Suzan Ball

Suzan Ball
Ball in 1954
Born
Susan Ball

(1934-02-03)February 3, 1934
Buffalo, New York, U.S.
DiedAugust 5, 1955(1955-08-05) (aged 21)
Beverly Hills, California, U.S.
OccupationActress
Spouse
​
(m. 1954)​
RelativesLucille Ball (cousin)
Fred Ball (cousin)

Suzan Ball (born Susan Ball; February 3, 1934 – August 5, 1955) was an American actress. She was a second cousin of fellow actress Lucille Ball. She was married to actor Richard Long. She had her leg amputated in January 1954, as a result of both a tumor and an accident she had. She died at age 21 of cancer in 1955, after a two-year battle. Some sources erroneously cited 1933 as her year of birth.

Early life

Born in Buffalo, New York, Ball was the eldest daughter of Howard Dale Ball and Marleah Frances O'Leary. When she was five, the family moved to Miami and, shortly thereafter, Kenmore, New York. In 1946, they moved to North Hollywood, where in June 1951, at 17, Ball graduated from North Hollywood High.

Personal life

Ball, aged 20, married actor Richard Long on April 11, 1954, at El Montecito Presbyterian Church in Santa Barbara. Among the 100-plus guests in attendance were fellow UI luminaries Jeff Chandler, Barbara Rush, Rock Hudson, Lori Nelson, Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh, David Janssen, Julie Adams, Hugh O'Brian, Mala Powers, and Mary Castle.

Illness and death

In 1953, doctors diagnosed Ball with cancer when she developed tumors on her right leg, forcing her to use crutches. Because of the cancer, doctors amputated her right leg on January 12, 1954. On August 5, 1955, five days after having been released from the City of Hope National Medical Center following more than three weeks of unsuccessful treatment, Ball, at age 21, died at 4:35 pm at her home in Beverly Hills.

She is interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.

Legacy

Dick Powell and June Allyson co-chaired the establishment of the Suzan Ball Memorial Fund in March 1956. Ten other entertainers and two states' governors co-sponsored the effort to raise $1 million via a national fund drive for "increasing facilities for a cancer center" under the auspices of City of Hope Medical Center.

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1952 Aladdin and His Lamp Dancing Girl Uncredited
The World in His Arms Uncredited
Untamed Frontier Lottie
Yankee Buccaneer Countess Margarita La Raguna
1953 City Beneath the Sea Venita
East of Sumatra Minyora
War Arrow Avis
1955 Chief Crazy Horse Black Shawl (Little Fawn) (final film role)

References

  1. ↑ "California, County Birth and Death Records, 1800-1994", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QP32-B1FW : Sun Oct 15 16:34:46 UTC 2023), Entry for Suzan Ball Long and Howard Dale Ball, 5 Aug 1955.
  2. ↑ "United States Census, 1940", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VTZF-RSM : Tue Nov 28 15:06:29 UTC 2023), Entry for Howard Dale Ball and Marleah F Ball, 1940.
  3. ↑ Wilson, Earl (September 6, 1952). "It Happened Last Night in Little Old New York", Press of Atlantic City. pg. 10. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Susan Ball Dies of Cancer at Age 22", The Los Angeles Times. August 6, 1955. pg. 1. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
  5. ↑ Wilson, Earl (September 6, 1952). "It Happened Last Night in Little Old New York", Press of Atlantic City. pg. 10. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
  6. 1 2 "Obituaries: Suzan Ball". Variety. August 10, 1955. p. 45. ProQuest 1032365406. Suzan Ball, 22, screen actress, died Aug. 5 in Beverly Hills after a long fight against cancer. She had recently been released from the City of Hope Medical Center where she had undergone 25 days of diagnostic study. Born in Buffalo, Miss Ball came to California at the age of 12 and was signed by Universal-International in 1951. Her first prominent role was in 'East of Sumatra' in 1952 and it was in this picture that her troubles began. During a dance routine she injured her right knee which later developed into cancer and caused the amputation of her leg. Undaunted, Miss Ball learned the use of an artificial leg and continued her career until the cancer grew out of control.
  7. ↑ Parish, James Robert (2001). The Hollywood Book of Death: The Bizarre, Often Sordid, Passings of More than 125 American Movie and TV Idols, McGraw Hill. pg. 149; ISBN 9780809222278
  8. ↑ "Suzan Ball (Continued From First Page)", The Los Angeles Times. August 6, 1955. pg. 2. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
  9. 1 2 Hopper, Hedda (November 24, 1951). "Buffalo-Born Girl Starting Movie Career", Buffalo Courier-Express, pg. 6. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
  10. 1 2 "New Faces ... Going Places; Introducing: Suzan Ball", Detroit Free Press. January 12, 1953. pg. 28. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
  11. 1 2 3 Associated Press (August 6, 1955). "Actress Suzan Ball Is Dead; Pluck Won a Nation's Heart; Born in Buffalo", The Buffalo News, pg. 3. Retrieved November 25, 2023.(subscription required)
  12. ↑ Thomas, Bob (March 8, 1952). "Girl Gets Lead in Second Film; Susan Ball in High School Last June", The Tampa Times. Accessed August 11, 2025.(subscription required)
  13. ↑ Crivello, Kirk (1988). Fallen Angels : The Lives and Untimely Deaths of Fourteen Hollywood Beauties. Secaucus, NJ: Citadel Press. pg. 156; ISBN 0-8065-1096-X
  14. ↑ Peschke, Michael, ed. (2006). Enciclopedia Internacional de Pseudónimos: Nombres Verdaderos. Parte I. München: Saur/Gale. pg. 167. ISBN 9783598249617.
  15. ↑ "Actress Suzan Ball Loses Leg to Combat Cancer: Starlet Jinxed by Injury and Year-Long Fight Gives Up Limb She Fractured Again". Los Angeles Times. January 13, 1954. p. A1. ProQuest 166580830.
  16. ↑ Wilson, Scott (September 16, 2016). Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed. McFarland. ISBN 9781476625997.
  17. ↑ "Set Up Suzan Ball Fund". Variety. March 21, 1956. p. 2. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
  18. ↑ "Suzan Ball's Death Spurs Cancer Fight", The Miami Herald. May 20, 1956. pg. 28E. Retrieved November 25, 2023.