Jill St. John
| Jill St. John | |
 Jill St. John | |
| Background information | |
| Born as: | Jill Arlyn Oppenheim |
| Born | Aug 19, 1940 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Spouse(s): |
|
| Relatives: | Katie Wagner (stepdaughter)
Natasha Gregson (de facto stepdaughter) |
| Occupation: | Actress (1946–2014) |
Jill St. John (born Jill Arlyn Oppenheim; August 19, 1940) is an American retired actress. She is best known for playing Tiffany Case, the first American Bond girl of the James Bond film franchise, in 1971's Diamonds Are Forever. Additional performances in film include Holiday for Lovers, The Lost World (1960), Tender Is the Night, Come Blow Your Horn, for which she received a Golden Globe nomination, Who's Minding the Store?, Honeymoon Hotel (1964), The Liquidator (1965), The Oscar (film), Tony Rome, Sitting Target and The Concrete Jungle.
On television, St. John has appeared in shows including Batman (TV series), The Big Valley, Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, Hart to Hart, Vega$, The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Magnum, P.I. and Seinfeld. During her Hollywood heyday, she was almost equally famous for her high-profile social life and frequent romantic associations with other movie stars. St. John is married to actor Robert Wagner, whom she met when she was 18 years old. They share credits on nearly a dozen screen and stage productions, notably the miniseries remake of Around the World in 80 Days (miniseries).
Early life
St. John was born Jill Arlyn Oppenheim at Queen of Angels Hospital in Los Angeles on August 19, 1940, to Edward Oppenheim, a restaurateur from Brooklyn, and his philanthropist wife, Betty (née Goldberg), from Philadelphia. She has no siblings; however, she grew up with numerous cousins, as her mother was one of eight surviving children and her father one of three. St. John's parents were united in matrimony in 1934. Her maternal grandparents were of Russian origin and possessed partial Jewish descent, while her paternal great-great-grandparents emigrated from Hessen, Germany, and Amsterdam.
Raised in Encino, St. John participated in the Michael Panaieff Children's Ballet Company alongside Natalie Wood and Stefanie Powers. All three would later enter into marriage or co-star alongside actor Robert Wagner. At the age of 13, her stage mother, Betty, altered Jill's last name to the more commercially viable St. John.
Career
Child actress
St. John made her stage debut at age five in "The Conspiracy" at Geller's Theater Workshop on January 31, 1946. She describes her experiences during this period as "precocious. I could read really well by the age of six." St. John's television debut occurred in 1948, when she joined the cast of "Sandy Dreams," a musical fantasy series for children featuring Richard Beymer. In December 1949, she portrayed Missie Cratchit in "The Christmas Carol," one of the earliest filmed adaptations of Charles Dickens' classic 1843 story. Shot in kinescope, it represents a rare example of a complete 1940s live television broadcast still preserved in its entirety.
By the age of ten, St. John was a regular participant on KTLA's "Fantastick Studios, Ink." At eleven, she appeared in two episodes of "The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show." She held an uncredited role in the film "Thunder in the East" (1951) and featured in episodes of "Sky King," "Fireside Theatre," and "Cavalcade of America."
She attended Powers Professional School and received her high school diploma from Hollywood Professional School in the spring of 1955 at the age of fourteen. With a reported IQ of 162, at the age of fifteen, St. John enrolled at UCLA's Extension School.
During this period, she contributed her voice to numerous radio shows, notably "Red Ryder" and "One Man's Family."
Universal
John Saxon, Shelley Fabares, John Wilder, and Jill St. John appeared in Summer Love (1958). St. John was 16 in May 1957 when Universal Pictures signed her to a seven-year contract starting at $200 a week. Her major studio film debut was in Summer Love (1958), starring John Saxon. She also appeared on TV in episodes of The Christophers, Schlitz Playhouse, and The DuPont Show of the Month (an adaptation of Junior Miss). She said her idol was Kay Kendall.
20th Century Fox
St. John then signed a contract with 20th Century Fox, which tried to build her into a star. She played the daughter of Clifton Webb in "The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker" and "Holiday for Lovers" (both 1959), and then appeared in an adventure movie, "The Lost World" (1960).
"Nothing but starlet parts," she later said. "You know, the daughter, the niece, the girlfriend."
Fox picked up their option on her. Warner Bros. borrowed St. John for The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone (1961), and she had a supporting role in Tender Is the Night (1962), for which she beat out Jane Fonda.
Comedy
St. John had a key role in Come Blow Your Horn (1963), where she starred opposite Frank Sinatra. She received a Golden Globe Award nomination as Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for her performance in the film.
