Gloria DeHaven in her classic Hollywood heyday, left, and for "The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies" in January 2001. (Courtesy Harry N. Abrams Inc. publishers, left; Los Angeles Times archives, right.)

Gloria DeHaven, who started in show business as a child, was under contract during the golden age of movie musicals and later reinvented herself for soaps and more, has died. She was 91.

The actress died Saturday in Las Vegas, her agent confirmed Monday.

DeHaven's parents were the popular vaudevillian and stage performers Carter DeHaven and Flora Parker. She and her brother, Carter DeHaven Jr., who would become a producer, would travel with their parents as they toured. She landed a bit part in Charlie Chaplin's 1936 masterpiece "Modern Times" because her father was an assistant director on the film. She also had a small part in Chaplin's 1940 satire, "The Great Dictator."

She was signed to an MGM contract in 1940 and appeared in "Susan and God," while also singing with orchestras, including Bob Crosby's band. She appeared in several musicals during the early '40s, most notably 1943's "Best Foot Forward" and 1944's "Step Lively," in which she was loaned out from MGM to RKO.

See more info here...