1936. While still a child, Joan moved with her family to California. When she was older, O'Brien attended Chaffey Union High School. While there, she was discovered by Cliffie Stone and began to appear on the local television show Hometown Jamboree with Tennessee Ernie Ford. This was followed by a regular spot on The Bob Crosby Show. Joan was on the show for four years. She then appeared on a few other TV Shows including Perry Mason, Wagon Train, and Bat Masterson.
In 1958, O'Brien made her motion
picture debut with Dean Jones (Jailhouse Rock) in Handle with Care. The
actress then starred in
Operation Petticoat with Cary Grant and Tony Curtis. In the film she played Nurse Dolores Crandall. Over the next few years, O'Brien co-starred in such movies as The Alamo with John Wayne, The Comancheros again with John Wayne and Elvis co-stars Michael Ansara (Harum Scarum) and Ina Balin (Charro!), and It's Only Money with Jerry Lewis. She also appeared on the television series
Dick
Van Dyke Show and The Man From U.N.C.L.E..
In 1963, Joan was chosen to star with the very famous Elvis Presley in It Happened at the World's Fair. In the film she plays Diane Warren, a nurse to whom Elvis is attracted and goes to great lengths to pursue. During the making of the movie, it is rumored that O'Brien and Presley had an offscreen romance as well.
In 1964, Joan made the film Get Yourself a College Man with four other Elvis costars: Mary Ann Mobley, Chris Noel, Fabrizio Mioni (all from Girl Happy) and Nancy Sinatra (Speedway). College was the actress's last screen performance. Today, Joan O'Brien is said to be married and living in northern California.
Gary Lockwood was born John Gary Yurosek on February 21,1937, in Van Nuys California. Lockwood began his movie career by having a small appearance in 1960's Tall Story, but his role as a Russian basketball player was uncredited. But just a year later, Gary was chosen to co-star in Elvis Presley's next film, Wild in the Country. He would play Cliff Macy, Glenn Tyler's (Elvis) enemy. In the latter part of the movie, Glenn is suspected to have caused Cliff's
death.
Following his work in Splendor in the Grass with Natalie Wood and The Magic Sword with fellow Presley co-star Anne Helm, Gary was again chosen to star with The King once more. This time as Danny Burke, Elvis' character's gambling friend, in It Happened at the World's Fair. In a recent magazine, Lockwood remembers Presley as "just a down home country boy".
For the rest of Gary's career, which includes the rest of the 60's 70's and 80's, he has mainly starred on quite a few television series and made for TV movies. His shows include Follow the Sun and The Lieutenant. But Lockwood is probably best know for his role in the 1968 film 2001: Space Odyssey.
Today Gary lives in Malibu, California. His most recent acting appearances were in Night of the Scarecrow and Trekkies.
Yvonne began her study of the art of ballet. While dancing in a Christmas show, Craig
caught the eye of prima ballerina Alexandra Danilova. Danilova was so impressed, she had
Yvonne audition for George Balanchine of the School of American Ballet - and Fergei J.
Denham of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. Both companies excepted her, and Craig
chose the Ballet Russe. Yvonne was one of the youngest members there, being only 16. In
1957, Craig left the Ballet Russe and went to the Eugene Loring School in Los Angeles.
Earlier while at the Ballet Russe, Yvonne had been approached by a few Hollywood
producers if she was interested in acting. Craig’s response was no since she was a dancer,
but after she left Ballet Russe her answer was yes. Yvonne’s first film was 1957’s
The Young Land. After doing her next film, Eighteen and Anxious, Craig
got to dance with Bing Crosby in High Time ( 1960 ). Following the movie,
Yvonne married Jimmy Boyd, but the marriage only lasted 2 years. After doing films such
as "Gidget" and "By Love Possessed" ; Craig was chosen to star in 2 films with
Elvis Presley. Yvonne’s first movie with The King was It Happened at the World’s
Fair, and portrayed the role of Dorothy Johnson. While filming, Presley and Craig had
a brief romance. Kissin’ Cousins was her second Elvis movie. This time she played
Azalea Tatum.
In the late 1960s, Yvonne began appearing on television shows such as “Star Trek”, “It Takes a Thief”, and in her most famous as Batgirl on the popular 1966 series “Batman”. In the seventies Craig wasn’t in many films since she refused bikini roles, so she tried her hand at coproducing. Yvonne then went into real estate business. In 1988, Craig married real-estate developer, Kenneth Aldrich . Craig’s latest film was 1990’s Diggin’ Up Business. Yvonne recently wrote her autobiography, entitled From Ballet to the Batcave and Beyond.
Click here to see my Yvonne Craig autograph.
| Harum Scarum | Jailhouse Rock | Kid Galahad | King Creole | Kissin Cousins |
