Cathy Downs was a beautiful and talented actress who rose to fame in the 1940s with roles in films such as My Darling Clementine and The Dark Corner. She was hailed as one of the most promising stars of her generation, but her career soon declined and she ended up in low-budget movies and television shows. She died of cancer at the age of 50, leaving behind a legacy of unfulfilled potential and a mystery about why she fell from grace.
Early Life and Career
Cathy Downs was born Catherine N. Downs on March 3, 1926, in Port Jefferson, New York. She was the daughter of James Nelson Downs and Edna Elizabeth Newman She started her career as a model for the Walter Thornton Agency, and was discovered by a 20th Century Fox talent scout in 1944 The studio initially used her as a model, giving her limited opportunities to act
She made her film debut with small roles in State Fair (1945) and The Dolly Sisters (1945). In 1946, she landed her breakthrough role as the title character in John Ford’s western classic My Darling Clementine, opposite Henry Fonda as Wyatt Earp. She also played Clifton Webb’s unfaithful wife in the noir thriller The Dark Corner, co-starring Lucille Ball and Mark Stevens.
She received favorable reviews for her performances and was considered one of the most promising actresses of her time. She was featured in a famous Life magazine photo layout in 1949, along with other up-and-coming actresses such as Marilyn Monroe, Lois Maxwell, Suzanne Dalbert, Laurette Luez, Jane Nigh, and Enrica Soma.
Career Decline and Personal Problems
However, after 1947, Downs’ career took a downward turn. She was dropped by Fox for unknown reasons, and never worked for another major studio again. She appeared in a series of low-budget films, mostly westerns and science-fiction stories, such as For You I Die (1947), The Noose Hangs High (1948), The Amazing Colossal Man (1957), and Missile to the Moon (1958). She also appeared in some television shows, such as The Lone Ranger (1952), The Joe Palooka Story (1954), and Bat Masterson (1959). Her last appearance was in Perry Mason (1965) as a murder victim.
Downs’ personal life was also troubled. She married actor and producer Joe Kirkwood Jr., who played the character Joe Palooka in films and on TV, in 1949. They divorced in 1955. She married Robert M. Brunson, an electronics executive, in 1956. They divorced in 1963. She had no children from either marriage.
She struggled with financial difficulties and health problems in her later years. She suffered from arthritis and depression. She also developed cancer, which eventually claimed her life.
Death and Legacy
In 1976, her former husband Joe Kirkwood Jr. learned that Downs was in dire financial straits. He was reportedly setting up a trust fund for her when he learned that she had died of cancer on December 8, 1976, at the age of 50. She was buried at Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery in Santa Monica, California.
Downs has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contribution to television, at 6646 Hollywood Boulevard. She is remembered by fans of classic cinema for her roles in My Darling Clementine and The Dark Corner, as well as by cult followers of sci-fi films for her appearances in The Amazing Colossal Man and Missile to the Moon.
She is also regarded as a tragic figure who never achieved the success and recognition she deserved. Her story is one of the many examples of how Hollywood can make or break a star’s career and life.
