Janis Paige is the consummate entertainer, whose career spans every facet of show business, from film and theater to television and nightclubs. She’s made her mark from Hollywood to Broadway and countless cities in between, stealing the hearts of millions in hundreds of performances and appearances over seven decades.
Her latest act is a one-woman show about her life and career, in which Ms. Paige shares favorite songs and recounts tales from her lifetime in the limelight — from growing up during the Great Depression to achieving her dream of Hollywood stardom to the personal and professional triumphs, losses and laughs of a long and highly successful career in the entertainment industry. The insightful and down-to-earth Ms. Paige takes her audience along for a revealing, poignant, witty and unforgettable journey....
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Janis Paige is the consummate entertainer, whose career spans every facet of show business, from film and theater to television and nightclubs. She’s made her mark from Hollywood to Broadway and countless cities in between, stealing the hearts of millions in hundreds of performances and appearances over seven decades.
Her latest act is a one-woman show about her life and career, in which Ms. Paige shares favorite songs and recounts tales from her lifetime in the limelight — from growing up during the Great Depression to achieving her dream of Hollywood stardom to the personal and professional triumphs, losses and laughs of a long and highly successful career in the entertainment industry. The insightful and down-to-earth Ms. Paige takes her audience along for a revealing, poignant, witty and unforgettable journey.
Ms. Paige, born Donna Mae Tjaden, began her entertainment career at the tender age of 5, when she sang in amateur contests in her beloved hometown of Tacoma, Washington. A natural beauty with verve and personality, Ms. Paige had big talent and dreams to match. After successful performances in high school, her mother moved the family to Hollywood so Ms. Paige could pursue a career in entertainment. In a turn of events worthy of a Tinseltown screenplay, her big break came when — still a teen — she was asked to fill in for a singer at the storied Hollywood Canteen, the motion picture industry’s club for World War II servicemen. After performing two songs, she was approached by the assistant to movie mogul Louis B. Mayer, who asked her to come to the studio the very next day. Mr. Mayer immediately signed her to a Metro Goldwyn Mayer contract, launching her decades-long career on screen and stage. Janis Paige, beautiful, statuesque Hollywood starlet, was born.
She debuted in MGM’s Bathing Beauty, but enjoyed her first major role in Warner Bros.’ smash hit Hollywood Canteen, which celebrated the vaunted club and featured nearly the entire stable of Warner Bros. actors and numerous big name entertainers. Then under exclusive contract to Warner Bros., her next role in Of Human Bondage solidified her rise to stardom. Over the next five years she became one of the studio’s leading stars.
Ms. Paige’s long film career includes her scene-stealing turn opposite Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse in Silk Stockings, and a flashy role in the comedy Please Don’t Eat the Daises. She co-starred in films including Bachelor in Paradise, Romance on the High Seas, The Caretakers, and Follow the Boys, Welcome to Hard Times, starring opposite film greats like Bob Hope, Doris Day, Lana Turner, Joan Crawford, David Niven and Henry Fonda.
Ms. Paige also pursued a range of opportunities on and off Broadway, in nightclubs and on television.
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