Arlene Francis dies at 92

Actress Arlene Francis, a panelist on What’s My Line for its 25-year run, died Thursday at Kaiser Hospital in San Francisco of natural causes. Though the theater was the actress’ first love, she gained her fame and fortune through television. In the 1950s, Francis hosted the NBC daytime magazine program Home, was the mistress of ceremony for ABC’s Talent Patrol and then a panelist on CBS’ What’s My Line. She also starred in several feature films, including Murders in the Rue Morgue, Stage Door Canteen, All My Sons, One, Two, Three and The Thrill of it All. She made her Broadway debut in 1936 in George Abbott’s All That Glitters and later starred with Orson Welles in Danton’s Death. Francis also hosted The Arlene Francis Show, a daily interview program on WOR radio in New York that aired for 23 years. Born on Oct. 12, 1908, she was married to movie executive Neil Agnew in 1935 for 10 years then to actor Martin Gable, who died in 1986.