Shirley Patterson, sometimes billed as Shawn Smith, (December 26, 1922 – April 4, 1995) was a Canadian-born B-movie actress of the 1940s and 1950s.

Early years

Born in Winnipeg, Canada, Patterson grew up in Eastend, Saskatchewan. She was the daughter of druggist Benjamin Patterson. The family moved to Los Angeles because of her father's health problems, and she finished her education there.

Career

Patterson began her acting career after being a beauty contestant in pageants in California from 1939 to 1940. In 1940, she won the Miss California Pageant but was disqualified later when it was found she was underage. The second-place contestant (Rosemary LaPlanche) won the Miss America Pageant in 1941. She signed a contract with

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

after a talent scout saw her perform in a little theater production. Her career spanned 40 films, a few television appearances, and a serial. Patterson played the role of heroine, Linda Page, in the 1943 15-chapter ''Batman'' serial. In 1944, she starred in ''The Vigilantes Ride'' with Russell Hayden and

Bob Wills James Robert Wills (March 6, 1905 – May 13, 1975) was an American Western swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader. Considered by music authorities as the founder of Western swing, he was known widely as the King of Western Swing (although ...

. In 1946, she accompanied Eddie Dean and

Roscoe Ates Roscoe Blevel Ates (January 20, 1895 – March 1, 1962) was an American vaudeville performer, actor of stage and screen, comedian and musician who primarily featured in western films and television. He was best known as western character S ...

in the movie ''Driftin River'', and starred with them again the same year in ''Tumbleweed Trail'', as well as ''Stars Over Texas''. She also was Dean's object of affection in the song "Let's Go Sparkin'" from the 1947 movie ''

Black Hills The Black Hills ( lkt, Ȟe Sápa; chy, Moʼȯhta-voʼhonáaeva; hid, awaxaawi shiibisha) is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black ...

''. Patterson played Poppea, Nero's consort, in a nonspeaking role in '' The Silver Chalice'' (1954). Two of her last films were the 1957 movie ''

The Land Unknown ''The Land Unknown'' is a 1957 science fiction CinemaScope adventure film about a naval expedition trapped in an Antarctic jungle. The story was allegedly inspired by the discovery of unusually warm water in Antarctica in 1947. It stars Jock M ...

'' and the 1958 science-fiction movie '' It! The Terror from Beyond Space''. Shortly after the close of filming in 1958 while skiing at Lake Arrowhead, California, she suffered a severely broken leg. She was in a full leg cast for a year and then a half cast for another six months, effectively ending her acting career.

Personal life

She had one child, Alfred F. Smith III (nickname,”Tory”). Patterson was married to Alfred F. Smith Jr.

Death

Patterson had a long fight with cancer in her later years and died in 1995 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Her ashes were scattered in the Pacific Ocean.

Filmography

References

External links

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Shirley Patterson
at b-westerns.com 1922 births 1995 deaths 20th-century American actresses Actresses from Winnipeg American film actresses American television actresses Canadian emigrants to the United States Canadian film actresses Canadian television actresses Deaths from cancer in Florida {{US-film-actor-1920s-stub