Barbara Bates

About Barbara Bates

Who is it?: Actress, Soundtrack
Birth Day: August 06, 1925
Birth Place:  Denver, Colorado, United States
Cause of death: Suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning
Resting place: Crown Hill Cemetery
Occupation: Actress
Years active: 1945–1962
Spouse(s): Cecil Coan (m. 1945; d. 1967) William Reed (m. 1968)

Barbara Bates

Barbara Bates was born on August 06, 1925 in  Denver, Colorado, United States, is Actress, Soundtrack. The lovely Barbara Bates, a demure but very troubled young spirit, began her career at age 19. Groomed in obscure starlet bits, it wasn't until Warner Bros. signed her up in 1947 and perpetuated an appealing girl-next-door image that things started happening for her.She was born Barbara Jane Bates, the eldest of three daughters to a postal clerk and a registered nurse on August 6, 1925. Barbara's mother initially trained her shy daughter in ballet and the young beauty eventually modeled clothes as a teen out of high school. Fighting off a life-long paralyzing shyness,she nevertheless managed to be persuaded to enter a local Denver beauty contest, with the winner receiving two round-trip train tickets to Tinseltown. Not only did she win but meeting Cecil Coan, a United Artists publicist, during that Hollywood trip altered the course of her life forever. Coan, more than two decades older than Barbara, fell hard for the young beauty. A married man with children, he promised to guide her career and make her a star. He proved his worth and dedication to her when he left his wife and married Barbara.Settling in Hollywood, it took some time before the actress started making decent strides as a bobbysoxer ingénue. She turned heads and supported herself initially as a pin-up girl, a job the shy beauty did not enjoy. She eventually rose in rank after a number of bit parts and, during her peak as a lead and second lead, appeared opposite a number of big-name stars, including Bette Davis in June Bride (1948); Danny Kaye in The Inspector General (1949); Myrna Loy and Jeanne Crain in both Cheaper by the Dozen (1950) and Belles on Their Toes (1952); Rory Calhoun in I'd Climb the Highest Mountain (1951); Elizabeth Taylor and Vittorio Gassman in Rhapsody (1954); and even Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis in their laugh-inducing vehicle, The Caddy (1953), to name a few.Much of Barbara's work in the above films was routine. Interestingly, the one role she will always be identified with is also one of the smallest parts given her during her brief tenure as leading lady. In the very last segment of All About Eve (1950), Barbara turns up in the role of "Phoebe", a devious school girl and wannabe actress who shows startling promise as a future schemer along the lines of her equally ruthless idol, "Eve Harrington", superbly played by Anne Baxter. Barbara's image is enshrined in the picture's very last scene--posing in front of a three-way mirror while clutching Baxter's just-received acting award. It is this brief, breathtaking moment for which she will best be remembered.Barbara's on-and-off-screen life started unraveling not long afterward, succumbing to extreme mood shifts, insecurity, ill health and chronic depression to the point of being taken off important movie assignments. By age 30 she was washed up in Hollywood, and she and her Svengali-like husband Coen, who made all of Barbara's decisions for her, tried to salvage her career in England. Things looked somewhat promising at first when she was picked up by the Rank Organization and co-starred with John Mills and Michael Craig in two dramatic suspense films, but the films, however, were mediocre. She again started showing signs of instability to the point where she was dropped from two films and the Rank Organization was forced to release her from her contract.The couple returned to Hollywood where old friend Rory Calhoun cast her in a picture he was producing and starring in called Apache Territory (1958). Emotionally unable to withstand the pressures of Hollywood any more, Barbara abandoned her career, save for a 1962 appearance in the British TV series The Saint (1962) starring Roger Moore.Barbara was not heard of again until her March 1969 death. It was learned that she had retreated to her hometown of Denver and worked in various minor job capacities, including stints as a secretary, dental assistant and hospital aide. Her much older husband and chief supporter, Cecil Coan, died of cancer in January of 1967, and Barbara fell apart. Although she remarried in December of 1968 to a childhood friend, sportscaster William Reed, she remained increasingly despondent and committed suicide just four months later. She was found dead in her car by her mother in her mother's garage of carbon monoxide poisoning. Another sad and tragic ending to a promising Hollywood beauty who seemed destined to having it all.
Barbara Bates is a member of Actress

Does Barbara Bates Dead or Alive?

As per our current Database, Barbara Bates has been died on March 18, 1969(1969-03-18) (aged 43)\nDenver, Colorado, U.S..

🎂 Barbara Bates - Age, Bio, Faces and Birthday

When Barbara Bates die, Barbara Bates was 43 years old.

