Caren Marsh

Caren Marsh was born in Los Angeles. Her sister, actress Dorothy Morris, was born Feb. 23, 1922. Getting into show business in 1937, Caren changed her name to Marsh because "there were too many people named Morris at the time." Caren's parents wanted her to go to college but she wanted to be a dancer. Learning of an audition for dancers at MGM she tried out and was cast in Eleanor Powell's "Rosalie" in '37. This led to more and more pictures as a dancer. "Being tiny (Caren is 5 ft.), I was a 'pony'. The tall girls are called showgirls." While working with great choreographers such as Busby Berkerley, Nick Castle and Hermes Pan, she was spotted at Metro and cast as Judy Garland's stand-in in "The Wizard of Oz" ('39). Her first real acting part was in an Army Signal Corps Hygiene film, "Pickup Girl" in '44. After gaining a foothold in Hollywood, Caren went to New York in '49 to work with ventriloquist Paul Winchell at the Capitol Theatre. Flying home to visit her parents, the plane went too low and crashed into a mountain.The aircraft was in level flight on its initial approach to Burbank, with its landing gear extended, when it descended below the officially prescribed altitude of 5,000 feet while flying in patchy fog. As a result, the plane's right wingtip struck a mountain ridge near Box Canyon in the northwest corner of the San Fernando Valley, near Santa Susana Pass and the Los Angeles County-Ventura County border. The Curtiss C-46E-1-C airliner (N79978) spun 90 degrees, struck the ground, bounced back into the air and then crashed on a rugged hillside of the Simi Hills at an altitude of about 1,890 feet just north of the Chatsworth Reservoir. Both pilots, a flight attendant, and 32 passengers died in the crash, including two young children. The remaining flight attendant and 12 passengers escaped with moderate to serious injuries. Fortunately, Caren was one of those 12. In 1950 Caren married Bill Doll, producer Mike Todd's press agent, and traveled all over the world. Today, Caren lives in Palm Springs, has taught dancing and attends both western film festivals and "Wizard of Oz" reunions when she can.