People are weak and impatient by nature and often succumb to various temptations. Sometimes it is difficult for us to show willpower, to give up bad habits for the sake of ourselves and so on. Read more on houstonka.com
A life without bad habits is a rare phenomenon, because we all have weaknesses in this aspect. However, there are those who are able to overcome themselves and not have destructive labels. Houston actress Jean Brooks could not get rid of the most important bad habit in her life, which led to fatal consequences.
How do people remember the actress? What movies did she star in? What were the reasons for her death?
Family and childhood
The actress’s real name is Ruby Matilda Kelly. She was born on December 23, 1915 in Houston, Texas. She was the fourth child in the family and the only girl. One of her brothers died of tetanus at an early age.
As a child, the future actress also lost her father, and then moved to Costa Rica with her mother. They settled on a coffee plantation where Ruby’s grandfather once lived. She was fluent in both Spanish and English. When it came time to apply to college, Brooks went to New York.
Acting career
Brooks’ first job was in entertainment. She sang and played the guitar at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. At that time, the singer’s first pseudonym, Jeanne Kelly, appeared, but only so that she would not be confused with Ruby Keeler (an American actress and singer).
One day, Jean was lucky enough to meet a famous director in a hotel. The man praised her beautiful voice, charisma, self-confidence and ambition. This encounter helped Brooks get an invitation to her first shoot.
Her debut role as an aspiring actress was in the movie Obeah!(1935). Then there were minor roles in several movies such as Frankie and Johnny, Tango Bar, and many others. That same year, she was lucky enough to play in the movie The Crime of Dr. Crespi, where she finally got a more significant role.
In 1938, the actress signed a contract with Paramount Pictures and played several leading roles. The fact that Jean was fluent in Spanish played a huge role in this, it was one of the main reasons why she was chosen.
The actress got her first leading role in 1940, and it was an adventure thriller called The Devil’s Pipeline. Critics have given Brooks’ performance different opinions: one company did not recognize her work at all, while another, on the contrary, offered her cooperation, and the lead female role in Riders of Death Valley. The company we’re talking about is Universal, by the way.
Alcoholism ruined everything
It would seem that life began to get better. The actress received new, more interesting and significant roles, married in 1941 to Richard Brooks (whose family name became her new pseudonym).
However, a few years later she started drinking heavily. Most likely, it was due to a breakup with her husband. It got to the point where the actress began to appear on the set and even at social events drunk. Because of this, her reputation plummeted: she was given only cameo roles from the main or secondary roles. She gained weight, stopped taking care of herself, and her condition was quite depressed and miserable.
The Bamboo Blonde (1946) and Women in the Night (1948) were the last movies Jean Brooks starred in before all her contracts were canceled.
In 1946, she got married for the second time. Her husband became William Douglas Lansford, who worked in the armed forces and often traveled on business trips. They were married for 10 years. Both had problems with alcohol, which had a bad effect on the couple’s health and marriage, so they divorced in 1956.
Less than a year after the divorce, Brooks got married again. This marriage was the actress’s last. A few years later, Jean was diagnosed with a disease called liver cirrhosis, which resulted from prolonged alcohol consumption. In 1963, Brooks was hospitalized for complications. On November 25, she died. She was 47 years old.