elvis' shining moments, to say the least, but there is a kitschy charm to this one that never fails to delight me.


the second of three king flicks filmed in Hawaii, there is little to no plot to follow as Elvis travels the country wooing wahinis and singing god-awful songs to children and dogs along the way. Suzanna plays Elvis' assistant Judy Hudson who pretends to be married to the king in order to help him ward off unwanted advances from lusty clients of their helicopter touring business :)


soon after working with Elvis, Suzanna returned to her movie career in England, appearring mostly in chillers, such as The Deadly Bees (1967) and Lust for a Vampire (1971).


in 1998, Suzanna published an autobiography entitled Paradise, Suzanna Style. [*snicker*]

all the king's women #30 - donna douglas

actress Donna Douglas was born in Pride, Louisiana in 1933. a self described 'tom boy' and animal lover, Donna related to the character she would become most associated with - that of Elly May Clampett on TV's The Beverly Hillbillies (1962-1971).

Douglas was married shortly after highschool to Roland Bourgeois Jr. and had a son, Danny. within a few short years, the two were divorced and after winning a couple of beauty contests, Donna moved to New York to begin her career in television.


in 1965, during a Beverly Hillbillies summer hiatus, Donna began working with Elvis on Frankie and Johnny (1966), a script modeled from the lyrics of a folk tune. Elvis played Johnny, an 1890's river boat entertainer with a suspiciously modern hairdo and a gambling problem.


[note: as this series progresses, given that we're moving chronologically through Elvis' film career, you may notice an undeniable funk beginning to eminate from some of the movies made after 1965. though i myself would liken such funk to that of a well aged and delicious cheese, Frankie & Johnny is particularly stinky even to my nose.]

when Beverly Hillbillies was over, Donna got her real estate licence as a security measure, but spent most of her later career as a gospel singer, recording several albums, and public speaker, often making appearances in her trademark Elly May costume.



Donna has also written a children's book titled Donna's Critters & Kids: Children's Stories with a Bible Touch.

all the king's women #29 - mary ann mobley

Mary Ann Mobley was born on February 17, 1939 in Biloxi, Mississippi. in 1959, she entered the Miss America Pageant. for the talent portion of the competition, Mobley sang a highly formal, operatic rendition of Puccini's "Un Bel Di" that transitioned into an energetic version of "There'll Be Some Changes Made", as she stripped into something skimpier. she won the crown, becoming the first Mississippian to do so.




when her reign had ended, Mobley began her television career, making appearances in shows like Perry Mason, Mission Impossible, and later Fantasy Island, the Love Boat and Different Strokes.
of course, the reason i'm writing of her now is for her connection to the King.
in what i consider to be the highlight of a career that included a standing position on Hollywood Squares, Mary Ann appeared in not one, but two Elvis films: Girl Happy, costarring Shelley Fabares, and Harum Scarum - both in 1965.

as it's tagline suggests ("Elvis brings the big beat to Bagdad in a riotous rockin' rollin' adventure spoof!!!"), Harum Scarum is a little on the silly side. Mobley plays Princess Shalimar, damsel-in-distress to Elvis' tanned and turbaned Johnny Tyrone. though much of the film remains below the standards of most, there lies a hidden gem within the mire, in So Close, Yet So Far - one of the better songs in an an Elvis flick of this period [if you can get past the outfit].



in 1967, Mary Ann married actor Gary Collins. they have one child, daughter Mary Clancy Collins. Mobley is well know for her charity work and has been a March of Dimes spokeswoman for over 25 years. in 2009, she was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer, and is currently in remission.

all the king's women #28 - julie adams

born in Iowa on October 17, 1926, Julie Adams' birth name was Betty May - later changed by Universal Studios, first to Julia and then to Julie. raised in Arkansas, Julie moved to California in pursuit of an acting career. there she became a part-time secretary while taking speach lessons and visiting studio casting departments.



Julie's first role was as a starlet in Red Hot and Blue (1949), in which she was credited under her birth name, followed by a series of six cheap westerns, all filmed in a period of 5 weeks. her big break came while reading lines opposite football player Leon Hart in a Universal Studios screen test intended for him. the Detroit Lions player proved a better athlete than an actor, but the studio fell for miss Adams and promptly changed her name and signed her up!




Julie's career began in B-movies, and the role that would bring her the most attention came in 1954 when she starred in Creature form the Black Lagoon.


A few films later, Adams made a shift to the idiot box, appearing almost exclusively in television from 1957 until present day (her most recent role being in the TV series Lost). 'course a movie or two did pop up in the middle of it all, which brings us to Julie's connection with the King...


In 1965 Adams had the fortune of appearing opposite Elvis, and the misfortune of appearing in one of his less than stellar screen endeavours. in Tickle Me Julie plays Vera Radford, owner of the dude ranch/health-spa-for-wealthy-hot-chicks that Elvis' singing rodeo cowboy character wanders into. what with all them women and the promise of hidden gold in a nearby ghost town thrown in, hilarity inevitably ensues (once again). the film made big money at the boxoffice, which is surprising considering they didn't even bother recording new songs for this one. the soundtrack is made up of songs recorded from 1960-1963, all having been released previously on various albums.

Julie has been married and divorced twice, to actor/director Ray Danton, with whom she has two sons, Steve and Mitchell, both in the movie business; and to screenwriter Leonard Stern.

all the king's women #27 - shelley fabares

Shelley Fabares has been acting since she was 3 years old, and first became famous for her role in the long running 60s sitcom The Donna Reed Show. the attention this role brought Shelley -life long friend of Annette Funicello- the opportunity to record two top forty hits, one of which (Johnny Angel) climbed to number one on the billboard charts in 1962.

in 1963, Shelley took a break from television to pursue a career in film. it was during this time that she appeared in Ride the Wild Surf with Barbara Eden and Susan Hart...

and not one, but three Elvis films: Girl Happy (1965), Spinout(1966) and Clambake(1967). Elvis once said that Shelley was his favourite actress to work with. perhaps because they shared an interest in music as well as acting?

Fabares returned to television in the 70s, appearing in numerous shows and made-for-tv movies. some of my readers may be a bit young to remember, but Shelley is probably most know for her role in the tv series Coach with Craig T. Nelson :)

Shelley married record producer Lou Adler in 1964, but the couple separated two years later and were divorced in 1980. in 1984, Fabares married actor Mike Farrell (B.J from M.a.s.h.) and is stepmother to his two children, Erin and Michael.

in October 2000, Shelley received a life-saving liver transplant after being diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis.