Born 1903 as Gisela Valaria Goetten in St. Cloud, Minnesota, American actress June Marlowe began her acting career shortly after her 1923 graduation from Hollywood High School, and was signed to a contract by Warner Brothers in 1924.
In 1925, Marlowe became one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars. In 1928, she was an actress under contract with Universal Studios. Her career did well until the introduction of talkies. She did not make an easy transition, and by 1930, she was starting to drift away from acting.
By chance, Marlowe happened to meet director Robert F. McGowan one day in a Los Angeles, California, department store. McGowan was searching for an actress to portray the schoolteacher in the Our Gang series of children’s comedies. After producer Hal Roach suggested that brunette Marlowe don a blonde wig to match the hair of the lead kid in the series, Jackie Cooper, she was given the part of Miss Crabtree.
Marlowe and Cooper were paired together in three Our Gang films, Teacher’s Pet, School’s Out and Love Business. She also had a small role in 1931’s Little Daddy. In addition to her work in Our Gang, she appeared in fellow Roach stars Laurel and Hardy’s first feature film, Pardon Us.
Marlowe’s Miss Crabtree character was used in only two more shorts, 1931’s Shiver My Timbers and 1932’s Readin’ and Writin’. After Cooper left Our Gang in 1931, she appeared in MGM features.
Marlowe suffered from Parkinson’s disease, dying from complications in 1984, aged 80. Take a look at these vintage photos to see the beauty of young June Marlowe in the 1920s.
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