Childhood (1919-1938)

Phylis Lee Isley was born March 2, 1919
in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Her parents, Phil and
Flora Mae (Suber) owned and operated a
small acting troop called the Isley Stock
Company. They would tour small towns
outside of Tulsa and perform plays for ten
cents a patron. It was in this environment
that young Phylis decided she wanted to
be an actress. By the time she was six,
she was in her first grade play, playing a
candy cane. In her free time and during
summer vacations, she worked with her
parents selling tickets and refreshments.
The Isley's made good money during this
time and in 1929, when the stock market crashed, Phil Isley used the money that he had made to buy several independent movie theaters and equip them with sound. It was a smart investment and Isley's chain of theaters paid off nicely. Phylis spent many hours in the movie theaters and was determined as ever to become an actress.

After she graduated from high school,
she enrolled in Monte Cassino, a junior
college for girls which was run by
Benedictine sisters. Phylis was unlike most
of the other girls in that she was more
interested in a career than dating boys.
She appeared in many of the school plays
and usually played the leading role. Phil
Isley was impressed with his daughter's
enthusiasm and suggested that she go to
Hollywood where his connections might
land her a movie contract. Phylis was
more interested in Broadway (her curiosity
had been peaked at the age of nine when
her parents took her on a trip to New York).
She made plans to attend Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, a college that was well known for its' drama department. She was disappointed, however, with Northwestern. Her courses were not challenging and she felt as though she was wasting her time there. She wrote a letter to one of her idols, stage great Katherine Cornell, and asked her if she should continue with her schooling or get stage experience. Cornell suggested that she needed a "cultural background".

Phylis took her advice but instead of returning
to Northwestern, she decided that she wanted
to attend the American Academy Of Dramatic
Arts in New York. Her parents accompanied
her to New York and got her a room at the
Barbizon Hotel For Women. To be admitted,
Phylis had to audition and she chose one
scene from Romeo And Juliet and another from
Wingless Victory. Her audition went very well
and she was admitted as a student in the fall
of 1937. Phylis was much happier at the
Academy than she had been at Northwestern
and her first semester went well. Following the
Christmas break and a trip back home to Tulsa,
Phylis returned for the Winter semester in
January of 1938. She was about to meet
someone who would take her mind off
of acting...

Continue to Early Career (1939-1942)