Chris Noel at Brian's Drive-In Theater

biography

Born in West Palm Beach, Florida, on July 2, 1941, actress and radio personality Chris Noel started her career as a successful teenage model in Florida in the 1950s and then moved to New York following high school in 1959. While modeling in New York, Noel tried out for and became a cheerleader for the New York Giants in the early 1960s. Saving her money, in 1963 she relocated to Hollywood to try her hand at acting and soon landed a role in the Allied Artists comedy/drama Soldier in the Rain (1963; with Steve McQueen and Jackie Gleason). In 1964 she signed a contract with MGM; her first feature for the studio was a supporting role in the comedy Honeymoon Hotel (1964; with Robert Goulet and Nancy Kwan). Noel became an item with actor Hugh O'Brian, whom she met when acting alongside him in a stage production of Mr. Roberts, and the couple dated off and on for a couple of years. In the mid 1960s, she enjoyed quite a bit of success as an actress, landing starring roles in Get Yourself a College Girl (1964; with Mary Ann Mobley and Nancy Sinatra), Beach Ball (1965; with Edd Byrnes and Aron Kincaid), and Wild Wild Winter (1966; with Gary Clarke, Suzie Kaye, and Don Edmonds).

Mid 1960s cheesecake shots of Chris Noel

Wanting to go on a USO tour with her then-boyfriend, singer Jack Jones, initially Noel was turned down because she didn't have an immediately recognizable name. Instead, she applied for a deejay position with Armed Forces Radio in 1966 and got the job. Her radio show, A Date with Chris, was a big hit with military personnel serving in Vietnam and all across the globe. Noel toured Vietnam extensively and was often near battle lines. She met Green Beret Captain Ty Herrington, a paratrooper, on a tour of Vietnam in late 1967, and the couple married in January 1969. Sadly, Herrington, who also had a career as a recording artist, took his own life Nashville in December 1969. Shortly after the death of her husband, Noel's tenure on Armed Forces Radio ended. In the early 1970s, with no films on the horizon, she left Hollywood to rebuild her career in New York but had no luck.

the films of chris noel

Get Yourself a College Girl (1964)

Chris Noel, Dorothy Neumann, Mary Ann Mobley, Joan O'Brien, and Nancy Sinatra

From MGM's musical comedy Get Yourself a College Girl. LEFT: As Sue Ann Mobley. RIGHT: With Dorothy Neumann, Mary Ann Mobley, Joan O'Brien, and Nancy Sinatra

Beach Ball (1965)

Paramount's beach movie release Beach Ball capitalized on American International's success with its Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello vehicles. Photos include costar Edd Byrnes

Girl Happy (1965)

LEFT: From the MGM musical Girl Happy with Elvis Presley, shot in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. RIGHT: Noel as Betsy

Wild Wild Winter (1966)

Gary Clarke, Chris Noel, and Steve Franken

LEFT: With Steve Franken in the Universal comedy Wild Wild Winter. RIGHT: On the set with Gary Clarke and Steve Franken

Password (1961-1967 CBS TV Series)

Noel appeared on Password during the game show's armed forces week in March 1967

The Glory Stompers (1968)

Chris Noel, Jody McCrea, Astrid Warner, and Gary Wood

From AIP's biker film The Glory Stompers with Jody McCrea, Astrid Warner, and Gary Wood

For Singles Only (1968)

Chris Noel, John Saxon, and Mary Ann Mobley

From the Columbia comedy romp For Singles Only. LEFT: With John Saxon and Mary Ann Mobley. CENTER: Noel as Lily. RIGHT: With Peter Mark Richman

The Tormentors (1971)

From the low-budget Nazi biker flick The Tormentors

chris noel today

The unpopularity of the Vietnam war and her association with it rendered Chris Noel's acting career nearly over. She landed a big role in the low-budget shocker The Tormentors (1971; with Anthony Eisley and James Craig), but the filmmakers ran into cash flow problems and the film sat on the shelf for 15 years, finally being released to video in 1986. Noel married a wealthy Texan in the 1970s, but the marriage folded after a few years, as did a third marriage. She began a comeback in the early 1980s with a role in the made-for-TV film Detour to Terror (1980; with O.J. Simpson and Anne Francis), but anxiety brought on by a serious bout with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) resulting from her war experiences landed her in a psychiatric hospital for an extended stay. Eventually, she gave up her acting career ambitions and has devoted her time and energies to helping homeless veterans, founding Cease Fire House, a Florida homeless shelter for veterans, in 1993, along with her fourth husband, Florida lawyer Reid Moore. Since the 1980s, Chris Noel has written several books about her years as an entertainer and her war experiences.

