Lana Turner’s Discovery was the stuff of legend; the gorgeous young starlet was said to have been discovered at Schwab’s Pharmacy at the soda counter, fresh off the bus from the Midwest. It would become the prototypical story of Hollywood success. It would be repeated often and inspire thousands of young women to head to Hollywood and jockey for a seat at Schwab’s Pharmacy.
The story, while mostly true, was embellished a bit. Lana Turner was discovered while ordering a soda, but not at Schwab’s- it was several miles down the road at the Top Hat Cafe. Additionally, Miss Turner was not fresh off the bus from the Midwest- she had been in Los Angeles for years. In fact, she was a student at Hollywood High School, skipping class. Perhaps Schwab’s was seen as a more glamorous place to be discovered; maybe the studio just wanted to de-emphasize the cutting class aspect of her discovery. In any case, the story became legend.
