Classic Movie Travels: Gloria Dickson
Gloria Dickson was born Thais Lelia Dickerson on August 13, 1917, in Pocatello, Idaho, to Fred and Emma Dickerson. Gloria also had an older sister named Doris. Her father worked as an insurance agent until his passing in 1926, upon which she, her mother, and sister moved to California.
While in California, Dickson attended and graduated from Long Beach Polytechnic High School. It was there that she began acting in her school’s theatrical productions.
In 1936, she was performing as part of the Federal Theatre Project—a theater program that was carried out during the Great Depression years as part of the New Deal to fund entertainment programs in the United States. She was noticed by a Warner Bros. talent scout, who ultimately signed her to a film contract. Dickson made her film debut in They Won’t Forget (1937).
Dickson enjoyed an active life early in her career, particularly enjoying fishing near Catalina Island. She reportedly caught a 632-pound shark on one of her fishing trips.
Dickson’s career flourished with appearances in Gold Diggers in Paris (1938), On Your Toes (1939), I Want a Divorce (1940), and more.
In 1938, Dickson married notable makeup artist Percival “Perc” Harry Westmore in Santa Barbara, California. Westmore wanted a more glamorous image for Dickson, and persuaded her to undergo rhinoplasty. They ultimately divorced in 1941. In the same year, she married film director Ralph Murphy. The marriage also ended in divorce by 1944.
In the 1940s, Dickson’s film career waned and she mostly appeared in B-Movies such as The Affairs of Jimmy Valentine (1942) and Lady of Burlesque (1943). She struggled with her weight and alcoholism, which further complicated her professional and personal life.
In 1944, Dickson married former boxer William Fitzgerald, to whom she remained married until her untimely passing. Fitzgerald also once happened to be a bodyguard for actress Jean Harlow.
Dickson tragically died in a fire on April 10, 1945. She was residing in a Los Angeles, California, home that she was renting from actor Sidney Toler. The fire was caused by an unextinguished cigarette that she left behind. It ignited a chair on the ground floor while she was napping upstairs. Sadly, she and her pet boxer were found in the bathroom, as it was assumed that she tried to escape via the bathroom window. She ultimately passed from asphyxiation and had suffered first- and second-degree burns. She was 27 years old.
Dickson was buried at Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles, California.
Today, some points of interest relating to Dickson remain. In 1920, Dickson lived at 1014 N. Arthur Ave., Pocatello, Idaho. In 1930, they lived at 1080 Elm Ave., Long Beach, California. Both of these homes no longer stand.
In 1932, she lived at 424A E. 16th St., Long Beach, California. The home remains.
In 1940, she lived in an apartment at 6626 Franklin Ave., Los Angeles, California, which also stands.
Dickson passed in a fire at 1630 Haslam Ter., Los Angeles, California. The home has been significantly remodeled but remains today.
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–Annette Bochenek for Classic Movie Hub
Annette Bochenek pens our monthly Classic Movie Travels column. You can read all of Annette’s Classic Movie Travel articles here.
Annette Bochenek, Ph.D., is a film historian, professor, and avid scholar of Hollywood’s Golden Age. She manages the “Hometowns to Hollywood” blog, in which she profiles her trips to the hometowns of classic Hollywood stars. She has also been featured on the popular classic film-oriented television network, Turner Classic Movies. A regular columnist for Classic Movie Hub, her articles have appeared in TCM Backlot, Silent Film Quarterly, Nostalgia Digest, The Dark Pages Film Noir Newsletter, and Chicago Art Deco Society Magazine.
