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Famous child actress June Preston passed away on May 11, 2022, at the age of 93. Preston died at a nursing home in Montclair, New Jersey, following a long battle with dementia. Her daughter Sabrina Pires confirmed the news while speaking to The Hollywood Reporter.
Her funeral will be held in a private ceremony at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Hollywood Hills.
Journey of June Preston as an actress and singer
Born on December 29, 1928, June Preston debuted in films with R.K.O. Pictures playing a minor role as Mrs. Blewett’s daughter in the 1934 film Anne of Green Gables. The film became a surprise hit and was one of the highest-grossing films R.K.O. made that year.
The California native trained at Meglin Dance Studio in Beverly Hills and Santa Monica. When she was four years old, she shifted to Temple, Texas, but her film career started during a trip to Hollywood, where her photograph was shown to R.K.O.’s casting office in 1934. She appeared in several films and eventually became a famous opera singer.
She signed a contract with R.K.O. and appeared in many child star-focused films. She played an essential role in the 1934 drama film, Have a Heart. She had a minor role in the movie Our Gang Follies of 1938.
A clothing line was produced under Preston’s name and included dresses named June Preston Frocks. She quit films to study opera and moved to West Seattle. She attended James Madison Junior High and West Seattle High School, graduating in 1947. Her high school inducted her into their Hall of Fame in 1989.
June studied music at Seattle University and appeared in their 1947 production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s H.M.S. Pinafore. She started a singing tour across Mexico in 1950 and performed in Guadalajara at the Degollado Theater.
She then toured with a company led by Argentine opera impresario Gregorio Ravic in the summer of 1952. She was a member of the chorus of the San Francisco Opera for two seasons and started a tour in the Caribbean in early 1954, conducting a few performances in February of the same year.
Preston traveled to Roatan, Honduras, and performed with pianist Manuel Rueda from the Dominican Republic. She was a soloist in the final movement of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in concert with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra at the Kiel Opera House in St. Louis in November 1961.
She sang at Op Gouden Wieken in October 1962 and gave a recital at the Palau de la Musica Catalana the following month. She also performed in Tarragona in December 1962.
Preston is survived by her husband Saul Houben, daughter Sabrina Pires, son-in-law John and sister Lita.
