Jacqueline Fontaine
Joyce Elaine Romeo, the raven-haired daughter of Orlando and Emma Romeo of 5606 34th Avenue in Kenosha, Wisconsin, studied at the nearby McKinley Junior High School and the downtown Mary D. Bradford High School while simultaneously nurturing her dreams of performing before appreciative audiences. She made her first such appearances in Chicago clubs before coming to Los Angeles for George White's Scandals and Billy Gray's Band Box (Dorothy Kilgallen noted her in July, 1946 as a dancer at LaConga) and local television. One such telecast caught the eye of producer Ron Ormond who signed her for "Outlaw Women" (1952) without a screen test. Previously she had appeared with Mickey Rooney as "the other woman" in The Strip. Also in 1952 Jacki (as she was labeled on Crystalette Records songs) worked with Jack Carson at the Sahati's Country Club Casino in Stateline, Nevada. Bing Crosby noticed her at a Pebble Beach golf tournament and cast her in The Country Girl. Later she did live appearances with comic Lenny Kent at the Casino Lounge in the Mapes Hotel and in 1962 with Buddy Lester at New Facks and at the Losers Club in Hollywood. and by 1965 at the Jamaica Room of the West Valley Bowl and at Sunset Boulevard's Key Club. Three years later she worked as a regular in a troupe with singer-comic Duke Mitchell, and by the 1970s she was seen at Aladdin's Funny Farm, the new Nine Thousand and the Fire and Flame in North Hollywood, with billing calling her "The Performer's Performer".
Filmography
Gallant Ladies
as Parente Labadens
Gallant Ladies
as Parente Labadens
Lorsque l'enfant parait
as Charlotte Jacquet
Lorsque l'enfant parait
as Charlotte Jacquet
Bilitis
as Supervisor
Bilitis
as Supervisor
It's Tough for Everybody
It's Tough for Everybody
How to Make Good When One Is a Jerk and a Crybaby
as La femme de Marcel
How to Make Good When One Is a Jerk and a Crybaby
as La femme de Marcel
The Egg
as (uncredited)
The Egg
as (uncredited)
Les Cent livres : À la recherche du temps perdu
Les Cent livres : À la recherche du temps perdu
To Die of Love
To Die of Love
Under the Sign of the Bull
as Louise, la domestique des Raynal
Under the Sign of the Bull
as Louise, la domestique des Raynal
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
as Singer (uncredited)
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
as Singer (uncredited)
Murderers' Row
as Singer at Wake (uncredited)
Murderers' Row
as Singer at Wake (uncredited)
Alvarez Kelly
as Bordello Girl
Alvarez Kelly
as Bordello Girl
Le Naïf amoureux
as A client
Le Naïf amoureux
as A client
The Cross and the Banner
The Cross and the Banner
The Ladies Man
as Working Girl
The Ladies Man
as Working Girl
Born to Be Loved
as Dame
Born to Be Loved
as Dame
The Lieutenant Wore Skirts
as Buxom Blonde at Party
The Lieutenant Wore Skirts
as Buxom Blonde at Party
The Country Girl
as Lounge Singer
The Country Girl
as Lounge Singer
Outlaw Women
as Ellen Larabee
Outlaw Women
as Ellen Larabee
The Strip
as Frieda
The Strip
as Frieda
Untamed Mistress
as Velda
Untamed Mistress
as Velda
Skipalong Rosenbloom
as Caroline Witherspoon
Skipalong Rosenbloom
as Caroline Witherspoon
The Daltons' Women
as Jacqueline Fontaine
The Daltons' Women
as Jacqueline Fontaine
Impasse of Two Angels
as (uncredited)
Impasse of Two Angels
as (uncredited)
Back Streets of Paris
Back Streets of Paris