Julie London can make a worn-down woman matter without asking for pity. We value that restraint, especially in her Westerns, though the parts too often gave her appearance more attention than her acting.
Fi1m perspective
Billie Ellis, the saloon singer Julie London plays in Man of the West (1958), seems to have learnt not to expect much. London plays her with fatalism, but allows her sympathy for others to survive. We can care about this woman without needing the performance to insist on it. It is a persuasive use of restraint, and a useful starting point for looking past London's glamorous image.
An early substantial supporting part in The Red House (1947) preceded the recurring Western assignments. London was frequently the saloon singer, the dance-hall girl or the wife subjected to hardship. Her mid-1950s singing breakthrough rested on a small, husky voice and sparse accompaniment. In The Girl Can't Help It (1956), she appears as herself and sings ‘Cry Me a River’.
Anthony Mann's Man of the West gives her a harsh setting. Gary Cooper's quiet performance remains the chief reason we recommend the film, while Lee J. Cobb sometimes pushes too hard. The solemnity can become oppressive, and London wisely avoids adding to it. We were moved by Billie's quiet sympathy because it gives us something humane to attend to amid the bleakness.
Saddle the Wind (1958) offered a related part in Joan Blake, a dance-hall girl seeking stability, and drew notice for London's believability. That does not make underplaying a virtue in every film. Some notices found her work underdeveloped in The Wonderful Country (1959), opposite Robert Mitchum. The limited parts explain some of the difficulties; they do not oblige us to praise every quiet performance.
Television guest roles in the 1960s were followed by a sustained part as nurse Dixie McCall in the medical drama produced by Jack Webb, from 1972 to 1979. At least the profession gave her something other than hardship to be defined by. That change is worth noting when so much of her film casting returned to the same few types of woman. For the films, start with Man of the West, with fair warning that Mann is not offering a restful evening.
Biography
Julie London (born Julie Peck) was an American actress and singer. She was born on 26 September 1926 in Santa Rosa, California, and died on 18 October 2000 in Los Angeles.
London began her acting career in the mid-1940s. She appeared in films including The Red House (1947) and The Girl Can't Help It (1956). She played Billie Ellis in the Western Man of the West (1958), co-starring with Gary Cooper.
Her later work included television roles such as Laura Sebastian in The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964) and Nurse Dixie McCall in Emergency! (1972–1979). She was also known for a successful singing career in the 1950s.
