Marjorie Bennett (15 January 1896 – 14 June 1982) was an Australian actress who worked mainly in the United Kingdom and the United States. She began her acting career during the silent film era.
Marjorie Bennett | |
|---|---|
 Bennett in 1922 | |
| Born | 15 January 1896 York, Western Australia, Australia |
| Died | 14 June 1982 (aged 86) Hollywood, California, U.S. |
| Other names |
|
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1917–1980 |
| Spouse |
William Cady Jr.
(m. 1932; died 1976) |
| Relatives | Enid Bennett (sister) |
Early life
editBennett was born in York in Western Australia. Her sisters Enid (1893–1969)[1] and Catherine (1901–1978)[2] were also Hollywood film actresses.
Career
editBennett began acting in films in 1917 and later made the transition to talking pictures with bit roles in Monsieur Verdoux (1947), Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949), and Washington Story (1952). In 1952, she appeared as Charlie Chaplin's landlady in the film Limelight[3] and later had guest roles on The Great Gildersleeve, Four Star Playhouse, Sergeant Preston of the Yukon, I Love Lucy, Schlitz Playhouse of Stars, and December Bride. Between 1958 and 1961, she appeared as Amanda Comstock in three episodes of ABC's The Real McCoys, starring Walter Brennan. From 1959 to 1961, she was cast ten times as Blossom Kenney on CBS' The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, starring Dwayne Hickman.
During the 1970s, Bennett had television roles on Mission: Impossible, Adam-12, CHiPs, Night Gallery, McMillan & Wife, and Phyllis. She had a role opposite Richard Widmark in the 1973 television film Brock's Last Case. In the 1973 film Charley Varrick, starring Walter Matthau, Bennett portrayed Mrs. Taft, an elderly gardener living in a trailer park who is convinced that every man she meets wants to seduce her. Bennett also appeared in several television commercials in the 1970s. She made her last on-screen appearance in 1980 on ABC's Barney Miller series.
Personal life
editBennett was married to William Cady Jr., from 1932 until his death in 1976.[4]
Bennett died in Hollywood, California, on 14 June 1982,[5] and her ashes were interred in the Great Mausoleum's Columbarium of Dawn at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale.
Filmography
edit| Film | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1917 | The Girl, Glory | Sally Barton | Credited as Margery Bennett |
| 1918 | Naughty, Naughty! | Prudence Sampson | |
| 1918 | Hugon, The Mighty | Marie | |
| 1918 | The Midnight Patrol | Minnie | |
| 1946 | Dressed to Kill | Antique shop assistant | Uncredited |
| 1947 | Monsieur Verdoux | Maid of Marie Grosnay | |
| 1948 | To the Victor | Pablo's Model | Uncredited |
| 1948 | Silver River | Large Woman | Uncredited |
| 1948 | The Big Punch | Housekeeper | Uncredited |
| 1948 | June Bride | Mrs. Nellie Brinker | |
| 1949 | Flaxy Martin | Nora's Neighbor | Uncredited |
| 1949 | Take One False Step | Waitress | Uncredited |
| 1949 | Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff | Second Maid | Uncredited |
| 1949 | Undertow | Wife at bar in Vegas | Uncredited |
| 1950 | Perfect Strangers | Mrs. Moore | |
| 1950 | Peggy | Flossie the Maid | Uncredited |
| 1950 | Two Flags West | Mrs. Simpkins | Uncredited |
| 1950 | The Man Who Cheated Himself | Mrs. Muriel Quimby | |
| 1951 | Lightning Strikes Twice | Drug Store Customer | Uncredited |
| 1952 | The Congregation | ||
| 1952 | Washington Story | Woman with Pass | Uncredited |
| 1952 | Limelight | Mrs. Alsop | |
| 1952 | The Steel Trap | Cleaning Woman | Uncredited |
| 1953 | Never Wave at a WAC | Mrs. Martha Pratt | Uncredited |
| 1953 | Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde | Militant Woman on Soapbox | Uncredited |
| 1953 | So Big | Housekeeper | Uncredited |
| 1954 | Ma and Pa Kettle at Home | Corset Saleslady | Uncredited |
| 1954 | Sabrina | Margaret | |
| 1954 | The Human Jungle | Mrs. Lee | Uncredited |
| 1954 | Ricochet Romance | Mrs. Harvey | |
| 1954 | Young at Heart | Mrs. Ridgefield | Uncredited |
| 1955 | Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops | Fat Movie Patron | Uncredited |
| 1955 | Kiss Me Deadly | Manager | |
