Anne Neyland
Anne Neyland was an American actress who is best known for her role as Laury Jackson in Jailhouse Rock opposite Elvis Presley. After her film career, she became president of the Hollywood Models League.
Early life
Anne Neyland was born August 23, 1934, in Gulfport, Mississippi, and raised in Dallas, Texas. She attended local schools and began modeling as a teenager, eventually entering and winning a number of Texas beauty contests, including the Miss Texas title. She was the cousin of Robert Neyland, athletic director of the University of Tennessee. At sixteen she began work as a fashion model in Dallas and later in New York City before moving to Hollywood to pursue acting.Career
Neyland made her film debut in an uncredited role in Singin’ in the Rain. In 1956 Neyland, who was recently crowned Miss Dallas, was cast by director André De Toth after a screen test for his 1957 European-set crime drama film Hidden Fear, filmed in Copenhagen and starring John Payne.Neyland played Laury Jackson in Jailhouse Rock. A July 1957 Charlotte News interview featured her discussing meeting Elvis Presley and filming the movie, calling him “a nice boy but I feel sorry for him.” She was labeled as her one of MGM’s new “Southern discoveries.”
Neyland starred opposite Steve Terrell in Motorcycle Gang. She continued acting through 1960, appearing uncredited in the film Ocean’s 11.
Her other film credits include small or and television guest roles throughout 1958–1960 on series such as The Bob Cummings Show, Sea Hunt, Peter Gunn, Highway Patrol, Yancy Derringer, The Texan, Lock Up, and Men into Space.
By late 1958 Neyland had shifted her focus to modeling and professional advocacy. She served as president of the Hollywood Models League, an organization promoting ethics and standards in the modeling industry. She stated that the League’s goal was “to keep our standards high and protect our reputation in the public eye.”
Personal life
Neyland had an estranged marriage with salesman John Criswell, who was arrested in 1960 after he allegedly tried to kill her with a knife. She later married Eugene Fowler from 1962 and 1964. Neyland married for a third time to Charles Rosher Jr., son of cinematographer Charles Rosher, from 1965 to 1970.She died in 2019 at the age of 84 in Camarillo, California.