Biography
Immortalized as Princess Aura, daughter of Ming the Merciless (Charles Middleton) in the first
Flash Gordon serial, beautiful but ultimately star-crossed Priscilla Lawson (née Shortridge) had been crowned Miss Miami Beach in 1935. The honor resulted in a contract with Universal and, in turn, the plum role of Princess Aura. But the studio quickly dropped her option and a stint with Paramount resulted in only a few supporting roles, including 1936's
Rose Bowl, opposite former co-star Larry "Buster" Crabbe. She spent the remainder of her brief screen career playing bit parts at MGM and was, at the time, better known for marrying handsome B-movie actor
Alan Curtis. According to former co-star
Jean Rogers, who had played Dale Arden in
Flash Gordon, Lawson lost a leg in an accident while serving in the Women's Army Corps during World War II. Divorced from Curtis, she later managed a stationary shop in Los Angeles. Her untimely death in the Veterans' Administration Hospital in West Los Angeles in 1958 was listed as upper gastro-intestinal bleeding, due to a duodenal ulcer. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide