Matinee Classics - Dianne Foster Biography & Filmography

Dianne Foster ACTOR

PHOTOS

DIANNE FOSTER BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY:

Dianne Foster was born on October 31st, 1928 in Edmonton, Alberta Canada with the birth name Olga Helen Laruska. She began her interest in acting as a child actor. At the age of thirteen she appeared on stage in a production called, "What Every Woman Knows".

The following year, Foster was working as a radio actress and became one of Canada's top radio performers. During her early 20's, she took a trip to London and appeared in a stage production of, "The Hollow" and "Othello".

Foster, then signed a five year contract with a British film company appearing in such films as, "Bad for Each Other" (1953). Foster, then relocated to Hollywood and signed a contract with Columbia Pictures and added such film credits to her resume as, "The Kentuckian" (1954) starring Burt Lancaster, Diane Lynn, John McIntire, Walter Matthau, and John Carradine, "Drive a Crooked Road" (1954) starring alongside Mickey Rooney, Kevin McCarthy and Jack Kelly, "The Bamboo Prison" (1954) co-starring Robert Francis, Brian Keith, Jack Kelly, Leo Gordon, Keye Luke, Richard Loo and E.G. Marshall, "The Violent Men" (1955) starring Glenn Ford, Edward G. Robinson, Barbara Stanwyck and Brian Keith, "The Bandits" (1955) starring Glenn Ford, "Monkey on My Back" (1957) starring Cameron Mitchell and Jack Albertson, "The Deep Six" (1958) co-starring with Alan Ladd, Edward G. Robinson, William Bendix, James Whitmore and Keenan Wynn, "Night Passage" (1957) starring James Stewart, Audie Murphy, Dan Duryea, Elaine Stewart, Jay C. Flippen, Brandon de Wilde, Hugh Beaumont, Jack Elam, Paul Fix and Robert J. Wilke and "Gideon of Scotland Yard" (1958) starring Jack Hawkins, Anna Lee and Anna Massey.

Although, her career was quite successful, her personal life had some difficulties. With a number of failed marriages and legal issues, her career began to slow down. Her last really well known film role was in, "The Last Hurrah" (1958) starring Spencer Tracy, Jeffrey Hunter, Pat O'Brien, Donald Crisp and John Carradine.

She began to turn her focus more towards television roles appearing on such series as, "Overland Trail", "Bonanza", "The Lloyd Bridges Show", "Breaking Point", "Gunsmoke", "Bus Stop", "The Eleventh Hour", "Ben Casey" and "The Big Valley".

Her final film role was in, "Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?" (1963) starring Dean Martin, Elizabeth Montgomery, Richard Conte, Carol Burnett, Jill St. John and Martin Balsam and then after appearing on the television series, "The Wild Wild West" (1966) starring Robert Conrad and Ross Martin, she chose to retire from the industry and focus on raising her three children.

Foster was married twice throughout her lifetime, first to Joel Murcott in 1954 and they had two children before the marriage came to an end in 1958. She then married Dr. Harold Rowe D.D.S. in 1961 and they had one child and remained married until he passed away in 1994.

Dianne Foster has four grandchildren and she resides in Hidden Hills, California. In addition to her career as an actress she enjoys painting and is an accomplished artist.