"I'm a comedienne," she said in 1963. "I've never pretended to be a dramatic actress. But I'm very funny."
She followed this with a series of comedies: "Who's Minding the Store?" (1963) with Jerry Lewis, "Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?" (1963) with Dean Martin, and "Honeymoon Hotel" (1964) with Robert Morse and Nancy Kwan.
"Now I play the sexy comedienne, which is my forte," she said in 1964. "Comedy is what I've always wanted to do."
She guest-starred on television shows like Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Burke's Law, The Rogues, and Theatre of Stars. In 1964, she guest-starred alongside Lauren Bacall and Bacall's then husband, Jason Robards, Jr., in the episode "Take a Walk Through the Cemetery" of the drama series Mr. Broadway. She also appeared in several variety specials with Bob Hope.
MGM gave her the female lead in the spy spoof "The Liquidator" (1965) with Rod Taylor, and she starred in "The Oscar" (1966) alongside Stephen Boyd.
St. John appeared in the first and second episodes of the television series "Batman" as the Riddler's moll, Molly. In that second episode, she became the first character to die in an episode of "Batman." She also appeared in an episode of "The Big Valley" around that time.
Universal reprise
Wagner and St. John in *How I Spent My Summer Vacation* (1967) St. John executed a contract with Universal Pictures. She appeared in the television movie *Fame Is the Name of the Game* (1966) and played a supporting role in *How I Spent My Summer Vacation* (1967), where she starred alongside her future husband, Robert Wagner.
Subsequently, she participated in the Bob Hope comedy *Eight on the Lam* (1967) and later collaborated with Wagner in *Banning* (1967) as well as with Doug McClure in *The King's Pirate* (1967).
In 1966, St. John expressed, "My goal is to be at a point where I have so proved myself as an actress that I can be more discriminating in the roles I choose. I want to be able to choose the parts I know I can do next." She was close to securing a leading role in *The Fearless Vampire Killers* (1967), which ultimately was awarded to Sharon Tate.
She reunited with Frank Sinatra in *Tony Rome* (1967) and starred in the television movie *The Spy Killer* (1969), which garnered sufficient popularity to warrant a sequel, *Foreign Exchange* (1970). Additionally, she made a guest appearance on *The Name of the Game*. The television movie *Decisions! Decisions!* (1971) featured St. John collaborating with Bob Newhart and Jean Simmons.
James Bond
St. John achieved her biggest success starring as diamond smuggler Tiffany Case, the love interest of James Bond in Diamonds Are Forever (1971), opposite Sean Connery. She was the first American to play a Bond girl. The character Tiffany is argumentative, abrasive, loud, and brash compared to previous Bond girls, who were more demure; film scholars have inferred that she serves as a stereotypical commentary on American women.
In 1972, St. John appeared alongside Oliver Reed in the British crime drama Sitting Target. After the shoot wrapped, she took a break from her career. She later explained that "two pictures in a row was exhausting... I decided I needed a new way of life."
Television
St. John participated in the TV movies Saga of Sonora (1973) and Brenda Starr (1976), in which she played the title role, and guest-starred on Vega$, The Love Boat, Magnum, P.I., Fantasy Island, and Matt Houston. She also appeared in the pilot episode of Hart to Hart. Although she was cast as the princess in Day of the Assassin (1979), she withdrew when her deposit failed to arrive on time, leading to Susana Dosamantes replacing her.
In 1981, after a decade-long sabbatical in Aspen, Colorado, St. John made Hollywood her primary residence once more. "I really don't have to work," she said of her return. "But you know what? I got bored." St. John starred in the TV movies Two Guys from Muck (1982) and Rooster (1982) and received top billing in the feature The Concrete Jungle (1982), a film about women in prison in which she played Warden Fletcher. She also had a small role in The Act (1983).
Between 1983 and 1984, she starred alongside Dennis Weaver on the short-lived soap opera Emerald Point N.A.S., where she portrayed Deanna Kinkaid, Thomas Mallory's conniving former sister-in-law. The show also featured another former Bond girl, Maud Adams.
Later career
St. John and Robert Wagner were in *Around the World in 80 Days* (1989); *Something to Believe In* (1998); and *The Calling* (2002). They made brief cameo appearances as themselves in Robert Altman's Hollywood satire *The Player* (1992).
In 1996, they began appearing together on stage in a national touring production of *Love Letters*.[31]
In 1997, the couple appeared together at the end of "The Yada Yada" episode of the television sitcom *Seinfeld*.
St. John appeared without Wagner in *Out There* (1995) and *The Trip* (2002).
