Laraine Day
Laraine Day, born La Raine Johnson, was a major movie star of the 1940s and '50s. Raised in Utah as part of a prominent Mormon family, she came to Hollywood as a young woman, and made her film debut with an uncredited role in Stella Dallas. Before she was famous she also played the birth-mother of Tarzan and Jane's adopted son "Boy" in Tarzan Finds a Son. Her break came in 1939, with the wildly popular "Dr Kildare" sequels. Day played Kildare's nurse and love interest in the third through ninth Kildare movies, until her character married the doctor in Dr. Kildare's Wedding Day. As Mrs Kildare, she was written out of the next, and last, Kildare feature.
In 1942, she starred with Ayres again in the underrated axe murder melodrama Fingers at the Window. Over subsequent decades, her memorable films included the flashback-within-flashback-within-flashback drama The Locket, the gangster comedy Mr Lucky, and the campy paranoia piece I Married A Communist. She was among the all-star passengers in the overwrought airliner-in-peril drama The High and the Mighty, and in Hitchcock's Foreign Correspondent it was Day who encouraged Joel McCrea to give his stirring report of the air raid at the film's climax Hitchcock's thinly-veiled plea for America to enter World War II. When television became a viable income source, Day found the small screen more inviting and less time-consuming than making movies, and she became primarily a TV actress. She had a 15-minute series of uplifting vignettes called Daydreaming with Laraine, and another 15-minute daily celebrity chat show called The Laraine Day Show. Married to New York Giants manager Leo Durocher, Day became one of TV's first female sports reporters when she hosted Day with the Giants, an early 1950s baseball talk show with Giants' players that aired on New York City's Channel 11. Her last film was a low-budget thriller, The Third Voice, in 1960, but she continued taking occasional guest roles on TV series Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Murder, She Wrote, etc. through the mid-1980s. Following her retierment she spent the remainder of her life active in the Mormon church, Republican politics, and various charity related work. Upon the death of her third husband Michael Grilikhes in March 2007 she moved back to her native Utah where she died that November at age 87. She is interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles, CA.
| Known For | Acting |
|---|---|
| Most Rating | 0.5676 |
| Birthday | 1920-10-13 |
| Place of Birth | Roosevelt, Utah, USA |
| Also Known As | Laraine Johnson , La Raine Johnson, |
1940
Foreign Correspondent
6.974/439
American crime reporter John Jones is reassigned to Europe as a foreign correspondent to cover the imminent war. When he walks into the middle of an a...
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Foreign Correspondent
1950
The Woman on Pier 13
5.3/26
Communists blackmail a shipping executive into spying for them.
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The Woman on Pier 13
1939
Tarzan Finds a Son!
6.1/101
A young couple die in a plane crash in the jungle. Their son is found by Tarzan and Jane who name him Boy and raise him as their own. Five years later...
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Tarzan Finds a Son!
1942
The Glass Key
6.6/128
A crooked politician finds himself being accused of murder by a gangster from whom he refused help during a re-election campaign.
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The Glass Key
1960
The 3rd Voice
5.8/10
Marian Forbes has been having an affair with her boss and when he drops her for another woman. In an act of jealousy and greed she convinces an acquai...
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The 3rd Voice
1949
Without Honor
4.563/16
Jane, a housewife, is confronted during her daily chores by Dennis, her married lover with whom she has had a long affair. Dennis tells Jane that he h...
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Without Honor
1942
Journey for Margaret
6.5/19
An American newspaperman and his wife, end up in London after several retreats in the opening days of WWII. After a shrapnel wound and loss of her ba...
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Journey for Margaret
1946
The Locket
6.3/42
A dark personal secret drives a young woman to use every man she encounters.
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The Locket
1942
Fingers at the Window
5.5/15
In Chicago, an unemployed actor aims to solve the mystery concerning a string of ax murders, apparently committed by a lunatic.
