Joan Taylor (August 18, 1929 – March 4, 2012) was a beautiful American actress who, after a successful career in Westerns, became an iconic “scream queen” and leading lady of two of the most beloved science-fiction monster movies of the 1950s.
The daughter of a vaudeville performer, Taylor grew up in the entertainment business and began her career after graduating from the Pasadena Playhouse. She was a staple of the Western genre, making her debut opposite Randolph Scott in Fighting Man of the Plains (1949) and appearing in numerous other oaters. She also found success on television with a recurring role as Milly Scott on the hit Western series The Rifleman.
She cemented her place in pop culture history by starring in two classic sci-fi creature features from producer Charles H. Schneer and special effects wizard Ray Harryhausen. She played the resourceful scientist Carol Marvin in Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956) and the heroic Marisa Leonardo in 20 Million Miles to Earth (1957). After these iconic roles, she retired from acting in the early 1960s to raise her family.
