Jean Arthur
Jean Arthur (
October 17,
1900 â€"
June 19,
1991) was an
American actress.
Born
Gladys Georgianna Greene in
Plattsburgh, New York, she became one of
Hollywood's favorite screen comediennes.
The daughter of a photographer, Arthur became a
fashion model early in life, then went on to work in films. She debuted in the
silent film Cameo Kirby in
1923, directed by John Ford. Whatever self-confidence she may have built up was dashed when she was removed from the starring role of "
Temple of Venus" (1923) after a few days of shooting. It was the first of many disappointments for the young actress, but she persevered and, by
1928, was being given co-starring roles at
Paramount Pictures. (1928 was also the year she married her first husband, Julian Ancker, which was annulled after only one day.) She was selected as one of the
WAMPAS Baby Stars in 1929 and briefly romanced David O. Selzick.
Arthur's curious voice, best described as being earnestly squeaky, ensured her work in talkies, but she was seldom used to full advantage in the early 30s. Dissatisfied with the vapid ingenue, society debutante, and damsel-in-distress parts she was getting (though she was chillingly effective as a murderess in
1930's "
The Greene Murder Case"), Arthur left films for Broadway in
1932 to appear in ‘Foreign Affairs'. She starred in several Broadway productions and earned positive reviews. While back East she married Frank Ross, later a producer of some of her films.
In
1934, she signed with
Columbia Pictures, where, at long last, her gift for combining fast-paced verbal comedy with truly moving pathos was fully utilised. In
1935 she starred opposite
Edward G. Robinson in the gangster farce
The Whole Town's Talking, and her popularity began to rise.
She was lucky enough to work with some of the most accomplished directors in
Hollywood:
Frank Capra (who called her his favourite actress and directed her in "
Mr Deeds Goes to Town" in
1936, "
You Can't Take It With You" in
1938 and "
Mr Smith Goes to Washington" in
1939);
John Ford ("
The Whole Town's Talking" in 1935); and
Howard Hawks ("
Only Angels Have Wings" in
1939).
She was also one of the contenders for the role of
Scarlett O'Hara in "
Gone With the Wind" (1939).
Mercurial in her attitudes, terribly nervous both before and after filming a scene â€" she often threw up after her scene was finished â€" and so painfully shy that it was sometimes difficult for her to show up, she was equally fortunate that her co-workers were patient and understanding with her. She also looked better when photographed from the right side of her face, so, once she became a star, that was inevitably written into her contracts. Arthur could become hysterical when besieged by fans, and aloof and non-responsive to reporters.
In
1943, she received her only
Oscar nomination for "
The More the Merrier" (1943), the second of her two great 40s films directed by
George Stevens ("
The Talk of the Town" from
1942 was the first, Stevens referring her to as one of the greatest comediennes the screen had ever seen).
Because she often came to blows with studio head
Harry Cohn over her parts and her salary, she only earned $50,000 for "The Talk of the Town", while her co-stars
Cary Grant and
Ronald Colman both earned exactly double that amount.
After her contract with Columbia ended in
1944, she celebrated by running through the streets, shouting "I'm free, I'm free." She signed to star in the
1946 Broadway play ‘
Born Yesterday' â€" only to succumb to a debilitating case of stage fright, forcing the producers to replace her at virtually the last moment with
Judy Holliday.
After the forgettable comedy "
The Impatient Years" in 1944, Arthur made only two more films:
Billy Wilder's "
A Foreign Affair" (
1948), and George Stevens' classic "
Shane" (
1953; she was 50 years old during filming). She also played the lead in
Leonard Bernstein's
1950 musical version of ‘
Peter Pan', playing the Eternal Boy when she was almost fifty. Her co-star was
Boris Karloff as
Captain Hook. That same year she divorced Frank Ross; never remarried, no children.
In the early 60s, the extremely reclusive Arthur tentatively returned to show business with a few stage appearances and as an attorney on ill-advised
1966 TV
sitcom, ‘
The Jean Arthur Show', which was mercifully cancelled mid-season after only 11 episodes.
Surprisingly, the ultra-introverted Arthur later decided to tackle the extroverted profession of teaching drama, first at
Vassar College and then the
North Carolina School of the Arts; one of her students at North Carolina remembered Arthur as odd and her lectures as somewhat whimsical and rambling. While at North Carolina she made front-page news by being arrested and tossed in jail for trespassing on a neighbor's property to console a dog she felt was being mistreated. An animal lover her entire life, Arthur said she trusted them more than people.
In 1975 the Broadway hit play ‘
First Monday in October', about the first female
Supreme Court judge, was written especially with Arthur in mind, but once again, she succumbed to extreme stage fright and quit the production shortly into its out-of-town run in Cleveland. She then retired for good, retreating to her ocean home in
Carmel, California, steadfastly refusing interviews until her resistance was broken down by the author of a book on her one-time director Frank Capra (she once famously said that she'd rather have her throat slit than do an interview).
She died from
heart failure in
1991 and had her ashes scattered at sea near Carmel.
She has a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6331 Hollywood Blvd.
Biography:
"Jean Arthur: The Actress Nobody Knew" (by John Oller)
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Danger Lights (1930)
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Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936)
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The Ex-Mrs. Bradford (1936)
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The Plainsman (1936)
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History Is Made at Night (1937)
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Easy Living (1937)
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You Can't Take It with You (1938)
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Only Angels Have Wings (1939)
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Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
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The Devil and Miss Jones (1941)
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The Talk of the Town (1942)
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The More the Merrier (1943)
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A Foreign Affair (1948)
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Shane (1953)
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Classic Movies (1939 - 1969): Jean Arthur*
Jean Arthur biographical sketch on
Find-A-Grave
