Sheila Ryan (born Katherine Elizabeth McLaughlin, June 8, 1921 – November 4, 1975) was an American actress who appeared in more than 60 movies.[1]
Career
Born in Topeka, Kansas,[1] Ryan went to Hollywood in 1939 at the age of 18. Her acting career began when she tried out for a role on a program at television station W6XAO (later KCBS) in Los Angeles, California. An article in a contemporary magazine reported, "She proved to be a perfect television type and was given a role at once."[2]
At age 19, Ryan was selected by a group of Hollywood directors as one of 13 "baby stars of 1940."[3] She was signed by 20th Century Fox in 1940 and was credited in her early films as Bettie McLaughlin. Adopting the name Sheila Ryan, she starred in the crime drama Dressed to Kill the following year.
Sheila Ryan pin-up from Yank, The Army Weekly, July 1945
She worked with Gene Autry, co-starring in several of his films, including The Cowboys and the Indians (1949), and Mule Train (1950) as well as with Roy Rogers in films like Song of Texas.
She also had roles in several television shows such as The Lone Ranger, notably the Pete-and-Pedro episode (#7 in 1949) and another entitled "The Whimsical Bandit" in 1950.
Ryan retired from acting in 1968.
Physical characteristics
Ryan had brown hair, was 5 feet, 2 inches tall, and weighed 107 pounds.[3] A 1940 newspaper story included her in a group of actresses "whose alluring curves alone might have disqualified them from screen careers not so long ago," in the words of Travis Banton, a Hollywood stylist.[4]
Sheila Ryan pin-up from Yank, The Army Weekly, July 1945
Personal life
Ryan married actor Allan Lane in 1945, but divorced him a year later.[5] Later, she and actor Eddie Norris married, but they had problems in 1948.[6]
While working with Autry, Ryan met actor Pat Buttram. They married in 1952 and remained together until her death in 1975. They had a daughter, Kathleen Buttram, nicknamed Kerry.
^"Sheila Ryan Separates". The Monroe News-Star. Louisiana, Monroe. The Monroe News-Star. January 18, 1946. p. 10. Retrieved January 22, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
