Lois January

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American actress (1912–2006)

title: "Lois January" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["actresses-from-texas", "american-film-actresses", "american-television-actresses", "deaths-from-alzheimer's-disease-in-california", "people-from-mcallen,-texas", "1912-births", "2006-deaths", "20th-century-american-actresses", "21st-century-american-women", "actors-from-hidalgo-county,-texas"] description: "American actress (1912–2006)" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lois_January" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American actress (1912–2006) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox person"]

FieldValue
imageThe Cocaine Fiends (1935) - Lois January.jpg
captionJanuary in The Pace That Kills (1935)
birthnameLaura Lois January
birth_date
birth_placeMcAllen, Texas, U.S.
death_date
death_placeLos Angeles, California, U.S.
occupationFilm, television actress and singer
spouseAbraham Meyer (1937–1940, divorce)
Bill Gernnant (1941 - ?, divorce)
yearsactive1932–1987
::

| image = The Cocaine Fiends (1935) - Lois January.jpg | caption = January in The Pace That Kills (1935) | birthname = Laura Lois January | birth_date = | birth_place = McAllen, Texas, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S. | occupation = Film, television actress and singer | spouse = Abraham Meyer (1937–1940, divorce) Bill Gernnant (1941 - ?, divorce) | yearsactive = 1932–1987

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Rogue_Of_The_Range_(1936)_-_Lois_January_2.jpg" caption="January in ''[[Rogue of the Range]]'' (1936)"] ::

Lois January (October 5, 1912 – August 7, 2006) was an American actress and singer who performed small roles in several B-movies during the 1930s.

Early life

Born in McAllen, Texas, as Laura Lois January, she "was prodded into show business by her Texas-born mother, Lucile Clara ( Buck), whom Lois described as "pushy". January attended Virgil Junior High School and the Marlborough School for girls. She also studied dance at the Denishawn School of Dancing and Related Arts and acted in stage productions in Los Angeles.

Career

January's first credited role was in 1933, in the short subject UM-PA. Her most famous role, however, is probably as the Emerald City manicurist in The Wizard of Oz who sings to Dorothy that "we can make a dimpled smile out of a frown". Although the character was unnamed, many fans believe it to be an incarnation of novel character Jellia Jamb.

During the 1930s, she played in numerous westerns as the heroine, usually opposite Johnny Mack Brown, Bob Steele, Tim McCoy and Bob Baker, among others. In 1935 she starred opposite Reb Russell in Arizona Bad Man, and in 1936 she starred with Brown in Rogue of the Range, and alongside Tim McCoy in Border Caballero. While under contract with Universal Pictures she continued to play heroine roles in westerns, and in 1937 she starred opposite Bob Baker in Courage of the West. The reissuing of the 1935 exploitation film The Pace That Kills (under the title Cocaine Fiends) would eventually lend January even more exposure, however limited.

January's Broadway credits include High Kickers (1941) and Yokel Boy (1939) alongside Judy Canova and Buddy Ebsen..

By the mid-1940s, her starring roles had waned but she continued to act in non-starring parts. In 1942 she was the "poster girl" for Chesterfield cigarettes. Her last acting role was in 1987, on the television movie Double Agent. During the 1980s she attended several western film festivals.

Personal life

In April 1937, January married theatrical agent Abraham Meyer. They were divorced on August 9, 1940. She later married radio producer Bill Gernnant. The couple had a daughter, Jan (born 1949).

Filmography

Death

Lois January died in Los Angeles, California of Alzheimer's disease on August 7, 2006, aged 93.

References

References

  1. [https://www.theguardian.com/news/2006/sep/04/guardianobituaries.usa Obituary], theguardian.com. Accessed May 16, 2025.
  2. [https://www.b-westerns.com/ladies17.htm Profile], b-westerns.com. Accessed May 16, 2025.
  3. [https://www.classicactresses.org/2024/01/loisjanuary.html Profile], classicactresses.org. Accessed May 16, 2025.
  4. "Cocaine Fiends". Amazon.com, Inc.
  5. "Lois January". Barnes & Noble Booksellers, Inc.
  6. (2006). "Ladies of the western : interviews with fifty-one more actresses from the silent era to the television westerns of the 1950s and 1960s". McFarland.
  7. (2016). "Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed. (2 volume set)". McFarland.
  8. "Charles January". Olympedia.
  9. (September 3, 2006). "Lois January". The Guardian.
  10. (2014). "The Wizard of Oz FAQ: All That's Left to Know About Life, According to Oz". Hal Leonard Corporation.
  11. "("Lois January" search results)".
  12. (August 9, 1940). "Actress Lois January Divorced by Agent". Oakland Tribune.
  13. (November 3, 1941). "Lois January With Aid of a Tease Sings Way Into Broadway's Heart". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle.

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