Actress, Songwriter. A pretty blonde, she is remembered for starring in some of Ed Wood's low-budget 'classics' as well as for writing songs sung by Elvis Presley in his movies. Born Dolores Eble, she was raised in Hollywood from age 10 and was first seen on the silver screen as an extra in Frank Capra's 1934 "It Happened One Night". A professional model from age 16, she was Dinah's 'double' in the "Dinah Shore Show" and modelled on the set of "Queen for a Day"; beginning a romantic relationship with actor and director Ed Wood around 1952, Dolores was to star in the now cult classic "Glen or Glenda" (1953) and 1954's thriller "Jail Bait". She had a small part in Wood's 1955 "Bride of the Monster", one of the films for which Wood shamelessly took advantage of Bela Lugosi's precarious finances, but the director's cross dressing and heavy drinking eventually drove her away. Dolores appeared in one 1956 episode of "The Adventures of Superman", studied at the Actors Studio in New York, and turned her energies to songwriting. Founding her own record company, she gave Johnny Rivers his start in the music business and was to write or co-write a number of hit songs; she created "Rock a Hula Baby" which Elvis sang in his 1961 "Blue Hawaii" and was to produce about a dozen other numbers for him including "Fun in Acapulco", "Kid Galahad", and "Spinout". Not restricting herself to Elvis, she also penned Nat King Cole's "Someone To Tell it To" and Peggy Lee's "Losers Weepers". Dolores was played by Sara Jessica Parker in 1994's "Ed Wood" which featured Johnny Depp as Wood, Martin Landau as Lugosi, and wrestler George 'The Animal' Steele as Tor Johnson, a portrayal she did not care for due to Parker's being depicted smoking. She published her autobiography, "A Fuller Life: Hollywood, Ed Wood, and Me", in 2008, lived her final years in Las Vegas, and died following an extended illness. Of the eventual popularity of Wood's schlock movies she said: "Ed always said he'd make me a star. I just didn't realize it would take 42 years".
Actress, Songwriter. A pretty blonde, she is remembered for starring in some of Ed Wood's low-budget 'classics' as well as for writing songs sung by Elvis Presley in his movies. Born Dolores Eble, she was raised in Hollywood from age 10 and was first seen on the silver screen as an extra in Frank Capra's 1934 "It Happened One Night". A professional model from age 16, she was Dinah's 'double' in the "Dinah Shore Show" and modelled on the set of "Queen for a Day"; beginning a romantic relationship with actor and director Ed Wood around 1952, Dolores was to star in the now cult classic "Glen or Glenda" (1953) and 1954's thriller "Jail Bait". She had a small part in Wood's 1955 "Bride of the Monster", one of the films for which Wood shamelessly took advantage of Bela Lugosi's precarious finances, but the director's cross dressing and heavy drinking eventually drove her away. Dolores appeared in one 1956 episode of "The Adventures of Superman", studied at the Actors Studio in New York, and turned her energies to songwriting. Founding her own record company, she gave Johnny Rivers his start in the music business and was to write or co-write a number of hit songs; she created "Rock a Hula Baby" which Elvis sang in his 1961 "Blue Hawaii" and was to produce about a dozen other numbers for him including "Fun in Acapulco", "Kid Galahad", and "Spinout". Not restricting herself to Elvis, she also penned Nat King Cole's "Someone To Tell it To" and Peggy Lee's "Losers Weepers". Dolores was played by Sara Jessica Parker in 1994's "Ed Wood" which featured Johnny Depp as Wood, Martin Landau as Lugosi, and wrestler George 'The Animal' Steele as Tor Johnson, a portrayal she did not care for due to Parker's being depicted smoking. She published her autobiography, "A Fuller Life: Hollywood, Ed Wood, and Me", in 2008, lived her final years in Las Vegas, and died following an extended illness. Of the eventual popularity of Wood's schlock movies she said: "Ed always said he'd make me a star. I just didn't realize it would take 42 years".
Read More
Bio by: Bob Hufford