1943–1950: Early work; Howard Hughes in
Where Danger Lives (1950). After graduating in 1942, Domergue continued to pursue a career in acting, but after sustaining injuries in a near-fatal car accident, her plans were put on hold. While recuperating from the accident, she attended a party aboard Howard Hughes' yacht. Enamored with her, Hughes bought out her contract with Warner Bros., signed her to a three-picture deal with RKO, and cast her in the thriller
Vendetta (1950). The film had a long and troubled production history, with reshoots and several changes of director, further exacerbated by Hughes's health problems following a near-fatal
plane crash he endured in July 1946. The production extended over four years and cost $3.5 million. By the time of
Vendettas premiere in 1950, Domergue had left Los Angeles for
Palm Springs, and was pregnant with her second child. After the film's release, Domergue separated from Hughes, disappointed with the way the film and her career had been handled: "I was told he spent five million dollars publicizing me", she said, "but [the] film was[n’t properly] released. It was all wasted." The critical reception was also dismissive.
The New York Times panned the film as "a garrulous, slow, and obvious period piece, weighed down by a profusion of exotic accents, undistinguished dialogue, and unconvincing play acting... set against a background of the wild, Corsican countryside, which does give the picture an atmosphere of suspenseful authenticity". The review damned Domergue's performance with faint praise: "Faith Domergue, the heralded newcomer, is less than a fiery heroine. But despite the flamboyant lines that are her lot, the attractive Miss Domergue does occasionally contribute genuine emotional acting to the proceedings."
1951–1959: Universal and science-fiction films After having lived briefly in
England with her husband, Domergue returned to the United States in 1953, when she signed a contract with
Universal Pictures. Her final credit for RKO was the drama
This Is My Love (1954), which was shot after the release of her first film with Universal,
The Duel at Silver Creek (1952), in which she appeared opposite
Audie Murphy. In 1955, Domergue appeared in another Western,
Santa Fe Passage, playing an ammunition retailer opposite
John Payne and
George Keymas. Domergue then appeared in a series of
science-fiction,
monster, and
horror films. The first of these was
Cult of the Cobra (Universal Pictures 1955), in which six American Air Force officers discover a
cult of snake worshippers. This was followed with a role in
Columbia Pictures's
It Came from Beneath the Sea (1955), a science-fiction, monster film that was a major commercial success, grossing $1.7 million at the box office. The following year, Domergue starred in
This Island Earth (also 1955), Universal's first
color science-fiction film. The film received moderate critical praise for its performances, writing, and inventive special effects. Domergue appeared in a string of European productions: the British science-fiction film
The Atomic Man (1955), directed by
Ken Hughes; British noir films
Soho Incident (1956) and
Man in the Shadow (1957), released in the United States as
Violent Stranger; and the Italian production,
The Sky Burns (1958).
1960–1974: Late career and retirement In the late 1950s and 1960s, she made many appearances on television series, including
Sugarfoot, two episodes of
Hawaiian Eye, two episodes of
Have Gun – Will Travel, two episodes of
Bonanza,
The Rifleman, and two episodes of
Perry Mason. In her first
Perry Mason episode, "The Case of the Guilty Clients" (1961), she played murderer Conception O'Higgins, and in "The Case of the Greek Goddess" (1963), she played murder victim Cleo Grammas. By the late 1960s, Domergue was appearing mainly in low-budget "B" horror movies and European productions. Domergue's last foray in science fiction was
Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet (1965), an American version of a Russian film, mainly backed by Russian producers and populated with Russian actors. She began traveling to Italy in 1952, living in Rome for extended periods. She relocated to Europe permanently in 1968, moving from Rome to Geneva, Switzerland, and Marbella, Spain, until the death of her Italian husband, Paolo, in 1991. In the late 1960s, she appeared in several Italian
giallo films, including
Lucio Fulci's
One on Top of the Other (1969), and
Alberto De Martino's
The Man with Icy Eyes (1971). Her final film credit was for
The House of Seven Corpses (1974), an independent horror film shot in
Salt Lake City. ==Personal life==