Darlene Tompkins

American actress (1940–2019)

Darlene Tompkins

Tompkins in Beyond the Time Barrier (1960)

Born| (1940-11-16)November 16, 1940

Chicago, Illinois

Died| July 18, 2019(2019-07-18) (aged 78)
Occupation| Actress

Darlene Tompkins (born Darlene Perfect;[1] November 16, 1940 – July 18, 2019) was an American actress.

## Biography

[edit]

Tompkins was born in Chicago, Illinois on November 16, 1940.[2][3] Her parents were divorced when she reached the age of five and she took the surname of her stepfather. Her family performed in plays and vaudeville, and she had an early goal to be a Hollywood actress. At the age of twelve she was mauled by a dog which left her very self-conscious. To help overcome her shyness, she was entered into a beauty contest by her mother. Her subsequent beauty pageant victories attracted some attention and she appeared in commercials.[4]

Her first acting role was in Beyond the Time Barrier (1960). She then co-starred opposite Elvis Presley in Blue Hawaii (1961). She had a role in My Six Loves (1963) and played parts in several television shows.[5]

Her career was interrupted by a marriage and the birth of two sons. She tried to resume acting again when the marriage ended in the mid-1970s, but by then she was in her thirties and had difficulty landing roles.[5] After that she worked as a stand-in and stuntwoman and remarried.[3]

Tompkins died on July 18, 2019[6] following complications of a stroke and was taken off life support.[7]

## Filmography

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

1960 | Wake Me When It's Over | Girl in Bikini | Uncredited
1960 | Beyond the Time Barrier | Princess Trirene |
1961 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Tim's Girlfriend | Season Episode 25: "Museum Piece"
1961 | Sea Hunt | Ginny, Chan's Girlfriend | Season 4 Episode 9: "Hot Tracer"
1961 | The Ladies Man | Working Girl | Uncredited
1961 | Blue Hawaii | Patsy Simon |
1963 | My Six Loves | Ava Johnson |
1963 | Fun in Acapulco | Miss Stevers | Uncredited
1964 | Wendy and Me | June | Season 1 Episode 5: "George Burns While Rome Fiddles"
1967 | A Guide for the Married Man | Bosomy Blonde | Uncredited, (final film role)

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Darlene Tompkins, Hollywood starlet who was one of Elvis's girls in 'Blue Hawaii' – obituary". The Telegraph. August 5, 2019. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
2. ^ Darlene Tompkins at the British Film Institute
3. ^ a b "Darlene Tompkins". Glamour Girls of the Silver Screen. Retrieved April 9, 2009.
4. ^ Weaver, Tom (2002). Science fiction confidential: interviews with 23 monster stars and film makers. McFarland. p. 296\. ISBN 0-7864-1175-9.
5. ^ a b Lisanti, Tom (2003). Drive-in dream girls: a galaxy of B-movie starlets of the sixties. McFarland. pp. 172–180\. ISBN 0-7864-1575-4.
6. ^ Darlene Tompkins at the British Film Institute
7. ^ "Elvis co-Star Darlene Tompkins (Blue Hawaii) dies at 78. She was on life support". The Life and Times of Hollywood. July 23, 2019. Archived from the original on July 24, 2019. Retrieved July 24, 2019.

## External links

[edit]

* Darlene Tompkins at IMDb

Authority control databases

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* ISNI
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* FAST
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* IdRef

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