Leading Ladies Vera Miles
Autumn Leaves/ Virginia Hanson
The Charge At Feather River/ Jennie McKeever
The Searchers/ Laurie Jorgensen
Psycho 2/ Lila Loomis
Per Quinlan's Film Stars:
The American working actress par excellence, a pleasant, photogenic, green eyed blonde who, besides her cinematic work , has played over 100 roles on television since 1954. Although taken up by Hitchcock ( and missing out on Vertigo only through pregnancy) the remainder of her film parts rarely rose above the routine, but she was capable of very good performances when pushed by her director.
Vera Miles was born Vera June Ralston at Boise City, OK in either 1929 or 1930. This has been disputed
Her parents were Thomas & Bernice Ralston and she had three elder siblings.
She grew up in Pratt, KS and then later lived in Wichita where she worked nights as a Western Union operator and typist.
Ms. Miles graduated from Wichita North High School in 1948.
After this she was crowned Miss Kansas in 1948 and was third runner up that year in the Miss America contest.
She moved to Los Angeles in 1950.
At first she landed small roles in films and television. She used first husband's name since there already was an actress with the last name of Ralston - namely Vera Ralston. She was put under contract by various studios.
Her film debut was in an uncredited role in 1950 in the film When Willie Comes Marches Home.
She began to get roles in major films including Tarzan's Hidden Jungle, The Searchers ( directed by John Ford) and 23 Paces To Baker Street.
In 1957 she garnered a 5 year contract with Alfred Hitchcock appearing in such films as The Wrong Man,
In 1962 she again worked with director John Ford in the film The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.
Some of the film roles of Vera Miles were:
When Willie Comes Marching Home (1950) as Sergeant's Date
For Men Only (1952) as Kathy
The Rose Bowl Story (1952) as Denny Burke
The Charge At Feather River (1953) as Jenny McKeever
Pride Of The Blue Grass (1954) as Linda
Tarzan's Hidden Jungle (1955) as Jill Hardy
Wichita (1955) as Laurie McCoy
The Searchers (1956) Laurie Jorgensen
23 Paces To Baker Street (1956) as Jean Lennox
Autumn Leaves (1956) as Virginia Hanson
The Wrong Man (1956) as Rose Balestero
Beau James (1957) as Betty Compton
Web Of Evidence (1959) as Lena Anderson
The FBI Story (1959) as Lucy Ann Hardesty
A Touch Of Larceny (1959) as Virginia Killain
5 Branded Women (1960) as Daniza
Psycho (1960) as Lila Crane
Back Street (1961) as Liz Saxon
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) as Hallie Stoddard
\The Fugitive (1963-TV) as Monica Welles
A Tiger Walks (1964) as Dorothy Williams
The Unknown (1964-TV) as Kassia Payne
The Hanged Man (1964-TV) as Lois Seeger
The Wild Country (1970) as Kate Tanner
In Search Of America (1971-TV) as Jenny Olson
A Howling In The Woods (1971- TV) as Rose Staines
Jigsaw (1972-TV) as Lilah Beth Cummings
A Great American Tragedy (1972-TV) as Gloria Wilkes
Molly And Lawless John (1972) as Molly Parker
Baffled (1973-TV) as Andrea Glenn
One Little Indian (1973) as Doris
Runaway (1973-TV) as Ellen
Live Again, Die Again (1974-TV) as Marcia Carmichael
The Underground Man ( 1974-TV) as Eleanor Strom
The Castaway Cowboy (1964) as Henrietta MacAvery
The Strange And Deadly Occurrence (1974-TV) as Christine Rhodes
State Fair (1975-TV) as Melissa Bryant
McNaughton's Daughter (1976-TV Miniseries) as Grace Coventry
Judge Horton And The Scottsboro Boys (1976-TV) as Mrs. Horton
Smashup On Interstate 5 ( 1976-TV) as Erica
Run For The Roses (1977) as Clarissa Stewart
How The West Was Won (1978-TV Miniseries) as Beth
And I Alone Survived (1978-TV) as Irene Elder
Roughnecks (1980-TV) as Ida McBride
Our Family Business (1981-TV) as Patricia
Mazes & Monsters (1982-TV) as Cat
Travis McGee (1983-TV) as Julie Lawless
Psycho 2 (1983) as Lila Loomis
Brain Waves (1983) as Marian Koonan
Helen Keller: The Miracle Continues (1984-TV) as Kate Keller
The Initiation (1984) as Frances Fairchild
Into The Night (1985) as Joan Caper
International Airport (1985-TV) as Elaine Corley
The Hijacking Of The Achille Laurie (1989-TV) as Sophide Kubacki
Separate Lives (1995) as Dr Ruth Golden
Ms. Miles was very active on television appearing in such programs as Fireside Theater, Crown Theater, Medic, Four Star Playhouse, City Detective, The Pepsi Cola Playhouse, Science Fiction Theater, The Millionaire, The Ford Television Theater, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Screen Directors Playhouse, The 20th Century Fox Hour, Strange Stories, Lux Video Theater, Playhouse 90, Schlitz Playhouse Of Stars, Climax. Riverboat, Rawhide, Zane Grey Theater, The Twilight Zone, Laramie, General Electric Theater, Frontier Circus, Checkmate, The Detectives, Sam Benedict, The Fugitive, Route 66, Kraft Suspense Theater, The Outer Limits, Burke's Law, Slattery's People, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, Wagon Train, My Three Sons, I Spy, The Man From UNCLE, Run For Your Life, Judd For The Defense, The FBI, Mannix, The Name Of The Game, Gunsmoke, The Virginian, Bonanza, Alias Smith And Jones, Ironside, Marcus Welby MD, Colombo, Owen Marshall Counselor Ar Law, Medical Center, Walt Disney's Wonderful World Of Color, The Streets Of San Francisco, Cannon, Movin' On, Barnaby Jones, Fantasy Island, The Runaways, Buck Rogers In The 21st Century, Magnum P I, Little House On The Prairie, Trapper John MD, Matt Houston, Crazy Like A Fox, Hotel, Simon & Simon and Murder She Wrote among others.
Until her retirement in 1995, Ms. Miles continued to work in both film and television
Ms. Miles has been married three times.
Her first husband was Bob Miles and they were married from 1948 to 1954. Her second husband was actor Gordon Scott (Tarzan) and the marriage lasted from 1956 to 1959. Her third husband was actor Keith Larsen and the marriage lasted from 1960 to 1971. She has had two daughters and two sons from her marriages.
I enjoyed Ms. Miles in the films Psycho. Psycho 2, The High Jacking of The Achille Laurie, Wichita, The Charge At Feather River, One Little Indian, Beau James and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.
Louie The Movie Buff