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Margaret Yvonne Middleton was born on September 1, 1922 in Vancouver, Canada, to salesman William and aspiring dancer Marie.
When the actress was three years old, his father left Canada with the promise of returning home and sending money to her mother. Sadly, they never heard of him again.
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Yvonne and her mother moved to different cities before making it to Los Angeles, where the star joined multiple beauty pageants. In 1940 she won second place in the Miss Venice beauty contest.
That's where the magic began. During the event she was spotted by a booking agent who offered her to audition for the Earl Carroll Theatre's chorus line.
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The following year, in 1941, she had already landed a film role in Columbia Pictures 'Harvard, Here I Come'.
In 1942 she appeared in two other movies, 'Youth on Parade' and 'This Gun for Hire', but it wasn't until 1943 when she was cast in a major film, playing a minor role. She shared screen with Hollywood legends Ingrid Bergman and Gary Cooper in Sam Wood's 'For Whom the Bell Tolls'.
Success continued in Yvonne's career, as she then appeared in 'Salome, Where She Danced' (1945), 'Song of Scheherazade' (1947) and 'The Ten Commandments' (1956). The latter earned her a a Laurel Award for Topliner Supporting Actress.
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As for television, de Carlo was best known for her portrayal of "Lily Munster", the wife of "Herman Munster" (Fred Gwynne), in the American sitcom 'The Munsters', appearing for a total of 70 episodes from 1964 to 1966.
However, she appeared in episodes of other successful series including 'Bonanza', 'Death Valley Days', 'The Virginian' and 'Murder, She Wrote'.
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De Carlo's talent was no limited to the screen, in fact, she also built an impressive music career.
Her only album 'Yvonne De Carlo Sings' was released in 1957, but she had already released singles 'I Love a Man' and 'Say Goodbye' in 1950, as well as 'Take It Or Leave It' and 'Three Little Stars' in 1955.
Yvonne also collaborated with Bill Lee and Frank Sinatra in the tracks 'You Belong to My Heart' and 'Getting to Know You', respectively.
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The 'Munsters' actress dated a couple of prominent Hollywood stars before settling down. Between 1943 and 1954 she was romantically linked to director Billy Wilder, actors Robert Stack, Burt Lancaster and Howard Duff, Prince Abdul Reza Pahlavi and photographer Corner Lucas.
She had a relationship with stuntman Jock Mahoney, her 'The Gal Who Took the West' co-star. Yvonne eventually got pregnant, but lost the baby after undergoing ovarian cyst surgery.
In 1955 Yvonne met her 'Shotgun' co-star, stuntman Bob Morgan (picture), who was married at the time. Following the latter's wife's death a couple months later, the pair started dating. Yvonne and Bob got married in November 1955. They welcomed sons Bruce and Michael, with the actress raising Bari, Morgan's daughter from his previous marriage.
Their relationship, however, fell apart and they ended up divorcing in 1973.
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Quick facts about Yvonne de Carlo:
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In 1998, de Carlo had a health scare after suffering a minor stroke. She then became a resident of Woodland Hills' Motion Picture and Television Country House and Hospital, where she spent her last years.
On January 8, 2007 news on her death broke. The 'Munsters' actress died at age 84 from heart failure and was cremated afterwards.
With over 80 film credits in her career, Canadian actress Yvonne de Carlo was best known for her portrayal of "Lily Munster" in 'The Munsters'.
Sadly, the star died in 2007, aged 84, leaving TV and film enthusiasts deeply saddened.
This is what caused her death.