June Collyer

June Collyer was born Dorothea Heermance in New York City on August 19, 1906. She began her career in the film East Side, West Side (1927). She made a total of eleven silents before a successful transition to talkies. In 1928 she was one of thirteen starlets named a WAMPAS Baby Star. In 1930 June appeared in her first talkie, The Three Sisters. That same year found her with Claudia Dell and Walter Pidgeon in Sweet Kitty Bellairs. She had appeared earlier with Pidgeon in Woman Wise (1928).

Her first starring role in talkies was in Extravagance (1930). June went on to appear in nineteen films from 1930 to 1936, including Alexander Hamilton (1931) starring George Arliss, and Before Midnight (1933) opposite Ralph Bellamy, but few made it out of B movie status and her career never really took off. Her last film role was in A Face in the Fog (1936). However, during the 1950's she returned to acting, having a five year role on her husband's (they were married in 1931) television series The Stu Erwin Show. Note that her brother, Bud Collyer, who early TV fans will remember as host of Beat The Clock, had the title role from 1940 through 1949 in the radio series The Adventures of Superman. He also voiced the character in the must see animated Superman shorts by Fleischer Studios.

June died in March, 1968, approximately three months after the passing of her husband.

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Picture Play, March 1929 - Artist: Modest Stein

Stars of the Photoplay 1930

Undated publicity photo

Frame captures from three of June's films. Drums of Jeopardy (1931) and Lost in the Stratosphere (1934) are fairly entertaining.
The Ghost Walks (1934), not so much.

June Collyer - What do you think - Allure?