filmography

FILM
Sin of Innocence (1986) with Bill Bixby, Dee Wallace, Dermot Mulroney, and James Naughton
Cease Fire (1985) with Don Johnson
Detour to Terror (1980) with O.J. Simpson, Anne Francis, Arte Johnson, and Lorenzo Lamas
The Tormentors (1971) with James Craig and Anthony Eisley
For Singles Only (1968) with John Saxon, Mary Ann Mobley, Lana Wood, Peter Mark Richman, Ann Elder, Marty Ingels, and Hortense Petra
The Glory Stompers (1968) with Dennis Hopper, Jody McCrea, and Jock Mahoney
Wild Wild Winter (1966) with Gary Clarke, Don Edmonds, Suzie Kaye, Steve Franken, and Dick Miller
Beach Ball (1965) with Edd Byrnes, Robert Logan, Aron Kincaid, Don Edmonds, Brenda Benet, and Gail Gilmore
Joy in the Morning (1965) with Richard Chamberlain, Yvette Mimieux, Arthur Kennedy, Oskar Homolka, Sidney Blackmer, and Virginia Gregg
Girl Happy (1965) with Elvis Presley, Shelley Fabares, Harold J. Stone, Gary Crosby, Joby Baker, Nita Talbot, Mary Ann Mobley, Jackie Coogan, and Gail Gilmore
Get Yourself a College Girl (1964) with Mary Ann Mobley, Joan O'Brien, Nancy Sinatra, Chad Everett, and Hortense Petra
Diary of a Bachelor (1964) with Joe Silver, Dagne Crane, and Dom DeLuise
Honeymoon Hotel (1964) with Robert Goulet, Nancy Kwan, Robert Morse, Jill St. John, Keenan Wynn, Anne Helm, Elsa Lanchester, Bernard Fox, Elvia Allman, and Sandra Gould
Soldier in the Rain (1963) with Jackie Gleason, Steve McQueen, Tuesday Weld, Tom Poston, Ed Nelson, and Adam West

TELEVISION GUEST APPEARANCES
B.L. Stryker, episode Blues for Buder, originally aired May 15, 1989
China Beach, episode Vets, originally aired March 15, 1989
CHiPs, episode 11-99: Officer Needs Help, originally aired January 18, 1981
Occasional Wife, episode Pilot, originally aired September 13, 1966
My Mother the Car, episode Many Happy No-Returns, originally aired December 21, 1965
My Three Sons, episode Marriage and Stuff, originally aired December 16, 1965
Perry Mason, episode The Case of the Silent Six, originally aired November 21, 1965
The Smothers Brothers Show, episode I Wouldn't Miss My Own Funeral for Anything, originally aired November 5, 1965
Burke's Law, episode Who Killed the Grand Piano?, originally aired April 28, 1965
Burke's Law, episode Who Killed Mr. Colby in Ladies' Lingerie?, originally aired March 3, 1965
Bewitched, episode Love Is Blind, originally aired December 10, 1964
The Lieutenant, episode Between Music and Laughter, originally aired January 25, 1964
The Eleventh Hour, episode Try to Keep Alive Until Next Tuesday, originally aired April 17, 1963

chris noel links

Cease Fire House Homeless Shelter
Chris Noel founded this homeless shelter in 1993 and works tirelessly to keep the shelter open to provide food, clothing, shelter, transportation, counseling and employment opportunities for veterans. You may make donations through this website.

Glamour Girls of the Silver Screen: Chris Noel
Possibly the most detailed biography of Chris Noel on the Internet, visit the Glamour Girls website for a host of information and photos.

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This page premiered June 26, 2012.
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Chris Noel

(b. July 2, 1941)