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Elizabeth June Thornburg
February 26, 1921
Battle Creek, Michigan
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In 1974, Bettu Hutton began work as a cook and housekeeper in a Rhode Island rectory.
"I think things are going to go right for me again. I'm not old. I'm old enough, but I photograph young, thank God, and I still have a public. I still get fan mail."
-- Betty Hutton
Betty Hutton
Born in Battle Creek, Michigan, and relocated to Detroit when she was two years old when her father abandoned the family. Her mother ran a speakeasy where Betty and her sister Marion entertained customers, until into their early teens. Lived in near poverty during these years. While still in high school, Vincent Lopez spotted her doing a guest spot at a night club and signed her. She toured with the band, did radio spots and vaudeville turns. This led to featured roles in several Broadway revues and then a role in the Merman musical "Panama Hattie". Paramount then signed her in 1941. In 1952, she left Hollywood to concentrate on stage and television.
A 9th-grade dropout, Betty Hutton went back to school in the 1970s with the help of a Catholic priest, Father Peter Maguire. She earned a bachelors degree from Salve Regina University and was later awarded an honorary Ph.D. She taught theater for a time at the University. She later moved to Palm Springs, California to be closer to her children.
"I don't even have many friends anymore because I backed away from them. When things went wrong for me I didn't want them to have any part of my trouble." -- Betty Hutton
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