{{short description|American actress}}
{{Use American English|date=July 2020}} {{Use mdy dates|date=July 2020}} ''See also Eleanor Bull (maiden name Eleanor Whitney)'' {{Infobox person | name = Eleanore Whitney | image = File:Eleanore .jpg | imagesize = | caption = Eleanore Whitney | birth_name = | birth_date = {{Birth date |1917|3|12|mf=y}} | birth_place = Cleveland | death_date = {{Death date and age |1983|11|1|1917|3|12|mf=y}} | death_place = New York City | death_cause = | resting_place = | resting_place_coordinates = | other_names = Eleanore Backer (married name) | occupation = Actress, dancer | years_active = 1935–1939 | spouse = Frederick Backer | children = 1 }}
'''Eleanore Whitney''' (April 12, 1917 – November 1, 1983), later Eleanore Backer, was an American film actress and tap dancer. She was born on April 12, 1917, in Cleveland, Ohio.{{Citation needed |date=July 2024}} A meeting with Bill Robinson provided and opportunity for her to perform as a dancer. That led to her touring with Rae Samuels in vaudeville, after which she made personal appearances with Jack Benny and performed in vaudeville with Rudy Valee.<ref>{{cite news |title=At the Majestic |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/66284862/?match=1&terms=%22Eleanore%20Whitney%22%20actress |access-date=September 26, 2024 |work=Shamokin News-Dispatch |date=June 11, 1937 |page=8|via = Newspapers.com |url-access=subscription }}</ref>
Whitney was married in 1939 to attorney Frederick Backer.<ref>{{cite news|title=Eleanore Whitney, Tap-Dance Star, Weds Attorney|newspaper=Wisconsin State Journal|date=February 24, 1939|page=12|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19186583/eleanore_whitney_tapdance_star_weds/|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> She moved to New York with her husband and did not return to acting.<ref>{{cite web|title=Eleanore Whitney|publisher=Obscure actresses|date=December 19, 2013|url=https://obscureactresses.wordpress.com/2013/12/19/eleanore-whitney/}}</ref> He became a judge at New York Supreme Court.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1971/11/19/archives/justice-frederick-backer-dies-lost-1971-bid-or-surrogate.html Obituary] in ''New York Times'' 1971-11-19</ref>
==Filmography== Whitney's filmography, believed to be complete,{{Citation needed |date=September 2024}} includes:
* ''Oh, Evaline!'' (1935, Short) as Herself * ''The Big Broadcast of 1936'' (1935) as Herself * ''Millions in the Air'' (1935) as Bubbles<ref>{{cite news|title=Music and Meller at Empress Today|newspaper=The Decatur Herald|date=January 12, 1936|page=19|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19185704/music_and_meller_at_empress_today/|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> * ''Screen Snapshots Series 16, No. 1'' (1936, documentary short) as Herself * ''Timothy's Quest'' (1936) as Martha<ref>{{cite news|title=New Romantic Team Featured at Palace|newspaper=The Mason City Globe-Gazette|date=May 5, 1936|page=10|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19185070/new_romantic_team_at_palace/|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> * ''Three Cheers for Love'' (1936) as Skippy Dormant<ref>{{cite news|title=Eleanore Whitney Is Star at Iowa: "Three Cheers for Love" Is Picture|newspaper=Iowa City Press-Citizen|date=July 3, 1937|page=4|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19184934/eleanore_whitney_is_star_at_iowa/|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> * ''Hollywood Boulevard'' (1936) as Herself * ''The Big Broadcast of 1937'' (1936) as Dance Specialty * ''Rose Bowl'' (1936) as Cheers Reynolds<ref>{{cite news|title=Eleanore Whitney in 'Rose Bowl,' Film at Orpheum|newspaper=The Des Moines Register|date=November 22, 1936|page=49|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19185212/eleanore_whitney_in_rose_bowl_film/|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> * ''College Holiday'' (1936) as Herself<ref>{{cite news|title=Eleanore Whitney Makes Studio Do Right by Stand-in|newspaper=The Salt Lake Tribune|date=November 5, 1936|page=13|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19186009/eleanore_whitney_makes_studio_do_right/|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> * ''Clarence'' (1937) as Cora Wheeler<ref>{{cite news|title=untitled|newspaper=The Pittsburgh Press|date=March 21, 1937|page=56|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19185359/eleanore_whitney_in_clarence/|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> * ''Turn Off the Moon'' (1937) as Caroline Wilson<ref>{{cite news|title='Turn Off the Moon' Light Musical Comedy That Is Full of Music and Dance|newspaper=The Dayton Herald|date=June 26, 1937|page=7|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19185485/turn_off_the_mooon_light_musical/|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> * ''Blonde Trouble'' (1937) as Edna Baker<ref>{{cite news|title="Blonde Trouble" Comes to Capitol|newspaper=The Oregon Statesman|date=August 15, 1937|page=2|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19178532/blonde_trouble/|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> * ''Thrill of a Lifetime'' (1937) as Betty Jane<ref>{{cite news|title="Thrill of a Lifetime" Opens Next Monday at Avalon: Johnny Downs and Eleanore Whitney Featured Prominently in Musical Comedy Romance|newspaper=The Ottawa Journal|date=February 26, 1938|page=26|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19185566/thrill_of_a_lifetime_opens_next/|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> * ''Campus Confessions'' (1938) as Susie Quinn (final film role)<ref>{{cite news|title='Campus Confessions'|newspaper=The Courier News|date=May 16, 1939|page=17|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19186976/campus_confessions/|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>
== External links == * {{IMDb name|0926288}} * [https://www.virtual-history.com/movie/person/7526/eleanor-whitney Eleanore Whitney] at Virtual History
==References== {{Reflist}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitney, Eleanore}} Category:1917 births Category:1983 deaths Category:American film actresses Category:American female dancers Category:American tap dancers Category:Dancers from Ohio Category:20th-century American actresses Category:20th-century American dancers
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