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Born Angeline Brown, she moved to California after her family left North
Dakota in 1942, aged 11.
A young beauty contest winner, Angie won the Sixth Annual Bill of Rights Contest
while a senior at Burbank’s Bellamarine Jefferson High.
It was her success in beauty contests that made her give up her childhood dreams
of becoming a writer. After college, she worked as a secretary for Burbank
Airplane Parts Factory for several years.
Angie acquired her professional name Angie Dickinson when she married the
college football star, Gene Dickinson. From 1966 to 1980 however, she was to be
married to composer Burt Bacharach.
In 1953, she entered the local Miss America contest, one day before the
deadline, and took 2nd place. In August the same year, as one of five NBC beauty
contest winners, she appeared in various variety shows on the network.
Her first bit-part in a film arrived in the Warner Bros musical 'Lucky Me' in
1954, and she spent the next few years in B-movie westerns, and television,
where she enjoyed some success in the show 'Millionaire', in 1956.
When Howard Hawks asked her to play the female lead in 'Rio Bravo', her big
break had finally come. The role allowed Dickinson to exhibit her celebrated
legs, which, in what is now a common practice, were insured by Lloyds of London.
Her feature films range from the well-known 'Sabrina', 'Point Blank' and 'The
Killers' (in which she played the moll to Ronald Reagan’s gangster) to the
forgettable - 'Big Bad Mama' and 'The Sins of Rachel Cade'.
In 1974, with her career flagging, she concentrated on television, starring in
the adventure series 'Police Woman', which lasted four seasons. Other TV
appearances have included stints in 'Overboard', 'Wild Palms' and 'Hollywood
Wives'.
More recently she appeared in 'Pay it Forward', in which she stars alongside
Kevin Spacey and Helen Hunt.
Source:
thebiographychannel.co.uk
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