Six years old
Carole's early days were filled with sadness and success. She was born in Wisconsin on New Year's Day 1919. Carole was such a beautiful baby that she was nicknamed "Baby Doll". Her father, Alfred Ridste, and her step-father, Charles Fenner, both abandoned her. She would spend the rest of her life searching for a father figure. Carole and her four older siblings were raised by their strict mother Clara. Tragically two of Carole's brothers died before the age of seven. According to family sources Carole was sexually molested by a relative during her childhood. In 1923 the family relocated to San Bernardino, California. They were poor but Clara always made sure her children were taken care of. Carole was raised a Catholic and attended church every Sunday. Her philosophy on life was "Pass the good deed along". When Carole was nine she ran on stage during a local talent show and began to sing. She bought second hand movie magazines and covered her walls with photos of Mary Astor, Russ Columbo, and Clark Gable. Using make-up tricks to look older she started entering beauty pageants at age twelve. She won a pair of silk stockings and an electric heater but her mother made her stop competing because she was too young. In high school she became boy crazy and often skipped her classes. She earned money by working at a hamburger stand, a department store, and a movie theater.
With her older sister Dorothy in 1930 (Courtesy of Tammy Powell)
Photographed on July 25, 1937
With Ronald Reagan in 1937
Carole married her first love, Irving Wheeler, in 1934 but she walked out on him after three weeks. When she was sixteen she went to San Francisco where she worked as a hula dancer and sang with Carl Ravazza. Carole said "Although I avoided dramatics - and everything else - in school. I wanted to be a success on the stage, the screen, or the radio. So I saved my money and when I had bus fare and $16.82 over, I told my mother, Clara, I was going to leave home. She was heartbroken, but she believed in me." She moved to Hollywood in September 1936 and made her film debut as an extra in A Star Is Born. In July 1937 she was offered a six month contract at Warner Brothers for $50 a week. She was given small roles in dozens of films including Blondes At Work, Hollywood Hotel, and Gold Diggers In Paris. Carole had serious romances with director Busby Berkeley and journalist Kenny Morgan. The press started talking about her when her estranged husband sued Busby for "alienation of affection". In 1938 she appeared on Broadway in the play Once Upon A Night. She also costarred with Bob Hope in a Los Angeles stage production of Roberta. When she couldn't get acting jobs she worked as a model. Carole lived with her mother in a tiny apartment in an unfashionable part of Los Angeles. She signed with Republic Pictures in February 1939 and was cast opposite John Wayne in Three Texas Steers.
* You can see more of Carole's childhood photos at The Official Carole Landis Site
