Barbara Jo Allen (born Marian Barbara Henshall; September 2, 1906 – September 14, 1974) was an American actress. She was also known as Vera Vague, the spinster character she created and portrayed on radio and in films during the 1940s and 1950s. She based the character on a woman she had seen delivering a PTA literature lecture in a confused manner. As Vague, she popularized the catch phrase "You dear boy!"Shreve Jr., Ivan G. Thrilling Days of Yesteryear, February 3, 2008.
/ref>

Early years

Allen was born on September 2, 1906, in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, to Charles Thomas Henshall and Grace Esther Selby. Following her mother's death when Allen was 9, she went to live with an aunt and uncle in Los Angeles. She was educated at

Los Angeles High School Los Angeles High School is the oldest public high school in the Southern California Region and in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Its colors are royal blue and white and the teams are called the Romans. Los Angeles High School is a pub ...

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a Normal school, teachers colle ...

, Stanford University, and the Sorbonne. Her acting ability first surfaced in school plays. Concentrating on language at the Sorbonne, she became proficient in French, Spanish, German and Italian.

Film, radio and television

In 1933, Allen joined the cast of NBC's '' One Man's Family''Grunwald, Edgar A., Ed. (1938). ''Variety Radio Directory 1938–1939''. Variety, Inc. P. 1227 as Beth Holly, followed by roles on ''

Death Valley Days ''Death Valley Days'' is an American old-time radio and television anthology series featuring true accounts of the American Old West, particularly the Death Valley country of southeastern California. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the progra ...

'', '' I Love a Mystery'' and other radio series. According to Allen, her Vera Vague character was "sort of a frustrated female, dumb, always ambitious and overzealous… a spouting bureau of misinformation." After Vera was introduced in 1939 on ''NBC Matinee'', she became a regular with

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in Bob Hope filmography, more than 70 short and ...

beginning in 1941. In the early 1940s, she was a regular on ''Signal Carnival'', a weekly program on NBC-Pacific Red stations. Allen appeared in at least 60 movies and TV series between 1938 and 1963, often credited as Vera Vague rather than her own name. The character she created was so popular that she eventually adopted the character name as her professional name. From 1943 to 1952, as Vera, she made more than a dozen comedy two-reel short subjects for Columbia Pictures, two of which were nominated for Oscars in the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film category. In 1948, she did less acting and instead opened her own commercial orchid business, while also serving as the Honorary Mayor of Woodland Hills, California. In 1953, as Vera, she hosted her own television series, Follow the Leader, a CBS audience participation show.

Animation

She also did voices for animation, especially for the

Walt Disney Animation Studios Walt Disney Animation Studios (WDAS), sometimes shortened to Disney Animation, is an American animation studio that creates animated features and short films for The Walt Disney Company. The studio's current production logo features a scene fro ...

, most notably as the voice of

Fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as ''biota''. Zoo ...

, the green fairy, in '' Sleeping Beauty'' (1959), Goliath II's mother in '' Goliath II'' (1960), and the Scullery Maid in '' The Sword in the Stone'' (1963), her final film role.

Hollywood Walk of Fame

As Vera Vague, Allen has two stars on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Calif ...

, one for motion pictures at 1720 Vine Street and one for radio at 1639 Vine Street. Both were dedicated February 8, 1960.

Personal life

Allen's first marriage was to actor

Barton Yarborough William Barton Yarborough (October 2, 1900 – December 19, 1951) was an American actor who worked extensively in radio drama, primarily on the NBC Radio Network. He is famous for his roles in the Carlton E. Morse productions '' I Love a M ...

. They had one child together, Joan. In 1946, the couple co-starred in the two-reel comedy short, ''Hiss and Yell'', nominated for an Academy Award as Best Short Subject. Allen married lumberman Charles Hopper Crosby October 19, 1931, in

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the c ...

Death

Allen died September 14, 1974, aged 68, in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coa ...

.DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 259. She was cremated at Santa Barbara Cemetery on September 17 and her ashes were scattered in the Pacific.Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14000 Famous Persons (entry 179) by Scott wilson

Filmography

Features: *'' The Rookie Cop'' (1939) – Mrs. Thomas (uncredited) *'' The Women'' (1939) – Receptionist (uncredited) *'' Village Barn Dance'' (1940) – Vera *'' Broadway Melody of 1940'' (1940) – Ms. Konk (uncredited) *'' Sing, Dance, Plenty Hot'' (1940) – Susan *'' Melody and Moonlight'' (1940) – Adelaide Barnett *'' Melody Ranch'' (1940) – Veronica Whipple *'' The Mad Doctor'' (1941) – Louise Watkins *'' Kiss the Boys Goodbye'' (1941) – Myra Stanhope *''

Ice-Capades ''Ice-Capades'' is a 1941 American comedy film directed by Joseph Santley and starring James Ellison, Phil Silvers, and Barbara Jo Allen. Its score, composed by Cy Feuer, was nominated for the Best Scoring of a Musical Picture. The film's s ...

'' (1941) – Vera Vague *'' Buy Me That Town'' (1941) – Henriette Teagarden *''

Design for Scandal ''Design for Scandal'' is a 1941 American romantic comedy film directed by Norman Taurog. Rosalind Russell stars as a judge targeted by a newspaper tycoon unhappy with her decision in his divorce case. Plot When wealthy newspaper publisher Juds ...