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Fingers at the Window
1943
Mr. Lucky
7/45
A conman poses as a war relief fundraiser, but when he falls for a charity worker, his conscience begins to trouble him.
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Mr. Lucky
1954
The High and the Mighty
5.9/80
Dan Roman is a veteran pilot haunted by a tragic past. Now relegated to second-in-command cockpit assignments he finds himself on a routine Honolulu-t...
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The High and the Mighty
1948
My Dear Secretary
5.896/24
A budding young writer thinks it's her lucky day when she is chosen to be the new secretary for Owen Waterbury, famous novelist. She is soon disppoint...
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My Dear Secretary
1958
Swiss Family Robinson
0/0
T.V. movie adaptation of The Swiss Family Robinson. A family is shipwrecked in the South Pacific and finds themselves stranded on a tropical island. T...
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Swiss Family Robinson
1941
Dr. Kildare's Wedding Day
6.6/8
A variety of predicaments arise to distract Dr. Kildare from his wedding to Nurse Mary Lamont.
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Dr. Kildare's Wedding Day
1944
The Story of Dr. Wassell
6.3/22
As the Japanese sweep through the East Indies during World War II, Dr. Wassell is determined to escape from Java with some crewmen of the cruiser Marb...
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The Story of Dr. Wassell
1947
Tycoon
5.265/17
Engineer Johnny Munroe is enlisted to build a railroad tunnel through a mountain to reach mines. His task is complicated, and his ethics are compromis...
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Tycoon
1940
Dr. Kildare Goes Home
6.8/7
A young doctor gives up big-city success to help his father set up a small-town clinic.
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Dr. Kildare Goes Home
1941
Unholy Partners
7/4
A crusading newsman starts up a tabloid with a gangster as his 50-50 partner.
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Unholy Partners
1942
A Yank on the Burma Road
4/1
A celebrated New York cabbie is pressed into service for a perilous journey through World War II China.
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A Yank on the Burma Road
1940
Dr. Kildare's Crisis
6/5
Jimmy Kildare's impending nuptials are jeopardized by a diagnosis of possible epilepsy in his fiancee's brother.
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Dr. Kildare's Crisis
1975
Murder on Flight 502
5.7/16
On a flight to London, a note is found stating that there will be murders taking place on the airliner before it lands.
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Murder on Flight 502
1939
Calling Dr. Kildare
6.1/8
Following an argument with his young protege, the curmudgeonly Dr. Gillespie dumps Jimmy Kildare in a street clinic, hoping to teach him a lesson. Wh...
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Calling Dr. Kildare
1939
The Secret of Dr. Kildare
5.857/14
Intern Kildare heals a millionaire's daughter and tricks Dr. Gillespie into taking a vacation.
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The Secret of Dr. Kildare
1940
Dr. Kildare's Strange Case
4.6/14
Kildare tries brain surgery, advised by Dr. Gillespie, and faces a rival for nurse Lamont.
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Dr. Kildare's Strange Case
1941
The People Vs. Dr. Kildare
6.8/5
An ice skater sues Kildare (Lew Ayres) for malpractice after his roadside first aid leaves her paralyzed.
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The People Vs. Dr. Kildare
1940
And One Was Beautiful
6.2/6
A teenager falls hard for an irresponsible playboy.
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And One Was Beautiful
1940
I Take This Woman
5.6/9
On return from Europe Dr. Decker foils glamour girl Georgi from jumping overboard. At Decker's suggestion to keep busy, she assists at his clinic i...
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I Take This Woman
1945
Keep Your Powder Dry
5.9/7
A debutante, a serviceman's bride and a girl from a military family join the Women's Army Corps.
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Keep Your Powder Dry
1939
Sergeant Madden
6/1
A dedicated police officer is torn between family and duty when his son turns to a life of crime.
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Sergeant Madden
1944
Bride by Mistake
6.1/4
The staggeringly wealthy Norah Hunter, a shipyard owner, too often finds herself the romantic target of gold-digging men. To attract a suitor whose ma...
