I've been trying to collect the films that Jean Spangler appeared in. As she was an extra and uncredited, it is hard to spot her in many of them. She was either in crowd scenes (audience member, dancer/chorus girl) and/or in scenes shot from a considerable distance. However, it is my understanding that in
The Miracle Of The Bells (1948), she had her biggest role; not only is there a moment where she appears onscreen and you can instantly recognize her, but she had a line of dialogue - "They're turning".
This screen capture is from a blog, and it's small. When I get the film on DVD I'll try to make a bigger and better quality image.
There are two other films she appeared in I haven't seen yet -
Chicken Every Sunday (1948) which is available on DVD but it's a bit pricey (at least on the Canadian Amazon site); the movie also features a young Natalie Wood during her child acting days, which is another reason why I want to see it. The other is one of the last films she made before her disappearance,
The Petty Girl (1950), which has not had an official DVD release but DVD-R copies can be ordered from sites that specialize in rare films. This lobby card (the stars, Robert Cummings and Joan Caulfield, are prominently featured), shows a scene that takes place in a nightclub, and people are dancing to the right of them. The woman on the far right looks like Jean, and on her IMDB page, she is listed as "Nightclub Patron (uncredited)" for this movie.
A colorized version of
Champagne For Caesar (1950) is available on YouTube, and she is listed on IMDB as being a TV audience member, but again, it's hard to spot her. The same can be said of her appearances in
When My Baby Smiles At Me (1948) and
Wabash Avenue (1950) - both of which, along with
Chicken Every Sunday was made at 20th Century-Fox -where she is listed as "chorus girl" and "show girl".
Young Man With Horn (1950), made at Warner Brothers, and the movie that she is the most often associated with - she is listed as a "hula dancer" - but again, I've had a hard time seeing her. (Incidentally, Kirk Douglas, according to official police reports, referred to her as "the girl in the green dress" on the set of that film).
A better quality version of Jean Spangler with her siblings, Richard, Eddie (killed in action in 1945), and Betsy.