'' (1941) – Jane *''

Larceny, Inc. ''Larceny, Inc.'' is a 1942 American film. Originally released on May 2, 1942, by Warner Bros., the film is a cross between comedy and gangster genres. Directed by Lloyd Bacon, the film stars Edward G. Robinson, Jane Wyman, Broderick Crawford, a ...

'' (1942) – Mademoiselle Gloria *''

Priorities on Parade ''Priorities on Parade'' is a 1942 American musical film directed by Albert S. Rogell and written by Art Arthur. The film stars Ann Miller, Johnny Johnston, Jerry Colonna (entertainer), Jerry Colonna, Betty Jane Rhodes, Barbara Jo Allen, Harry Ba ...

'' (1942) – Mariposa Ginsbotham *''

Hi, Neighbor ''Hi, Neighbor'' is a 1942 American comedy film directed by Charles Lamont and written by Dorrell McGowan and Stuart E. McGowan. The film stars Jean Parker, John Archer, Janet Beecher, Marilyn Hare, Bill Shirley and Pauline Drake. The film was ...

'' (1942) – Vera Greenfield *''

Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch ''Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch'' is a 1901 novel by American author Alice Hegan Rice, about a southern family humorously coping with poverty. It was highly popular on its release,Lowell Hayes Harrison, ''A New History of Kentucky'' (1997), p. ...

'' (1942) – Miss Tabitha Hazy *''

The Palm Beach Story ''The Palm Beach Story'' is a 1942 screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, and starring Claudette Colbert, Joel McCrea, Mary Astor and Rudy Vallée. Victor Young contributed the musical score, including a fast-paced var ...

'' (1942) – Lady coming out of ladies room on train during the posse episode (uncredited) *'' Ice-Capades Revue'' (1942) – Aunt Nellie *'' Swing Your Partner'' (1943) – Vera Vague *'' Get Going'' (1943) – Matilda Jones *'' Cowboy Canteen'' (1944) – Vera Vague *'' Moon Over Las Vegas'' (1944) – Auntie *'' Henry Aldrich Plays Cupid'' (1944) – Mrs. Terwilliger aka Blue Eyes *'' Rosie the Riveter'' (1944) – Vera Watson *'' Girl Rush'' (1944) – Suzie Banks *'' Lake Placid Serenade'' (1944) – Countess *'' Snafu'' (1945) – Madge Stevens *'' Earl Carroll Sketchbook'' (1946) – Sherry Lane *'' Square Dance Katy'' (1950) – Gypsy Jones *'' Mohawk'' (1956) – Aunt Agatha *'' The Opposite Sex'' (1956) – Dolly DeHaven *'' Sleeping Beauty'' (1959) – Fauna (voice) *''

Born to Be Loved ''Born to Be Loved'' is a 1959 American comedy film directed by Hugo Haas. Set in an overcrowded tenement building, it stars Carol Morris (as Dorothy); Hugo Haas (Prof. Brauer); Dick Kallman (Eddie); and Barbara Jo Allen (Mrs. Hoffmann). Plo ...

'' (1959) – Irene Hoffman *'' The Sword in the Stone'' (1963) – Scullery Maid (voice) (final film role) Short Subjects: *''Major Difficulties'' (1938) *''Moving Vanities'' (1939) – Mrs. Errol *''Ring Madness'' (1939) – Mrs. Errol *''Kennedy the Great'' (1939) – Mrs. John Potter *''Meet the Stars #1: Chinese Garden Festival'' (1940) – Vera Vague *''You Dear Boy'' (1943) – Vera *''Doctor, Feel My Pulse'' (1944) – Vera Vague *''Strife of the Party'' (1944) – Vera Clayton *''She Snoops to Conquer'' (1944) – Vera, the Reporter *''Screen Snapshots Series 24, No. 3'' (1944) – Vera Vague *''The Jury Goes Round 'n' Round'' (1945) – Vera Vague *''Screen Snapshots: Radio Shows'' (1945) – Vera Vague *''Calling All Fibbers'' (1945) – Vera Vague *''Hiss and Yell'' (1946) – Vera Vague *''Headin' for a Weddin (1946) – Vera Vague *''Reno-Vated'' (1946) – Vera Butts *''Cupid Goes Nuts'' (1947) – Vera Vague *''Screen Snapshots: Off the Air'' (1947) – Vera Vague *''Screen Snapshots: Smiles and Styles'' (1948) – Vera Vague *''Sitka Sue'' (1948) – Vera Vague *''A Lass in Alaska'' (1948) – Vera Vague *''A Miss in a Mess'' (1949) – *''Clunked in the Clink'' (1949) – Vera Vague *''Wha' Happen?'' (1949) – Vera *''Clunked in the Clink'' (1949) – Vera Vague *''Nursie Behave'' (1950) – Vera Vague *''She Took a Powder'' (1951) – Vera Vague *''Happy Go Wacky'' (1952) – Vera Vague *''Screen Snapshots: Hollywood Life'' (1954) – Vera Vague *'' Goliath II'' (1960) – Goliath II's Mother (voice, uncredited)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Barbara Jo 1906 births 1974 deaths Actresses from New York City American expatriates in France American film actresses American radio actresses University of Paris alumni 20th-century American actresses Columbia Pictures contract players