In 2014, St. John played Mrs. Claus in the TV movie *Northpole* alongside Wagner, who portrayed Santa Claus. The film marked her first acting role after a 12-year absence from the screen. She has since officially retired from acting but remains involved in civic activities.[32]
Avocation
In 1972, St. John largely left Hollywood behind and moved to Aspen, where she focused on personal interests and cooking. She is among the celebrities credited with increasing the town's popularity, along with Goldie Hawn and Jack Nicholson.
Her passion for culinary arts ultimately led to her emergence as a prominent culinary personality, featuring in monthly cooking segments on ABC-TV's Good Morning America and authoring a column in USA Weekend magazine throughout the 1980s. This journey culminated in the publication of "The Jill St. John Cookbook" (1987), a compilation of nutritious recipes and personal anecdotes.
Furthermore, St. John embarked on establishing a handmade Angora sweater business and cultivated a profound interest in various outdoor activities, including orchid cultivation, skiing, hiking, river rafting, camping, and gardening. In 1987, she expressed, "I'm a mountain gal now. I love the outdoors and I love harvesting and using fresh vegetables and herbs."
Charity work
During the Vietnam War, St. John entertained American soldiers at United Service Organization (USO) shows.
She is founder of the Aunts Club, a Rancho Mirage-based group of women who contribute at least $1,000 per year to provide financial support for a child.
Personal life
St. John has been married four times. Her husbands:
- Neil Dubin (May 12, 1957 – July 3, 1958; divorced) St. John was just 16 when they eloped to Yuma, Arizona.[a] Dubin was an heir to a linen fortune. St. John reported that he harassed and ridiculed her.
- Lance Reventlow (March 24, 1960 – October 30, 1963; divorced) Reventlow was the son of Barbara Hutton, who was an heir to the F. W. Woolworth fortune. St. John received a settlement of $86,000. Despite their divorce and subsequent remarriages, she refers to Reventlow as "my late husband" in interviews.
- Jack Jones (October 14, 1967 – February 28, 1969; divorced) Jones stated that demands on his singing career and the resulting travel contributed to the breakup.[
- Robert Wagner (May 26, 1990 – present) The couple first met in 1959 while they were contract players at 20th Century Fox, and they have been together since Valentine's Day iny 1982.
Between marriages, St. John dated entertainment, sports, and political personalities including Gianni Bulgari, Sammy Cahn, Michael Caine, Oleg Cassini, Barry Coe, Sean Connery, Robert Evans, Glenn Ford, David Frost, Jack Haley Jr., Bill Hudson, Henry Kissinger, Sidney Korshak, Peter Lawford, George Lazenby, Jim Lonborg, Trini López, Tom Mankiewicz, George Montgomery, Joe Namath, Jack Nicholson, Hugh O'Brian, Ogden Mills Phipps, Roman Polanski, Alejandro Rey, Tom Selleck, Frank Sinatra, Robert Vaughn, Giovanni Volpi, Adam West and David L. Wolper.
St. John has also had amorous relationships with criminal court judge Jerome M. Becker, ski instructor Ricky Head, Olympic ski champion Brownie Barnes, plastic surgeon Steven Zax, investment broker Lenny Ross, Chicago businessman Delbert W. Coleman and Brazilian entrepreneur Francisco "Baby" Pignatari. She was engaged to Miami real estate developer Robert Blum in 1974, but called off the engagement.
She has three stepdaughters:
- Katie Wagner, born 1964 to Wagner and Marion Marshall
- Natasha Gregson, born 1970 to Richard Gregson and Natalie Wood, but raised in the Wagner/St. John household after Wood died
- Courtney Wagner, born 1974 to Wagner and Wood
In 2007, Wagner and St. John sold the Brentwood ranchette they'd lived on since 1983 for a reported $14 million and relocated full-time to Aspen.
The mutual animosity between St. John and her husband's former sister-in-law, actress Lana Wood, dates back to 1971, during which Sean Connery was concurrently involved with both women while filming "Diamonds Are Forever." This half-century feud has been underscored by two well-documented public altercations: the first occurred in September 1999, when St. John declined to be photographed with Wood during a Bond girl reunion for "Vanity Fair" magazine, and the second transpired in February 2016, when Wood interrupted an event honoring St. John in Palm Springs and confronted Wagner regarding the reopened homicide case of her sister Natalie, who tragically drowned in 1981 while yachting with Wagner off the coast of Santa Catalina Island.
- Jill St. John gallery
Filmography
- Wikipedia article: Jill St. John Filmography
External links
- Jill St. John at the Internet Movie Database
- Jill St. John at the Turner Classic Movie Database
- Video message on Cameo website
- More information is available at [ Wikipedia:Jill_St._John ]
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