Arlene Francis

Arlene Francis was an American actress, radio and television host, and game show panelist. Born in Boston in 1907, she moved to New York as a child and later attended Finch College. She built a varied entertainment career there, performing in many local and off-Broadway plays and 25 Broadway productions through 1975. Her film debut came in Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932), and she later appeared in All My Sons (1948), One, Two, Three (1961), The Thrill of It All (1963), and Fedora (1978). On radio she hosted What's My Name? and Blind Date. She became best known as a panelist on What's My Line? from 1950 to 1975. A pioneer for women in television, she hosted the daytime magazine Home from 1954 to 1957 and was the first woman to host Tonight. She also wrote books, including an autobiography and a cookbook, and died in 2001.