The rise of Lana Turner (1920-1995) from humble origins to Hollywood stardom made her an inspiration to a generation of young American women. She achieved great popular acclaim during her acting career, but her personal life was marred by a series of failed marriages and scandals.

Lana Turner was born on February 8, 1920 into a financially strained family that lived in the rural area of Wallace, Idaho. Her father, Virgil, held a variety of jobs, including miner, insurance salesman, and bootlegger. As the family struggled to make ends meet, they moved often and Turner's education suffered. In 1928, her parents separated, and she moved with her mother to stay with friends in Modesto, California. Turner's mother took a job in San Francisco and was reunited with her daughter after discovering that friends in Modesto had physically abused the child. In 1930, while Turner and her mother were in California, Virgil was...