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Bride by Mistake
1956
Three for Jamie Dawn
5/1
Three jurors are ripe for bribery by the lawyer of a playgirl up for murder.
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Three for Jamie Dawn
1956
Toy Tiger
6.2/3
Advertising executive Gwen Taylor sends her art director Rick Todd on a mission to bring an artist back to the commercial fold. Meanwhile, Gwen's fath...
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Toy Tiger
1940
My Son, My Son!
4/5
A self-made success is determined to give his son the lavish upbringing he himself was denied. Not surprisingly, the son grows up to be spoiled rotten...
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My Son, My Son!
1937
Stella Dallas
6.9/95
A working-class woman is willing to do whatever it takes to give her daughter a socially promising future.
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Stella Dallas
1978
Return to Fantasy Island
4.7/3
A second feature-length pilot film for the wish-fulfillment series sees six lucky people having their dreams fulfilled on the luxury resort island. Ca...
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Return to Fantasy Island
1941
Kathleen
5/3
Kathleen is a twelve-year-old who lives in a big house with a nanny, a butler, maids, no mother and a father who is working most of the time. She drea...
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Kathleen
1945
Those Endearing Young Charms
0/0
A soldier loses his girlfriend to his best buddy.
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Those Endearing Young Charms
1939
Arizona Legion
5/2
A federal agent infiltrates an outlaw band that's taken over a western town.
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Arizona Legion
1938
Painted Desert
5.8/4
A cowboy and a bandit face off over possession of a valuable mine.
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Painted Desert
1938
Border G-Man
5/4
A federal agent goes undercover in order to capture a gang that's been smuggling munitions and horses near the Texas border.
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Border G-Man
1941
The Trial of Mary Dugan
5/1
Mary Dugan is a young woman accused of murdering her billionaire lover. In the process, his defense lawyer acts wrongly against them, and is replaced...
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The Trial of Mary Dugan
1941
The Bad Man
5.4/4
Lopez is a bandit who has stolen the herd at Gil's ranch, so Hardy is about to foreclose. But Lucia has come back from New York and Gil is happy until...
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The Bad Man
1940
A New Romance of Celluloid: The Miracle of Sound
6.7/6
This short documentary, presented and directed by MGM sound engineer Douglas Shearer, goes behind the scenes to look at how the sound portion of a tal...
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A New Romance of Celluloid: The Miracle of Sound
1939
Think First
7/2
Episode 24 of the Crime Does Not Pay series. Margie Smith (Laraine Day) works as a waitress at a drive in restaurant. She likes to date and look nice...
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Think First
1944
Twenty Years After
6/1
This short celebrates the 20th anniversary of MGM. Segments are shown from several early hits, then from a number of 1944 releases.
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Twenty Years After
1938
Scandal Street
0/0
Joe McKnight temporarily leaves his fiancée, Nora Langdon, for an expedition in a South American jungle. Nora gets a position as librarian in the smal...
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Scandal Street
1942
Mr. Gardenia Jones
4.7/6
Documentary short film depicting the work of the United Service Organizations (USO) in providing recreational and morale-boosting services for America...
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Mr. Gardenia Jones
1955
Too Old for Dolls
0/0
Parents are concerned that their teen-aged daughter doesn't have a date for her school's formal dance. She assures them she has a boy named Al all lin...
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Too Old for Dolls
1955
The Final Tribute
0/0
The town's new cold-hearted doctor's demeanor is the complete reversal of their beloved old physician, and his nurse attempts to teach the new man pro...
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The Final Tribute
1956
Prima Donna
0/0
A famous singer discovers a newsboy with vocal talent, but he would rather play baseball than develop his singing skills. She'd like to persuade his p...
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Prima Donna
1956
Rendezvous in Black
0/0
Johnny Marr's fiancee is killed by a whiskey bottle thrown from an airplane. Marr seeks revenge by killing the loved ones of the passengers on the fli...
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