
Acting
Lois January
Also Known As: Laura Lois January
Birth Date
October 5, 1912
Death Date
August 7, 2006
(passed away at 93)
Place of Birth
McAllen, Texas, USA
Popularity
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Biography
Lois January was an American actress who performed small roles in several B-movies during the 1930s. Lois also had a secondary part in the Wizard Of Oz, towards the end of the movie, holding a Siamese cat in her arms. Toto jumps out of the basket of the hot air balloon that was supposed to take him, Dorothy and the Wizard away from the Land of Oz. January's first credited role was in 1933, in the film UM-PA. Her most famous role, however, is probably as the Emerald City manicurist in The Wizard of Oz who sings to Dorothy that "we can make a dimpled smile out of a frown". Although the character was unnamed, many fans believe it to be an incarnation of novel character Jellia Jamb. During the 1930s she played in numerous westerns as the heroine, usually opposite Johnny Mack Brown, Bob Steele, Tim McCoy and Bob Baker, among others. In 1935 she starred opposite Reb Russell in Arizona Badman, and in 1936 she starred with Brown in Rogue of the Range, and alongside Tim McCoy in Border Caballero. While under contract with Universal Pictures she continued to play heroine roles in westerns, and in 1937 she starred opposite Bob Baker in Courage of the West. The reissuing of the 1935 exploitation film The Pace That Kills (under the title Cocaine Fiends) would eventually lend January even more exposure, however limited. January's Broadway credits include High Kickers (1941) and Yokel Boy (1939). By the mid-1940s, her starring roles had waned but she continued to act in non-starring parts. In 1942 she was the "poster girl" for Chesterfield cigarettes. From 1960 through 1987 she played numerous small roles on television, to include roles on My Three Sons and Marcus Welby, M.D. Her last acting role was in 1987, on the television movie Double Agent. During the 1980s she attended several western film festivals.
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My Three Sons
1960 • 2 episodes

Marcus Welby, M.D.
Mrs. Sloan
1969 • 1 episode

Father Knows Best
Mrs. Martin
1954 • 1 episode

Double Agent
Dowager
1987

The Richard Pryor Special?
Older Woman
1977

My Darling Daughters' Anniversary
Nurse
1973

Lightnin' Crandall
Sheila Shannon
1937

The Little Shepherd Of Kingdom Come
Mrs. Dean
1961

Let's Talk It Over
Alice
1934

Let’s Be Ritzy
Stenographer
1934

Three Cheers for the Girls
Brunette in Dressing Room (uncredited)
1943

Uncertain Lady
Maid (uncredited)
1934

Courage of the West
Beth Andrews
1937

Stolen Harmony
Girl in Sextette (uncredited)
1935

Rogue of the Range
Stella Lamb
1936

Moonlight on the Range
Wanda Brooks
1937

Border Caballero
Goldie Harris
1936

One Rainy Afternoon
Mr. Perelin's Secretary
1936

The Pace That Kills
Jane Bradford
1935

By Candlelight
Ann
1933