Mamie Van Doren – The Most Enduring of the Three M’s
Mamie Van Doren – What comes to mind as you hear the name? The hot goddess that rocked the several decades? Hollywood’s sexiest icon? The most enduring of the Three M’s?
Or something entirely different we probably can’t guess.
Well, Mamie Van Doren is many things and these are definitely some of them.
Born on February 6, 1931, in South Dakota with the birth name, Joan Lucille Oleander, Van Doren was an early bloomer whose scandalous and ambitious living began as early as her teenage years.
At 17, she eloped with and married Jack Newman, but quickly divorced when Newman’s abusive nature came to light.
Not long after at 18, Van Doren got engaged to heavyweight boxing champion Jack Dempsey but quickly broke the engagement when she landed a contract with Universal Studios.
She met and dated producer Howard Hughes for several years and Hughes launched her career by placing Van Doren in several RKO films
Van Doren’s film debut was a minor part in the film Jet Pilot released in 1957. She then went on to do more bit parts in RKO films like His Kind of Woman, Robert Mitchum, Jane Russell, and Vincent Prince.
After signing the contract in 1953 with Universal Studios, her handlers gave her the name “Mamie” after First Lady Mamie Eisenhower, while the name “Van Doren” was an homage to the great intellectual Van Doren clan.
The Studio first cast the sexy star in a minor role as a singer in Forbidden. They went ahead to also cast her in The All American, Yankee Pasha, the musical Ain’t Misbehavin’, Running Wild, and Star in The Dust.
But none of these were breakthrough roles, and Van Doren began to accept bigger and better roles in better movies from other studios.
Some of her more popular movies included, Untamed Youth, Teachers Pet, Born Reckless, High School Confidential, The Beat Generation, Girls Town, The Private Lives of Adam and Eve, The Beautiful Legs of Sabrina, Sex Kittens Go to College, and much more.
Most of Van Doren’s film roles showcased her curves and sexiness in tight clothes, low-cut blouses, and daring swimsuits, leading to her popularity (besides her scandalous relationships ) as a sex symbol.
Van Doren was married five times. In 1979, Van Doren married actor and dentist Thomas Dixon and they’ve been together ever since.
The star has always been forthright in talking and writing about her sex life. She has acknowledged her affairs with several celebrities like Clark Gable, Howard Hughes, Johnny Carson, Elvis Presley, Clint Eastwood, Joe Namath, Tony Curtis, and non-celebrities.
The icon turned 91 years old on February 6th this year. Van Doren and her husband Thomas run her website selling various merchandise along with homemade short films starring the icon. Her blog is inspiring and informative – the subject matter ranges and is often current events and politics. She also shares on social media!
In 1987 Van Doren released her autobiography, Playing the Field, which brought massive media attention to the star, which can be purchased on Amazon. In February 2020, she announced working on a new book as a follow-up to her autobiography.
She said, ‘I wrote my first book in 1987. It was called Playing the Field. But a lot has happened between 1987 and 2020. So now I’m writing about what it’s like getting older and appreciating life a little more as you go along, as well as getting smarter as you get older. There’s so much to write about. A lot of material just didn’t make it in the first book. My book publisher was very conservative and a lot of stories were taken out. So I’m putting a lot of those stories back in.’
The title of the book was announced in December 2021, China & Me: Wind Flapping, Feather Pulling, and Love on the Wing.
Van Doren described it as,’ It is a story of my long and at times rambunctious relationship with China, my pet Moluccan Cockatoo. I acquired China in 1980, a first-anniversary gift from Thomas. China is still with me today, um, as is Thomas, LOL. By my calculations, China is most likely 50 years old, give or take. This is not all that unusual for parrots. This story is a look behind the curtain into my everyday life. It’s often funny, but, like so many things in life, it has its moments of sadness….’
TO PURCHASE China & Me: Wind Flapping, Feather Pulling, and Love on the Wing CLICK HERE
On a personal note – I just ADORE Mamie, it was a pleasure writing this!
