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 Biography 
Joi Lansing was born Joyce Wassmansdoff in Salt Lake City,  Utah  on
  April  6,  1928.  Joi  was  a  young lady who developed, physically,
  early as a teen. Because of her striking good looks,  she  began  to
  model  and  was  extremely successful throughout the forties. It was
  only natural that her physical assets,  eventually,  landed  her  on
  the  silver  screen.  Joi's  first go at films occurred in 1948 with
  roles  as,  what  else,  a  model,  in  THE  COUNTERFEITERS,   JULIA
  MISBEHAVES,  and  EASTER  PARADE.  She  was 20 years old. Her acting
  wasn't exactly polished in the beginning, but the  producers  didn't
  care.  Joi  was  hired  because  of  her  beauty. The following year
  brought more of the same with uncredited parts in films  as  nothing
  more  than  a show piece. Joi took a hiatus from films in 1950 while
  she concentrated on her modeling career. She  returned  to  the  big
  screen,  in 1951, to play minor roles, but this time it was a little
  better. She played Susan Matthews and Marilyn  Turner  in  FBI  GIRL
  and  ON  THE  RIVIERA,  respectively.  At  least she had names to go
  along with her characters. Then it was back to  being  a  showpiece.
  In  1952,  she  played  a uncredited role in one of the most popular
  movies of all time, SINGIN' IN THE RAIN. Another minor role  as  the
  Maxim  Girl  in THE MERRY WIDOW followed. Joi began to take on roles
  in television in 1955 when she  appeared  in  one  episode  of  "The
  Adventures  of  Wild  Bill  Hickok"  and  one  of  "I Love Lucy" the
  following year. In 1955, Joi landed  a  recurring  role  as  Shirley
  Swanson  in  the  TV  series, "Love That Bob". It was this show that
  proved to all that Joi could, indeed, act and act well.  Because  of
  this  series, Joi began to get a few more substantial parts in films
  such as THE BRAVE ONE, HOT CARS, and  SO  YOU  THINK  THE  GRASS  IS
  GREENER,  all  in  1956.  Then,  it  was  back to bit roles. For the
  balance of the fifties she continued to  appear  in  B  movies  with
  less  than  quality  roles. After appearing in WHO WAS THAT LADY? in
  1960, Joi landed the part of Goldie in  the  "Klondike"  TV  series.
  However,  most  viewers  remember her as the wife of Lester Flatt in
  "The Beverly Hillbillies",  which  she  appeared  on  and  off  from
  1965-1968.  As Gladys Flatt, her beauty even surpassed that of Ellie
  May played by Donna Douglas. Her film career was  winding  down.  In
  1967,  Joi  appeared  as  Boots  Malone  in HILLBILLIES IN A HAUNTED
  HOUSE. This B movie went nowhere. In 1972, Joi filmed in  two  final
  films,  BIGFOOT and SUPERMAN. Sadly, she never saw them make the big
  screen. Joi had been diagnosed with breast cancer. She died  at  the
  age  of  44  on August 7, 1972 in Santa Monica, California. Her last
  two films were, ultimately, released the following year. As for  her
  film career, she deserved better.
  Biography courtesy of the Internet Movie Database (www.imdb.com).
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