On this day in 1938, actress Luana Patten was born. It’s the truth! It’s actual! And her first starring role was in Walt Disney’s Song of the South, where she got to sing “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” with co-star Bobby Driscoll. Luana’s movie career soared like Mr. Bluebird after that, and included a number of Disney films such as Fun and Fancy Free, Melody Time, and So Dear to My Heart. After five years under contract to Disney, which included acting in films, going to school on the Disney Studio Lot, and traveling on promotional tours, Luana retired from acting at age 13. When she returned to acting at age 18, she said, “I was getting by in my studies, but it was hard to break off from acting and go do my lessons. I figured the important thing was for me to get an education without any outside interference. Then if I still wanted to be an actress, I could come back to it.” Within days of her decision to return, she was signed to appear in the film Rock, Pretty Baby. Her leave helped her to avoid the difficult transition from child actress to young lady, and she would soon return to Disney in Johnny Tremain and Follow Me, Boys! Her career continued into television, with appearances in numerous series, including several episodes of The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet and Dragnet. While Luana passed away at the age of 57, she enjoyed a full career, beginning at the age of when she was discovered while playing on the beach. She got to audition for Walt Disney when he spotted her on the cover of Woman’s Home Companion and after that, everything was satisfactual.
