Jeanette Loff

Jeanette Loff (October 9, 1906-August 4, 1942) was an American motion picture actress from Orofino, Idaho. Loff was blue-eyed with golden hair and was of Scandinavian heritage. Her mother was Norwegian and her father was Danish. The family name was once Lov and as a youth Jeanette was called Jan.

Jeanette is listed in the Minnesota census of 1910. Later, the family moved to Canada so that her father might continue his career as a violinist. At the age of 11 Loff played the title role in the play "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs". At 16 she was a lyric soprano and had the leading role in an operetta, "Treasure Hunters".

When she was seventeen the family moved to Portland, Oregon, where Loff completed her musical education at the Ellison and White Conservatory of Music. She played the organ in theaters in Portland as Jan Lov. Sometimes she appeared singing theater prologs during vacations from school.

Her motion picture career began with an uncredited role in the silent film version of Uncle Tom's Cabin. When she was signed to a contract by Cecil B. DeMille, the producer would not let her name be anything but Jeanette Loff. She soon found that as an actress she was given ingenue roles in almost every instance. This enticed her to take a break from her movie career and perform on stage. Her last screen role before she briefly retired was in the Paul Whiteman revue, "The King of Jazz" (1930). She remained under contract to Universal Pictures for some months but made no additional films. She went to New York City and appeared in musical plays and with orchestras.

Loff returned to films with a role as a country girl in "Mating Time". Her final motion picture performances came in "Hideout","Flirtation", and "Million Dollar Baby", all from 1934.

Loff was married twice. She was married to Harry Roesbloom, from whom she was divorced in 1929. Later she wed wholesale liquor dealer Bert Friedlob.

Jeanette Loff died of ammonia poisoning in Los Angeles, California in 1942. She succumbed in a Hollywood hospital. Beverly Hills, California police believe she ingested ammonia either accidentally or intentionally. She was buried in the Forest Lawn Cemetery. Loff was thirty-five years old.

References

*Albert Lea, Minnesota Evening Tribune, "Hollywood Sights and Sounds", January 9, 1934, Page 9.
*Chillicothe, Missouri Constitution, "Theater Organist Shines As Screen Beauty", July 14, 1928, Page 4.
*Los Angeles Times, "Jeanette Loff", August 8, 1942, Page 7.
*New York Times, "Miss Loff Dies Of Poison", August 6, 1942, Page 22.

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