June Knight, born Margaret Rose Valliquietto (January 22, 1913 – June 16, 1987), was an American theatre actress, film actress, dancer and singer.
June Knight | |
|---|---|
 June Knight (1935) | |
| Born | Margaret Rose Valliquietto January 22, 1913 Los Angeles, California, U.s. |
| Died | June 16, 1987 (aged 74) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1930–1947 |
| Spouse(s) | Paul Ames (1934–1935) Arthur Cameron (1938–1943) Carl B. Squier (1949–1967) (his death) Jack Buehler (1969–1987) (her death)[1] |
Early years
editValliquietto was born in Los Angeles in 1913. She was ill early in her life, and was diagnosed with tuberculosis at the age of 4. Following the diagnosis, doctors told her parents that there was a strong chance that she would not reach adulthood. She also had polio, and was unable to walk until she was five years old.[1]
She began to perform songs and dance publicly at age ten.
Career
editWhen Valliquietto first partnered with dancer John Holland, she adopted the stage name June Knight. This had been the name of Holland's previous dance partner.[2]
Aged 19, Knight appeared in the last Ziegfeld Follies show, Hot-Cha! (1932). She featured in four other Broadway shows, Take A Chance (1932), Jubilee (1935)[3] (where she introduced the Cole Porter classic "Begin the Beguine"),[4] The Would-Be Gentleman (1946) (her only non-musical) and Sweethearts (1947).[3]
She also had a short-lived film career, appearing in 12 films from 1930 to 1940, most notably in Broadway Melody of 1936 (1935), in which she sang the hit song "I've Got a Feelin' You're Foolin'" with co-star Robert Taylor.[5]
Personal life and death
editKnight married four times. First, to Palm Beach stockbroker Paul Ames, with whom she lived for nine days before he petitioned for a divorce.[6] She then married Texas oilman Arthur A. Cameron.[7] After their divorce she wed Lockheed Aircraft Corporation co-founder Carl B. Squier, whose wife had died in a plane crash 11 years earlier. Their union lasted 18 years. Following Squier's death, she married his Lockheed colleague and friend Jack Buehler.[1]
In 1935, Knight was bound, gagged, and robbed of jewelry by two men, who gained access to her 19th-story New York apartment by posing as film executives. Police believed it was the work of the same men who similarly robbed actress Janice Dawson, by posing as literary agents.[8]
In 1940, Knight (now known as June Cameron), found that the original dancer called June Knight was still using this name, and took the case to court. Knight, the actress, argued that she had registered the name in 1931, and had made the name famous, and that the original dancer had agreed to stop using this name.[9]
Knight died in 1987, aged 74, following complications from a stroke. She was laid to rest in Pierce Brothers Valhalla Memorial Park.[citation needed]
Recognition
editKnight received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on February 3, 1960 for her contribution to the motion picture industry.[10]
Filmography
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930 | Madam Satan | Zeppelin Reveler | Uncredited |
| 1933 | Ladies Must Love | Jeannie Marlow | |
| Take a Chance | Toni Ray | ||
| 1934 | Cross Country Cruise | Sue Fleming | |
| Gift of Gab | Lottie Von Pepper | ||
| Wake Up and Dream | Toby Brown | ||
| 1935 | Broadway Melody of 1936 | Lillian Brent | |
| Redheads on Parade | Chorus Redhead | Uncredited | |
| 1937 | The Lilac Domino | Shari de Gonda | |
| 1938 | Break the News | Grace Gatwick | |
| Vacation from Love | Flo Heath, Band Singer | ||
| 1940 | The House Across the Bay | Babe | (final film role) |
References
edit- ^ a b c American Heritage Center. "Woman's Experience of Show Business Documented in June Knight Papers". The blog of the American Heritage Center. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
- ^ Skolsky, Sidney (August 21, 1933). "Tintypes". Daily News. New York, New York City. News Syndicate Co., Inc. p. 26. Retrieved November 5, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "June Knight". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on 6 November 2018. Retrieved 6 November 2018.
- ^ Tyler, Don (2007). Hit Songs, 1900-1955: American Popular Music of the Pre-Rock Era. McFarland. p. 426. ISBN 9780786429462. Retrieved 6 November 2018.
- ^ "I've Got a Feelin' You're Foolin'" from Broadway Melody of 1936 on YouTube
- ^ "Ames Divorces June Knight". timesmachine.nytimes.com.
- ^ "June Knight Wed on Coast". timesmachine.nytimes.com.
- ^ "INTRUDERS BIND AND ROB FILM ACTRESS". September 18, 1935. p. 1 – via Trove.
- ^ "June Returns to Court Fight". The Ogden Standard-Examiner. Utah, Ogden. United Press. November 25, 1940. p. 10. Retrieved November 5, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "June Knight". Hollywood Walk of Fame. Archived from the original on 6 November 2018. Retrieved 6 November 2018.
