Born in Seattle, Frances Farmer studied drama at the University of Washington, Seattle. In 1935, she went to Hollywood where she secured a seven-year contract with Paramount. In 1943, she was wrongfully declared 'mentally incompetent' and committed to a series of asylums and public mental hospitals, where eventually she received a lobotomy. After eleven years she was released, and spent some of the remaining years of her life tending the parents who had committed her and taking odd jobs. She appeared on This Is Your Life, and ran her own TV show, Frances Farmer Presents for six years. She died of cancer in 1970.
Too Many Parents (1936): $100/week

Farmer was the subject of a song "Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle" on the album "In-Utero" by Nirvana. Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love's daughter, Frances Bean Cobain, was not named after Frances Farmer contrary to popular belief. Frances Farmer My Hero - "The Unauthorized Biography" - is a rock opera based on the life of the tragic screen star. Stephen Cush, a member of the British group "The Men They Couldn't Hang" wrote a song called "Lobotomy Gets 'Em Home" in memory of what was done to Frances Farmer after he saw the biographical film Frances. The song appears on the album "Silvertown" (on Silvertone Records - now deleted). Singer Patterson Hood included the song "Frances Farmer" in his 2004 album "Killers and Stars" which features a Farmer portrait on the cover artwork. Culture Club and Everything But The Girl both wrote songs about her, "The Medal Song" and "Ugly Little Dreams" respectively. French-Canadian singer Mylène Farmer chose her stage name in homage to Frances, and her first hit song, "Maman a tort", in 1984 was about the actress. Her rise and tragic fall were documented in the movie Frances. Jessica Lange played Frances Farmer and received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for her performance. Is portrayed by Susan Blakely in Will There Really Be a Morning? She inspired several literature works: "God's Peculiar Care" (1991) by 'Patrick Roscoe (from the title of Farmer's lost biographical novel), the thriller "The Canvas Prison" (1982) by Gordon DeMarco and the collection of short stories "Las fotografías de Frances Farmer" (1992) by Peruvian author Iván Thays. Her life is also profiled in the A&E documentary "Frances Farmer: Paradise Lost" (2001) directed by Lawrence Williams. The actress was the subject of several theater plays: "The Frances Farmer Story" by Sebastian Stuart, "Golden Girl" by Peter Occhiogrosso and "Saint Frances of Hollywood" by Sally Clark. For her very special tribute appearance on "This Is Your Life" Frances was given an automobile -- an Edsel.