 virginia mayo (born virginia clara jones; november 30, 1920 â january 17, 2005) was an american actress and dancer. best known for a series of comedic films with danny kaye, mayo was warner brothers biggest box office money maker in the late 1940s. she also co-starred in the 1946 oscar-winning movie the best years of our lives. ==early life and career== born virginia clara jones in st. louis, missouri, she was the daughter of newspaper reporter luke and wife martha henrietta (nÃ©e rautenstrauch) jones. her family had roots running back to the earliest days of st. louis, including great-great-great grandfather captain james piggott, who founded east st. louis, illinois in 1797. young virginia's aunt operated an acting school in the st. louis area, which she began attending at age six. she was also tutored by a series of dancing instructors engaged by her aunt. following her graduation from soldan high school in 1937, jones landed her first professional acting and dancing jobs at the st. louis municipal opera and in an act with six other girls at the hotel jefferson. impressed with her ability, her brother-in-law, vaudeville performer andy mayo, recruited her to appear in his act "the mayo brothers". jones toured the american vaudeville circuit for three years serving as ringmaster and comedic foil for "pansy the horse" as the mayo brothers performed in a horse suit. in 1941 jones, now known by the stage name virginia mayo, got another career break as she appeared on broadway with eddie cantor in banjo eyes.http://www.ibdb.com/production.php?id=1150 ==hollywood stardom== in the early 1940s virginia mayo's talent and striking beauty came to the attention of movie mogul [[
1920_births 2005_deaths 20th-century_American_actresses Actresses_from_St._Louis,_Missouri American_Roman_Catholics American_film_actresses American_television_actresses California_Republicans Cardiovascular_disease_deaths_in_California Converts_to_Roman_Catholicism Deaths_from_congestive_heart_failure Missouri_Republicans Vaudeville_performers