Jeanne Crain!

During World War II, what kept the guys going was pinups of the girls. Pinups were plastered everywhere. Every guy had his own favorite. Here are a few of the most famous and popular:

Betty Grable

Rita Hayworth

Jane Russell

Esther Williams

Janis Carter

Ginger Rogers

But the girl the guys wanted to come home to was Jeanne Crain!

Jeanne was a sweetheart, the "good" Catholic girl next door. She was one of the most popular screen stars of the '40's, starring in such wartime films as "Winged Victory," "State Fair" and "Leave Her To Heaven." After the war she continued to win the hearts of American men in movies like "Margie," "Apartment For Peggy," "A Letter To Three Wives," "Cheaper By The Dozen" and "People Will Talk." 

Crain was unflappable, wholesome, every man's notion of the perfect wife -- and a Republican! She and her films were nothing less than Americana. The United States was a different country then. Jeanne Crain has no peer in today's cinema. She was truly one of a kind. Rest in peace, Jeanne.

Here is a beautiful YouTube tribute...

Uploaded by BadZKarma99 on Feb 6, 2010

This video is dedicated to Jeanne Crain. She was born on May 25,1925 & died on Dec. 14,2003. She is one of my favorite actresses & my favorite movies of hers are "State Fair", "Apartment for Peggy", "Margie", "A Letter to Three Wives" , "Home in Indiana" & "Leave Her To Heaven". I just love her movies!!

Here is a mini biography of her life:

Jeanne Crain was born in Barstow, California, on May 25, 1925. The daughter of a high school English teacher and his wife, Jeanne was moved to Los Angeles not long after her birth after her father got another teaching position in that city. While in junior high school, Jeanne played the lead in a school production which set her on the path to acting. When she was in high school Jeanne was asked to take a screen test to appear in a film by Orson Welles. Unfortunately, she didn't get the part, but it did set her sights on being a movie actress.

After her high school career, Jeanne enrolled at UCLA to study drama. At the age of 18, Jeanne won a bit part in Fox Studio's film entitled The Gang's All Here (1943) and a small contract. Her next film saw Jeanne elevated to a more substantial part in Home in Indiana (1944) the following year, which was filmed in neighboring Kentucky. The movie was an unquestionable hit. On the strength of that box-office success, Jeanne was given a raise and star billing, as Maggie Preston, in the next film of 1944, In the Meantime, Darling (1944). Unfortunately, the critics not only roasted the film, but singled out Jeanne's performance in particular. She rebounded nicely in her last film of the year, Winged Victory (1944). The audiences loved it and the film was profitable.

In 1945, Jeanne was cast in State Fair (1945) as Margie Frake who travels to the fair and falls in love with a reporter played by Dana Andrews. Now, Jeanne got a bigger contract and more recognition. Later that year, Jeanne married Paul Brooks on New Year's Eve. Although her mother wasn't supportive of the marriage, the union has lasted to this day and produced seven children. Her 1947 was an off year for Jeanne as she took time off to bear the Brinkman's first child.

In 1949, Jeanne appeared in three films, A Letter to Three Wives (1949), The Fan (1949), and Pinky (1949). It was this latter film which garnered her an Oscar nomination as Best Actress for her role as Pinky Johnson, a nurse who sets up a clinic in the Deep South. She lost to Olivia de Havilland for The Heiress (1949). Jeanne left Fox after filming Vicki (1953) in 1953, with Jean Peters. She had made 23 films for the studio that started her career, but she needed a well-deserved change. As with any good artist, Jeanne wanted to expand her range instead of playing the girl-next-door types.

She went briefly to Warner Brothers for the filming of Duel in the Jungle (1954) in 1954. The film was lukewarm at best. Jeanne, then, signed a contract, that same year, with Universal Studios with promises of better, high profile roles. She went into production in the film Man Without a Star (1955) which was a hit with audiences and critics. After The Joker Is Wild (1957) in 1957, Jeanne took time off for her family and to appear in a few television programs. She returned, briefly, to film in Guns of the Timberland (1960) in 1960. The films were sporadic after that. In 1967, she appeared in a low-budget suspense yarn called Hot Rods to Hell (1967). Her final film was as Clara Shaw in 1972's Skyjacked (1972).

Jeanne died of a heart attack in Santa Barbara, California, on December 14, 2003. Her husband Paul Brooks had died two months earlier.

I hope you enjoy my video!!
God Bless!!
Song: Stardust By: Artie Shaw & his Orchestra

And another...

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Lastly, here she is appearing on live radio, hosting "Command Performance," a "weekly wartime 30 minutes of star-studded fun" made to entertain the troops...

(Featuring Harry James, Kitty Kallen, Gene Krupa et. al.)