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Leonard Maltin was of the opinion that, if Jane Greer had never made another movie, the film noir classic Out of the Past (1947) would have earned her screen immortality "for her portrayal of the icy, manipulative temptress who makes chumps of both Robert Mitchum and Kirk Douglas." Noted critic James Agee famously wrote at the time that Greer could "best be described, in an ancient idiom, as a hot number."
Greer (1924-2001), who was born in Washington, D.C., won beauty contests even as a baby. She was modeling professionally by age 12, and dropped out of high school as a senior to sing in nightclubs. In the early 1940s, the dark-haired beauty was signed to a personal contract by Howard Hughes, who had seen her picture in Life magazine modeling Army uniforms for women. In 1943 Greer married singer Rudy Vallee, much to the displeasure of the possessive Hughes, who threatened to block her film career before it began.
When her brief marriage ended, Hughes relented and "leased" Greer to RKO, where she made her film debut under her real name, Bettejane Greer, in a small role in Two O'Clock Courage (1945). She had her first billing as Jane Greer in Dick Tracy (1945), starring Morgan Conway in the title role.
A provocative role in the noir thriller They Won't Believe Me (1947), as one of playboy Robert Young's conquests, helped earn Greer her signature role in Out of the Past. In Station West (1948), a noir-flavored Western, she plays a dance-hall girl to Dick Powell's tough cowboy. She was reunited with Mitchum for Don Siegel's The Big Steal (1949), a noteworthy noir set in Mexico.
In the 1950s Greer switched to MGM, where she starred in more family-oriented fare including You for Me (1952), a romantic comedy with Peter Lawford; The Prisoner of Zenda (1952), in which she plays Antoinette de Mauban opposite Stewart Granger; and The Clown (1953), a variation of The Champ with Red Skelton in a rare dramatic role as a down-and-out performer and Greer as his ex-wife. In Universal's Man of a Thousand Faces (1957), starring James Cagney as Lon Chaney, Greer was the second Mrs. Chaney.
Greer's career in films slacked off during the 1960s as she devoted herself to raising a family. Her position as a former leading light of film noir led to later appearances in such neo-noirs as The Outfit (1973), Against All Odds (1984, a remake of Out of the Past with Greer as the mother of her original character) and David Lynch's TV drama Twin Peaks. Her final film was Perfect Mate (1996). Her son Lawrence Lasker has coproduced several films, including WarGames (1983) and Sneakers (1992).
The films in TCM's salute to Jane Greer are Out of the Past (1947), Man of a Thousand Faces (1957), Station West (1948), The Clown (1953), Dick Tracy (1945) and You for Me (1952).
by Roger Fristoe
 
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Starring Cornel Wilde - 9/10
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Out Of The Past
The classic "film noir" mystery that was remade as "Against All Odds." Robert Mitchum is a detective hired by gangster Kirk Douglas to track down girlfriend Jane Greer, who Douglas says ran off after stealing $40,000. Tracking Greer to Mexi...
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Man Of A Thousand Faces
The career and stormy private life of silent film legend Lon Chaney is effectively (if not always accurately) brought to the screen in this biodrama. James Cagney stars as the son of deaf-mute parents who thrilled audiences with his make-up...
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