Movie legend Carroll Baker was born on May 28, 1931 in Johnstown, Pennsylvania to Virginia Baker and William Baker, a travelling salesman of Polish Ancestry. She got her education from St. Petersburg College in Florida and worked then as a magician’s assistant and dancer.

In 1953, she started her film career by portraying a small role in “Easy to Love”. She also appeared in TV commercials and attended workshops at Actors Studio in New York after her separation with first husband Louie Ritter. Her appearance in the Broadway production “All Summer Long” impressed famed director Elia Kazan who gave her a breakthrough in the controversial film “Baby Doll” in 1956, the film that took her to instant fame and gave her a very much deserved Academy Award nomination.

Carroll Baker appeared in variety of film genres: romances, such as “The Miracle” where she was paired by Roger Moore (1959); westerns including The Big Country (1958) and How the West Was Won (1962); melodramas including “Something Wild” (1961) which was directed by her second husband Jack Garfein. She also starred in Garson Kanin’s “Come on Strong” on Broadway in 1962.

more...