Penny Edwards(1928-1998)
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Vivacious blue-eyed blonde Penny Edwards was born in New York City in
1928 and displayed signs of musical talent as a youth. She began
studying dance by age six and, as a teen, appeared on Broadway in "The
Ziegfeld Follies of 1943". After a couple of other musicals and a stint
with the St. Louis Municipal Opera, she was signed by Warner Brothers
in 1947. She showed great perk and promise as a second lead, singing
and dancing opposite the likes of
Dennis Morgan and
Ben Blue in her film debut,
My Wild Irish Rose (1947). She
continued on winningly in the
Shirley Temple vehicle
That Hagen Girl (1947); then
alongside Morgan again in
Two Guys from Texas (1948);
with Donald O'Connor and
Marjorie Main in the rube musical
Feudin', Fussin' and A-Fightin' (1948);
and in another musical, Tucson (1949).
After a successful vaudeville tour, Penny was signed by Republic
Pictures and started off in a series of "prairie flower" ingénue roles
while temporarily replacing a pregnant
Dale Evans in a number of
Roy Rogers oaters. In 1951, she wed
agent Ralph Winters and had two daughters:
Deborah Winters (born 1954), who would
go on to become an actress in her own right, and Rebecca (born 1956).
After a succession of "B" movies, Penny left Hollywood to focus on
religious work. She later reappeared on the more popular TV shows of
the day, including the westerns
Tales of Wells Fargo (1957),
Wagon Train (1957) and
Bonanza (1959), and in light-hearted
entertainment alongside
Robert Cummings and
Red Skelton in their respective shows.
Penny's lovely, ladylike features also made a significant dent in the
commercial market, appearing as "The Lux Girl", "The Palmolive Girl"
and "The Tiparillo Girl".
Following her divorce in 1958, Penny married
Jerry Friedman and they had a
son, David. That 1964 union would end up in the divorce courts as well.
Penny retired from show biz completely by the mid-1960s and died, in
1998, of lung cancer, just two days after her 70th birthday.
1928 and displayed signs of musical talent as a youth. She began
studying dance by age six and, as a teen, appeared on Broadway in "The
Ziegfeld Follies of 1943". After a couple of other musicals and a stint
with the St. Louis Municipal Opera, she was signed by Warner Brothers
in 1947. She showed great perk and promise as a second lead, singing
and dancing opposite the likes of
Dennis Morgan and
Ben Blue in her film debut,
My Wild Irish Rose (1947). She
continued on winningly in the
Shirley Temple vehicle
That Hagen Girl (1947); then
alongside Morgan again in
Two Guys from Texas (1948);
with Donald O'Connor and
Marjorie Main in the rube musical
Feudin', Fussin' and A-Fightin' (1948);
and in another musical, Tucson (1949).
After a successful vaudeville tour, Penny was signed by Republic
Pictures and started off in a series of "prairie flower" ingénue roles
while temporarily replacing a pregnant
Dale Evans in a number of
Roy Rogers oaters. In 1951, she wed
agent Ralph Winters and had two daughters:
Deborah Winters (born 1954), who would
go on to become an actress in her own right, and Rebecca (born 1956).
After a succession of "B" movies, Penny left Hollywood to focus on
religious work. She later reappeared on the more popular TV shows of
the day, including the westerns
Tales of Wells Fargo (1957),
Wagon Train (1957) and
Bonanza (1959), and in light-hearted
entertainment alongside
Robert Cummings and
Red Skelton in their respective shows.
Penny's lovely, ladylike features also made a significant dent in the
commercial market, appearing as "The Lux Girl", "The Palmolive Girl"
and "The Tiparillo Girl".
Following her divorce in 1958, Penny married
Jerry Friedman and they had a
son, David. That 1964 union would end up in the divorce courts as well.
Penny retired from show biz completely by the mid-1960s and died, in
1998, of lung cancer, just two days after her 70th birthday.