Daria Massey

Daria Massey
Born	Johnnie Kate Dicenzo (1936-06-02) June 2, 1936 (age 89) Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S.
Education	Hollywood Professional School
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1950–1963
Spouse	David F. Joesting ​ ​ (m. 1961;div. 1962)​ David N. Caerr ​ ​ (m. 1956;div. 1958)​

Daria Massey (born Johnnie Kate Dicenzo; June 2, 1936) is an American actress who appeared in classic films and TV Shows of the 1950s and 1960s. ^[1]

Life and career

Massey was born as Johnnie Kate Dicenzo on June 2, 1936 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Her mother was Irish and her father was Chinese. She was adopted as an infant by her maternal grandparents. ^[2] She came to Hollywood at the age of six and made her debut in the Douglas Sirk drama Sleep, My Love . ^[3] During the early 1950s, Massey attended Hollywood Professional School. ^{[4] [5]}

She began her career as a model and then started appearing in films and TV Shows from Golden Age of Hollywood in minor and supporting roles. ^[6] She played the lead role of Zumila ^[7] alongside actor Sabu in Sabu and the Magic Ring (1957). Massey also appeared in High School Caesar (1960) ^[8] , The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima (1952) ^[9] , The Iron Mistress (1952) ^[9] and The Ladies Man (1961). ^[10] She also played in various TV shows, such as Death Valley Days , The Stu Erwin Show , West Point, Wagon Train , Follow the Sun, McHale's Navy . ^[11]

Massey was married to David N. Carr, a young oil company executive ^[12] from 1956 until their divorce 1958, ^[13] and then to stage manager David F. Joesting ^[14] from 1961 to 1962. ^[15] She never remarried since then and lived her life in Los Angeles. ^[16]

Filmography

Movies and TV Show

Year	Title	Role	Note
1963	McHale's Navy [17]	Lalanai	1 episode
1961	Follow the Sun [18]	Young Amanda	2 episodes
	The Ladies Man	Miss Tickey [19]	[20]
	The Islanders [21]	Naja [22]	5 episodes
1960	Adventures in Paradise	Ami	1 episode
	High School Caesar [23]	Lita Owens	[24]
	Hong Kong	Suzie	2 episodes
	The Tall Man	Maria Perez	1 episodes
	Sea Hunt	Susie Turner	1 episode
1959	The Miracle	Gata
	Colt. 45	Ynez	1 episode
	Wagon Train	Melanie Pumphret	1 episode
	Playhouse 90	Rosita	1 episode
	Steve Canyon	Vreshta Brahma	1 episode
	Cimarron City	Nooma	1 episode
	26 Men	Wanama Harrison	1 episode
	Sky King [25]	June Martin	1 episode
1958	The Restless Gun	Running Fawn	1 episode
	Bonner's Squaw	Running Fawn	[26]
1957	Sabu and the Magic Ring [27]	Zumila
	West Point	Allen's Date	1 episode
	The Evil One	Nooma	[26]
	The Rosebush of Tombstone		[26]
	The Man Who Was Never Licked		[26]
1954	The Stu Erwin Show	Susie	1 episode
	Four Star Theatre	Joan	1 episode
1952	The Iron Mistress	Teresa Varamend [28]	uncredited
	The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima	Manuelita	uncredited
	Carrie	Carrie's Sister	uncredited
1951	Fireside Theatre		1 episode
1951	Girl Never Tell [29]	Clara	uncredited
1950	Tea for Two	Friend	uncredited

References

1. "Daria Massey". Moviemem Original Movie Posters. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
2. The Hollywood Reporter. Wilkerson Daily Corporation. 1960.
3. Cue. North American Publishing Company. 1959.
4. Lisanti, Tom (2015-05-20). Fantasy Femmes of Sixties Cinema: Interviews with 20 Actresses from Biker, Beach, and Elvis Movies. McFarland. ISBN   978-1-4766-0116-8.
5. "Daria (Johnnie Kate) wins baby contest". The Knoxville Journal. 1939-04-18. p. 9. Retrieved 2025-09-18.
6. Neibaur, James L.; Okuda, Ted (1995). The Jerry Lewis Films: An Analytical Filmography of the Innovative Comic. McFarland. ISBN   978-0-89950-961-7.
7. Craig, Rob (2013-09-21). It Came from 1957: A Critical Guide to the Year's Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. McFarland. ISBN   978-1-4766-1243-0.
8. Dennis, Jeffery P. (2013-12-16). Queering Teen Culture: All-American Boys and Same-Sex Desire in Film and Television. Routledge. ISBN   978-1-317-76621-6.
9. The Victoria Advocate. The Victoria Advocate.
10. The Hollywood Reporter. Wilkerson Daily Corporation. 1962.
11. TV Star Also Cigarette Girl". Los Angeles Times. 24 March 1958.
12. "TV Actress Tells of Her Engagement". Los Angeles Times. 7 February 1956.
13. "Daria Massey Wins Divorce". Des Moines Tribune. 18 June 1958.
14. "CONTENTdm". tessa2.lapl.org. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
15. How Jerry Lewis Staged a Wedding Scene for Real". Los Angeles Mirror.
16. This marriage for real - and reel, 1961, retrieved 2025-09-22
17. Thompson, Kristin (2003). Storytelling in Film and Television. Harvard University Press. ISBN   978-0-674-01063-5.
18. Terrace, Vincent (1986). Encyclopedia of Television Series, Pilots and Specials. VNR AG. ISBN   978-0-918432-71-1.
19. Benayoun, Robert (1972-01-01). Bonjour Monsieur Lewis (in French). FeniXX. ISBN   978-2-402-62433-6.
20. Lisanti, Tom (2015-05-20). Fantasy Femmes of Sixties Cinema: Interviews with 20 Actresses from Biker, Beach, and Elvis Movies. McFarland. ISBN   978-1-4766-0116-8.
21. Terrace, Vincent (2014-01-10). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010, 2d ed. McFarland. ISBN   978-0-7864-8641-0.
22. Hyatt, Wesley (2015-10-06). Short-Lived Television Series, 1948-1978: Thirty Years of More Than 1,000 Flops. McFarland. ISBN   978-1-4766-0515-9.
23. Ray, Fred Olen (1991-01-01). The New Poverty Row: Independent Filmmakers as Distributors. McFarland. ISBN   978-0-89950-628-9.
24. Dregni, Michael. The All-American Hot Rod. MotorBooks International. ISBN   978-1-61059-204-8.
25. Nevins, Francis M. (2000). Paul Landres: A Director's Stories. Scarecrow Press. ISBN   978-0-8108-3816-1.
26. Lentz, Harris M. (1996). Western and frontier film and television credits 1903-1995. Internet Archive. Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland. ISBN   978-0-7864-0158-1.
27. Lentz, Harris M. (1994). Science Fiction, Horror & Fantasy Film and Television Credits: Supplement 2, through 1993. McFarland. ISBN   978-0-89950-927-3.
28. Dixon Evening Telegraph (1952-08-08). 1952-08-08.
29. Ellenberger, Allan R. (2004-11-01). Margaret O'Brien: A Career Chronicle and Biography. McFarland. ISBN   978-0-7864-2155-8.

External links

Daria Massey at IMDb