Popular As Barbara Bates
Occupation Actress
Age 43 years old
Zodiac Sign Virgo
Born August 06, 1925 ( Denver, Colorado, United States)
Birthday August 06
Town/City  Denver, Colorado, United States
Nationality United States

🌙 Zodiac

Barbara Bates’s zodiac sign is Virgo. According to astrologers, Virgos are always paying attention to the smallest details and their deep sense of humanity makes them one of the most careful signs of the zodiac. Their methodical approach to life ensures that nothing is left to chance, and although they are often tender, their heart might be closed for the outer world. This is a sign often misunderstood, not because they lack the ability to express, but because they won’t accept their feelings as valid, true, or even relevant when opposed to reason. The symbolism behind the name speaks well of their nature, born with a feeling they are experiencing everything for the first time.

🌙 Chinese Zodiac Signs

Barbara Bates was born in the Year of the Ox. Another of the powerful Chinese Zodiac signs, the Ox is steadfast, solid, a goal-oriented leader, detail-oriented, hard-working, stubborn, serious and introverted but can feel lonely and insecure. Takes comfort in friends and family and is a reliable, protective and strong companion. Compatible with Snake or Rooster.

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Biography/Timeline

1944

In September 1944, Bates signed a contract with Universal Pictures after Cecil Coan introduced her to Producer Walter Wanger. Soon after, she was cast as one of the "Seven Salome Girls" in the 1945 drama, Salome Where She Danced starring Yvonne De Carlo. Around this time, she fell in love with Coan, who was married with two sons and two daughters. In March 1945, Coan divorced his wife and secretly married Bates days later. Bates spent the next few years as a stock Actress, landing bit parts in movies and doing cheesecake layouts for magazines like Yank, the Army Weekly and Life. It was one of those photo sessions that caught the eye of executives at Warner Bros. who signed her in 1947. Warner Bros. highlighted her "girl-next-door" image and her acting career took off. She appeared with some of the biggest stars of the day including Bette Davis in June Bride and Danny Kaye in The Inspector General.

1949

In late 1949, Bates auditioned for the small role of Phoebe in Fox's upcoming All About Eve. In competition for the part was Zsa Zsa Gabor and others, but Bates impressed the producers and was given the part. She made a short but important appearance as the devious schemer, Phoebe, at the end of the film. Bates's image is enshrined in the film's last scene, posing in front of a three-way mirror, while holding the award won by her idol Eve Harrington, played by Anne Baxter. This memorable final scene left critics and audiences intrigued by the young Actress, who they thought would star in a sequel to All About Eve. The Hollywood Reporter said of her performance, "Barbara Bates comes on the screen in the last few moments to more or less sum up the whole action and point of the story. It's odd that a bit should count for so much, and in the hands of Miss Bates all the required points are fulfilled."

1951

After her appearance in All About Eve, Bates co-starred in Cheaper by the Dozen, and its sequel Belles on Their Toes, with Jeanne Crain and Myrna Loy. In 1951, she landed a role opposite Macdonald Carey and Claudette Colbert in the comedy Let's Make It Legal. She co-starred with Donna Reed as the love interests of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis in the 1953 hit comedy The Caddy.

1954

Despite a seemingly successful career, Bates's life, both on and off screen, started unravelling. She became a victim of extreme mood swings, insecurity, ill health, and chronic depression. In 1954, she won the role of Cathy on the NBC sitcom It's a Great Life, co-starring Frances Bavier as her mother, Amy Morgan, and James Dunn as her uncle, Earl Morgan. After 26 episodes, she was written out of the show due to her erratic behavior, depression and instability. Bates tried to salvage her career and travelled to England to find work. She was signed on as a contract player with the Rank Organisation, only to be replaced in two leading roles before filming began. Bates continued to be too emotionally unstable to work and in 1957, her contract with the Rank Organisation was cancelled.

1957

Upon returning to the United States in 1957, Bates and her husband got an apartment in Beverly Hills. Later that year, Bates made her last film, Apache Territory, which was released in September 1958. She then appeared in two television commercials, one for floor wax and another endorsing a now unknown product with Buster Keaton. In 1960, Bates's husband Cecil Coan was diagnosed with cancer. Bates put her career on hold to care for her ailing husband. The strain eventually became too much for her. She attempted suicide by slashing her wrists and was rushed to Cedars-Sinai Hospital where she soon recovered. She made her final onscreen appearance in an episode of The Saint that aired in November 1962.

1967

In January 1967, Bates's husband Cecil Coan died of cancer. Devastated by his death, Bates's depression worsened and she again became suicidal. Later that year, she returned to Denver and fell out of public view. For a time, Bates worked as a secretary, as a dental assistant, and as a hospital aide. In December 1968 she married for the second time: to a childhood friend, Sportscaster william Reed. Despite her new marriage and location, Bates remained increasingly despondent and depressed.

1969

On March 18, 1969, just months after her marriage to Reed, Barbara Bates committed suicide in her mother's garage by carbon monoxide poisoning. She was 43 years old. She is buried at Crown Hill Cemetery in Jefferson County, Colorado.

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