Manning Irene

American actress and singer in theatre, television and film, a petite blonde and hazel-eyed beauty, she was credited as Hope Manning in her early films. She debuted as the lead actress in a western, The Old Corral (1938), opposite Gene Autry. By the early 1940s, she was employed as a contract player in the Warner Bros. studio system, and is probably best remembered as diva "Fay Templeton" in Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942), opposite James Cagney. Her dozen films also include a starring role with Humphrey Bogart in The Big Shot (1942) and with Dennis Morgan in both The Desert Song (1943) and Shine On, Harvest Moon (1944). On Broadway, Manning performed in The Day Before Spring (1945) and Susanna, Dont You Cry (1939). She also appeared in The Dubarry, Castle in the Air and Serenade in London. She remained in England and appeared on her own BBC TV show, An American in England, until 1951, when she returned to the United States for television and nightclub work. Eventually she retired to teach acting and voice. Manning was married four times. She died on 28 May 2004 from congestive heart failure at her home in San Carlos, California at the age of 91. Link to Wikipedia biography Read less