Born 1920 in Worcester, Massachusetts, American actress Helen Walker made her film debut in 1942’s Lucky Jordan, a comedy starring Alan Ladd. She earned a solid reputation playing leading roles in comedies as what she termed a “reactress,” a straight man to comic leads in films such as Brewster’s Millions and Murder, He Says, both released in 1945.
Walker had just finished filming Her Adventurous Night (1946) and was set to begin Heaven Only Knows when an auto accident drastically disrupted her career. She was replaced in Heaven Only Knows by Marjorie Reynolds.
Despite the accident and her legal troubles, Walker continued to act, and she appeared in perhaps her most famous role as the duplicitous psychoanalyst in the original version of Nightmare Alley (1947) with Tyrone Power. She also took prominent roles in films such as Call Northside 777 (1948) with James Stewart, My Dear Secretary (1948) with Kirk Douglas and Impact (1949) with Brian Donlevy.
Following starring roles in My True Story (1951) and Problem Girls (1953), Walker made her final film appearance in Joseph H. Lewis’s film noir The Big Combo with Cornel Wilde in 1955. She retired from acting at the age of 35. She died of cancer following a nine-year illness in 1968, in the North Hollywood section of Los Angeles, California at the age of 47.
Take a look at these gorgeous photos to see the beauty of a young Helen Walker in the 1940s.
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