Faith Domergue

By DOUG GALLOWAY

Actress Faith Domergue, who entered films shortly after World War II as the protege of Howard Hughes, died of cancer April 4 in Santa Barbara. She was 74.

Domergue, born in New Orleans in 1924, came to Hollywood via Warner Bros. in 1941, but wound up with an RKO contract after catching the eye of Howard Hughes.

The 22-year-old beauty made her screen debut in the 1946 Jane Russell starrer "The Young Widow" and, despite a determined effort by Hughes to make her a star, appeared sporadically in several features during the early 1950s, including "Vendetta" (1950), "Where Danger Lives" (1950) opposite Robert Mitchum and "Duel at Silver Creek" (1952).

She was married to director Hugo Fregonese from 1947 to 1961 and during the 1950s made films at Universal-International including "This Island Earth" (1955) and "Cult of the Cobra."

Domergue made numerous TV appearances well into the 1960s ranging from the series "The Count of Monte Cristo" to several episodes of "Perry Mason" and "Bonanza."

She is survived by a daughter, Diana Fregonese and a son, John Anthony Fregonese. Her husband of 30 years, Paolo Cossa, died in 1996.