American Actress. Leslie was a star of stage and screen in the golden age of Hollywood who co-starred in films with such actors as Humphrey Bogart, Gary Cooper and James Cagney. Born Joan Agnes Theresa Sadie Brodel, she and her two sisters, Mary and Betty, performed on stage in their hometown of Detroit and in New York City in a singing and dancing vaudeville act called The Brodel Sisters. When a talent scout saw them perform and signed her older sister Mary to a contract at MGM, the family moved to Los Angeles, and at fifteen, Joan screen-tested with Warner Brothers and landed the coveted role of the crippled girl in 'High Sierra' (1941) with Bogart. The following year, she was selected as Cooper's leading lady in 'Sergeant York' (1941), and at age 17, she played the role of Cagney's wife in 'Yankee Doodle Dandy' (1942). She co-starred in over 30 films, among them 'The Sky's the Limit' (1943), 'Hollywood Canteen' (1944), 'Rhapsody in Blue' (1945), 'Cinderella Jones' (1946) and 'Repeat Performance' (1947). In 1950, she married a physician and shifted her attention to raising a family. After her children were grown, she resumed her acting career and made appearances in several made-for-television movies and TV shows, including 'Charley Hannah', 'Shadow of Sam Penny', 'Fire in the Dark', 'Charlie's Angels', 'The Incredible Hulk', 'Police Story', 'Simon and Simon' and 'Murder She Wrote'.
American Actress. Leslie was a star of stage and screen in the golden age of Hollywood who co-starred in films with such actors as Humphrey Bogart, Gary Cooper and James Cagney. Born Joan Agnes Theresa Sadie Brodel, she and her two sisters, Mary and Betty, performed on stage in their hometown of Detroit and in New York City in a singing and dancing vaudeville act called The Brodel Sisters. When a talent scout saw them perform and signed her older sister Mary to a contract at MGM, the family moved to Los Angeles, and at fifteen, Joan screen-tested with Warner Brothers and landed the coveted role of the crippled girl in 'High Sierra' (1941) with Bogart. The following year, she was selected as Cooper's leading lady in 'Sergeant York' (1941), and at age 17, she played the role of Cagney's wife in 'Yankee Doodle Dandy' (1942). She co-starred in over 30 films, among them 'The Sky's the Limit' (1943), 'Hollywood Canteen' (1944), 'Rhapsody in Blue' (1945), 'Cinderella Jones' (1946) and 'Repeat Performance' (1947). In 1950, she married a physician and shifted her attention to raising a family. After her children were grown, she resumed her acting career and made appearances in several made-for-television movies and TV shows, including 'Charley Hannah', 'Shadow of Sam Penny', 'Fire in the Dark', 'Charlie's Angels', 'The Incredible Hulk', 'Police Story', 'Simon and Simon' and 'Murder She Wrote'.
Bio by: Louis du Mort
Family Members
Advertisement
See more Leslie memorials in:
Records on Ancestry
Advertisement
