Gloria Jean Schoonover was born on April 14, 1926 in Buffalo, New York. Her family moved to Scranton, Pennsylvania shortly after that; this is where Gloria spent the early part of her childhood. Her father owned a music store, while her mother, who had been a bareback rider in a circus, took care of Gloria and her three siblings. Gloria's singing ability was discovered at a young age, and by age five she was singing in the Scranton area. At age twelve, Gloria was taken to an audition by Universal director Joe Pasternak, who was looking for a new child singer to replace studio icon Deanna Durbin, who was being steered into adult and ingénue roles. Although hundreds of Shirley-Temple-perfect girls competed, the natural-looking Gloria was chosen, and she and her mother were soon on their way to Hollywood. In 1939, Gloria made her first film: "The Under-Pup

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