american actress ann jillian began her career as a child actress in the 60s best known for her
role as the sultry cassie cranston on the 1980s sitcom it's a living jillian has faced plenty
of ups and downs during her time in hollywood most recently the star said she's blessed to be
a cancer survivor as a child star she was given her stage name by walt disney before starring in
the 1961 movie babes in toyland jillian grew up in the public eye and managed to maintain
a successful career as she went on to star in the tv series it's a living from 1980 to 86.
unfortunately in 1985 she was faced with a cancer diagnosis at age 35. as a sign of her strength of
character and resilience she fought the cancer and won join facts first to take a look at the
interesting career of anne jillian and what she has to say about her life as a sex symbol
anne jillian's friendship with ruda lee canadian american actress and dancer of lithuanian descent
ruda lee appeared as one of the brides in the musical seven brides for seven brothers she had
roles in films including billy wilder's crime drama witness for the prosecution
and stanley donon's musical comedy funny face lee guest starred on many tv series and was
also featured on a number of game shows she also had a strong relationship with
jillian when asked about their friendship jillian labeled them as lithuanian sisters
they both went to the same parish and shared many of the same friends jillian explained lee
was a supportive and dear friend considering their industry it's common that people who work together
simply separate and move on to other projects but this wasn't the case for jillian and lee
after the memorial of dick van patten the two made a promise to each other they would always
find ways to get together and remain close they've remained loyal friends for years
and jillian opened up about walt disney giving her a stage name considering how everyone loves
the legacy of disney it's no surprise ann jillian describes her time with him as a wonderful memory
she went on to confirm that the rumor of him giving jillian her stage name is correct
jillian played little bo peep in the walt disney version of babes in toyland
after being cast disney invited gillian and her mother to his office her maiden name was
anne jura nazeda disney explained to her mother that while she had a beautiful name they'd like
to propose something to her disney thought her name might be too difficult for some to pronounce
and he felt she was going to have a long career as an actress so he wanted to think of a professional
name for her hey if you're enjoying this video be sure to give it a like and subscribe for more
aunt jillian wasn't bothered by being viewed as a sex symbol as an adult angelian starred
in the tv series it's a living the show which aired from 1980 to 1989 followed a
group of waitresses and a pianist who work at a fancy restaurant at the top of a skyscraper
the show quickly made people view jillian as a sex symbol while this may have been an issue for some
gillian claims it didn't bother her she explained that when you look at the history of the industry
women like gene harlow and marilyn monroe were recognized as blonde bombshells or sex symbols
jillian saw it as the public appreciating her looks simply put it was fine by her she said
that when every girl puts on her makeup and is nicely dressed in something that truly looks
the best on her they go out with the intention of accentuating their positives and feeling good but
jillian isn't naive and knows that over the years it's evolved into something else she certainly
understands the concerns and doesn't approve of some of the things that have happened over
the years in hollywood she made a point that she supports women standing up for themselves but for
her being labeled a sex symbol back then made her feel honored that people liked the way she looked
and jillian was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 35.
in the midst of shooting the miniseries alice in wonderland jillian received devastating news
her mother had breast cancer so it was always a concern that was at the back of her mind
during a self-breast examination she noticed a lump she went to see a doctor about the issue
and luckily it turned out to be good timing she believes if she hadn't caught her cancer early she
wouldn't be here today an important note to make for women all around the world early detection
and swift medical action saved angelian's life and could save yours so always remember
to regularly check yourself jillian also made a point about having a good attitude
she put her trust in her medical team and her family and friends who supported her along the way
she also says she remembers the cast from alice in wonderland at the time were very supportive
jillian went back to work 11 days after surgery actor harvey corman who played the white king
was very nervous about shooting a scene with her he was afraid of hurting her she explained that
he held her in a loving way jillian told fox news she did an odd little walk as the red queen but it
was actually because she was protecting herself during recovery and that ended up being the way
she was walking the surgery was done underneath her arms which affected her range of movement
now she's thankful for her full recovery and can hold her granddaughter comfortably in her arms
and jillian learned an important lesson from bob hope bob hope was a british american stand-up
comedian vaudevillian actor singer dancer and author with a career that spanned nearly 80 years
hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films in addition to hosting the academy awards
show 19 times more than any other host hope appeared in many stage productions and television
roles and wrote 14 books he was often praised for his comedic timing specializing in one-liners
and rapid-fire delivery of jokes that were often self-deprecating but there was something else he
was known for taking naps and that's exactly what he passed on to angelian when asked what important
lesson hope taught her she answered save your energy hope loved getting foot massages and always
had a masseuse travel with him jillian always saw him as mr america because of all the uso
shows he led as the daughter of a lithuanian air force captain jillian had a lot of love for him
and what he was doing as he brought many stars to entertain the troops jillian remembers hope asking
her to do one of the uso shows she joined him and his wife delores in riyadh for a christmas show
jillian remembers fondly that whenever he could hope would take his nap hope used this tactic to
be as energetic as possible for the troops and give them his all in the shows jillian
learned the importance of this lesson and became a lesson she'd never forget now it's
time to hear from you what are your thoughts on angelian's attitude on being a sex symbol let
us know in the comment section below and before you go make sure you give this video a like and
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