Diana Dors | |
---|---|
Born | Diana Mary Fluck 23 October 1931 |
Died | 4 May 1984 Windsor, Berkshire, England | (aged 52)
Resting place | Sunningdale Catholic Cemetery |
Other names | Diana d'Ors The Siren of Swindon The Hurricane in Mink The Blonde Bombshell |
Education | Colville House, Swindon |
Alma mater | London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art |
Occupations |
|
Years active | 1947–1984 |
Spouses | Dennis Hamilton
(m. 1951; died 1959) |
Children | 3, including Mark Dawson |
Diana Dors (born Diana Mary Fluck; 23 October 1931 – 4 May 1984) was an English actress and singer.
Dors came to public notice as a blonde bombshell, much in the style of Americans Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, and Mamie Van Doren. Dors was promoted by her first husband, Dennis Hamilton, mostly in sex film-comedies and risqué modelling. After it was revealed that Hamilton had been defrauding her, she continued to play up to her established image, and she made tabloid headlines with the parties reportedly held at her house. Later, she showed talent as a performer on TV, in recordings, and in cabaret, and gained new public popularity as a regular chat-show guest. She also gave well-regarded film performances at different points in her career.
According to film critic David Thomson, "Dors represented that period between the end of the war and the coming of Lady Chatterley in paperback, a time when sexuality was naughty, repressed, and fit to burst."[1]