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Lois Hall

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Lois Hall
Born(1926-08-22)August 22, 1926
Grand Rapids, Minnesota, U.S.
DiedDecember 21, 2006(2006-12-21) (aged 80)
Beverly Hills, California, U.S.
Years active1948–2006
SpouseMaurice Willows (m. 1953)
Children3

Lois Grace Hall, (August 22, 1926 – December 21, 2006) was an American actress and, more often known as Lois Willows after her marriage, an active member of the Bahá'í Faith communities of California and Hawaii.

Early years

Hall was born on August 22, 1926, in Grand Rapids, Minnesota.[1] She grew up initially in Pengilly, Minnesota, where he father worked as a salesman for a tile factory.[2] Initially, her father moved to Long Beach, California, where he worked as a realtor circa 1935-40,[3] and then whole family moved there in Hall's childhood and went on to attend Woodrow Wilson High School as it was called then.[4] That's also where an art teacher connected her with a chance to work on set design and was connected with the Pasadena Playhouse which was her entré into theatre and seeing actors. She eventually gained a scholarship there.[1]

Career

Hall's television appearances included Studio One, The Cisco Kid, Episode 112 of The Lone Ranger, Adventures of Superman, Highway Patrol, Marcus Welby, M.D., the penultimate episode of Little House on the Prairie and Star Trek: The Next Generation. She also guest-starred in TV series such as CSI, Cold Case, Six Feet Under, Nip/Tuck, and The Unit.

Hall's film debut came in Every Girl Should Be Married (1948).[1] She also appeared in Love Happy (1949), My Blue Heaven (1950), Carrie (1952), Night Raiders (1952), Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954) in small roles, as well as in starring roles in pictures like Daughter of the Jungle (1949) and Pirates of the High Seas (1950). She is perhaps best known for her supporting role as Sister Constance in Kenneth Branagh's 1991 drama Dead Again. She was also seen in the hit films Gone in 60 Seconds (2000) and Flightplan (2005).

Personal life

She was a member of the Baháʼí Faith and served in a variety of capacities across more than forty years. Her parents' home address in 1950[4] was visible hosting occasional Bahá'í meetings from the summer of 1948,[5] though Hall herself was living in Los Angeles by 1950.[6] Hall was herself visible giving talks on the religion by 1951.[7] In 1953, Hall married Maurice Sheppard “Maury” Willows Jr.,[8] Former state police chief Robert B. Powers represented the Los Angeles Bahá'í Spiritual Assembly for performing the service. In 1957 the couple hosted the Bahá'í wedding of Lisa Montell at their then home in Benedict Canyon, Los Angeles.[9] By about 1960, the couple was visible in Hawaii promoting the religion and living life.[10] In 1961 they attended the Bahá'í national convention for the US in Chicago,[11] and also attended the first Bahá'í World Congress which was held in London in 1963.[12] In 1964 they served on the spiritual assembly of Honolulu.[13] From about 1968 and onward, Maurice and the couple were visible in southern California again,[14] where again she had some acting jobs. In 1984 the couple taught a session of classes at the Bosch Bahá'í School.[15] By the 1990s Hall was known as a long-serving secretary of the Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baháʼís of Los Angeles.[16] She also worked with the Human Relations Council for the City of Los Angeles, planning cross-cultural events and helping arrange after-school tutoring and enrichment classes for at-risk young people. In 1994 the Bahá'ís of the Los Angeles area gave them a party in recognition of their many years of service.[17] The way they handled their informal meetings to introduce the religion to people in their homes in Hawaii and California was lauded by many individuals, including Judge Dorothy Wright Nelson and her husband, and by the Universal House of Justice, the elected institution governing the worldwide Baháʼí community.[17]

Her husband, Maurice Willows, died in 1995; the couple had three daughters.[18]

Hall died in Beverly Hills, California,[19] of a heart attack and stroke on December 21, 2006, aged 80.[20]

Partial filmography

References

  1. ^ a b c Magers, Boyd; Fitzgerald, Michael G. (July 2004). Westerns Women: Interviews with 50 Leading Ladies of Movie and Television Westerns from the 1930s to the 1960s. McFarland. pp. 104–109. ISBN 978-0-7864-2028-5. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  2. ^ "Lois G Hall US United States Census". US Federal Government. Apr 18, 1930. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via FamilySearch.org.(registration required)
  3. ^ "Ralph Hall US Census". US Federal Government. Apr 18, 1940. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via FamilySearch.org.(registration required)
  4. ^ a b "Wilson's Lois Hall cops leads, looking to firm film future". Long Beach Independent. Long Beach, CA. Aug 6, 1950. p. 36. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ * "Baha'i World Faith". Long Beach Press-Telegram. Long Beach, CA. Jun 5, 1948. p. 5. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
    • "Baha'i World Faith". Long Beach Independent. Long Beach, CA. Jan 1, 1949. p. 6. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
    • "Baha'i World Faith". Long Beach Independent. Long Beach, CA. Jan 7, 1950. p. 7. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
    • "Baha'i World Faith". Long Beach Press-Telegram. Long Beach, CA. Dec 22, 1951. p. 7. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
    • "Baha'i Faith plans third Religion Day". Long Beach Independent. Long Beach, CA. Jan 19, 1952. p. 10. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Lois G Hall • United States Census". US Federal Government. 3 April 1950. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via FamilySearch.org.(registration required)
  7. ^ * "Baha'is". The Independent. Long Beach, California. 11 Aug 1951. p. 9. Retrieved Nov 21, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
    • "Actress to speak". Long Beach Independent. Long Beach, CA. Aug 7, 1952. p. 28. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Lois Grace Hall Marriage • California, County Marriages, 1850-1952". Los Angeles County Government. Jan 23, 1953. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via FamilySearch.org.(registration required)
  9. ^ "Film pair to wed". The Courier-News. Bridgewater, NJ. Mar 30, 1957. p. 2. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ * ""Has the Promised One returned?"". The Honolulu Advertiser. Honolulu, HI. Aug 11, 1960. p. 6. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Going and Coming". The Honolulu Advertiser. Honolulu, HI. May 5, 1961. p. 20. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Isle Baha'i Faith group going to London Meet". The Honolulu Advertiser. Honolulu, HI. Mar 16, 1963. p. 7. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "New Hawaiian local assemblies". Baha'i News. No. 404. Nov 1964. p. 9. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  14. ^ *"Founder of Baha'is to be honored". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, CA. Nov 11, 1968. p. 124. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Baha'i Schools - winter sessions". The American Bahá'í. October 1984. p. 9. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  16. ^ * "Honors". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. 30 May 1992. p. 236. Retrieved Nov 21, 2021.
  17. ^ a b Alan Eyerly (Nov 23, 1994). "Willowses feted for long service". The American Bahá'í. p. 13. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  18. ^ "Willows, Maurice". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, CA. Dec 23, 1995. p. 28. Retrieved May 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ Willis, John; Monush, Barry (May 2010). Screen World 2007. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 414. ISBN 978-1-55783-729-5. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  20. ^ "Lois Hall, 80; actress' film and TV career spanned 57 years". Los Angeles Times. 5 January 2007. Archived from the original on 7 January 2009. Retrieved 10 September 2016.
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