Death Notice: Evelyn Keyes

Best known-world wide as Scarlet O'Hara's kid sister Suellen in GONE WITH THE WIND (1939) but dear to me for playing disfigured criminal Peter Lorre's blind lady love in THE FACE BEHIND THE MASK (1941), Evelyn Keyes has died of cancer at the age of 91. The Port Arthur, Texas native had a busy 20-year career from 1938 (at which time she debuted in THE BUCCANEER) until the late 1950s. Other significant roles were as mad scientist Boris Karloff's daughter in BEFORE I HANG (1940), as an aspiring actress who makes life difficult for ex-boxer John Payne in Phil Karlson's 99 RIVER STREET (1953), as conflicted noir heroine Susan Gilvray in Joseph Losey's THE PROWLER (1951) with Van Heflin and as Tom Ewell's conveniently vacationing wife in Billy Wilder's THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH (1955). She more or less retired from show business after contributing a coquettish cameo to AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS (1956), produced by then-lover Mike Todd (who dropped her to marry Elizabeth Taylor the following year).

Keyes was as well-known for her romantic hook-ups (Kirk Douglas, Anthony Quinn) as her acting and among her former husbands were film director John Huston and bandleader Artie Shaw. In the late 80s, Keyes returned to acting, appearing on the Joe Dante-directed episode "Boo!" of AMAZING STORIES and in Larry Cohen's A RETURN TO SALEM'S LOT (1987) and WICKED STEPMOTHER (1989), the final film also for Bette Davis. Evelyn Keyes died on July 4th in Montecito, California.