| 1955 | The Cobweb | Sadie | |
| 1955 | Lay That Rifle Down | Mrs. Speckleton | Uncredited |
| 1955 | Female on the Beach | Mrs. Murchison | |
| 1955 | The Girl Rush | Woman at Dice Table | |
| 1956 | Our Miss Brooks | Mrs. J. Boynton | Uncredited |
| 1956 | Autumn Leaves | Waitress | |
| 1956 | Strange Intruder | Jodie, Carmichaels' maid | |
| 1956 | The Girl He Left Behind | Madeline's Friend | Uncredited |
| 1956 | Death of a Scoundrel | Angry Woman | Uncredited |
| 1957 | The Iron Sheriff | Nettie Holcomb | Uncredited |
| 1957 | Shoot-Out at Medicine Bend | Townswoman | Uncredited |
| 1957 | Man of a Thousand Faces | Vera, Housekeeper | Uncredited |
| 1958 | Man on Fire | Mrs. Delaney | Uncredited |
| 1958 | Cry Terror! | Woman in Elevator | Uncredited |
| 1958 | Home Before Dark | Hazel Evans | |
| 1959 | No Name on the Bullet | Store Customer | Uncredited |
| 1959 | Holiday for Lovers | Elvira | Uncredited |
| 1959 | Have Rocket, Will Travel | Mrs. Hermine Huntingford | Uncredited |
| 1959 | Career | Fan Magazine Columnist | |
| 1960 | The Rat Race | Mrs. Edie Kerry | |
| 1960 | Ocean's 11 | Mrs. Allenby | Uncredited |
| 1961 | One Hundred and One Dalmatians | Duchess | Voice |
| 1961 | A Thunder of Drums | Mrs. Yates | |
| 1961 | Summer and Smoke | Saleslady | Uncredited |
| 1961 | Sail a Crooked Ship | Mrs. Chowder | |
| 1962 | Saintly Sinners | Mrs. Madigan | Uncredited |
| 1962 | The Notorious Landlady | Autograph Seeker | Uncredited |
| 1962 | What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? | Dehlia Flagg | |
| 1962 | Girls! Girls! Girls! | Mrs. Dicks | Uncredited |
| 1963 | Promises! Promises! | Mrs. Snavely | |
| 1963 | 4 for Texas | Miss Emmaline | |
| 1963 | The Man from Galveston | Mrs. Warren | |
| 1964 | What a Way to Go! | Mrs. Freeman | Uncredited |
| 1964 | 3 Nuts in Search of a Bolt | Mrs. Berkeley-Kent | |
| 1964 | The New Interns | Apartment Superintendent | Uncredited |
| 1964 | Mary Poppins | Miss Lark | |
| 1964 | Quick Before It Melts | Bar Maid | |
| 1964 | My Fair Lady | Cockney with Pipe | Uncredited |
| 1964 | 36 Hours | Charwoman | |
| 1964 | The Night Walker | Manager | |
| 1965 | Zebra in the Kitchen | Hefty Woman | Uncredited |
| 1965 | The Family Jewels | Airline Passenger #5 | |
| 1966 | Billy the Kid Versus Dracula | Mary Ann Bentley | |
| 1966 | The Swinger | Philbert's Wife | Uncredited |
| 1967 | The Reluctant Astronaut | Woman at Mailbox | Uncredited |
| 1967 | Games | Nora | |
| 1968 | Coogan's Bluff | Mrs. Fowler, Little Old Lady | |
| 1968 | Creature of Comfort | ||
| 1969 | The Love God? | Miss Pickering | |
| 1971 | Calliope | Snoopy lady | Alternative title: Love Is Catching |
| 1973 | Stacey | Florence Chambers | |
| 1973 | Charley Varrick | Mrs. Taft | Alternative title: Kill Charley Varrick |
| 1974 | Harrad Summer | ||
| 1974 | Airport 1975 | 50th Anniversary Celebrant – Passenger | |
| 1975 | I Wonder Who's Killing Her Now? | Sleepy Bartender | |
| 1979 | The North Avenue Irregulars | Mother Thurber | Alternative title: Hill's Angels |
| Television | |||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1951 | The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok | Widow | Season 1 Episode 8: "The Tax Collecting Story" |
| 1952 | Racket Squad | Mrs. Fogarty | Season 3 Episode 6: "Beauty for Hire" |
| 1953 | The Pride of the Family | Mrs. Mallory | Season 1 Episode 5: "Albie Sells the House" |
| 1953 | I Married Joan | Aquarium Society Woman | Season 2 Episode 5: "Tropical Fish" |
| 1953 | I Married Joan | Miss Patterson | Season 2 Episode 7: "Initiation" |
| 1954 | My Little Margie | Miss Flannigan / The Old Lady Robber | Season 3 Episode 25: "Margie Babysits" |
| 1954 | Lassie | Birdie Brockway (uncredited) | Season 1 Episode 7: "Feud" |
| 1954 | Lassie | Birdie Brockway (uncredited) | Season 1 Episode 13: "Sale of Lassie" |
| 1955 | I Married Joan | Ruth | Season 3 Episode 24: "How to Win Friends" |
| 1955–1958 | The Bob Cummings Show | Mrs. Neimeyer | 6 episodes |
| 1956 | Lassie | Birdie Brockway | Season 2 Episode 27: "Lassie's Double" |
| 1956 | Lassie | Birdie Brockway | Season 2 Episode 38: "Diane" |
| 1956 | Cheyenne | Mrs. Smallwood | Season 1 Episode 7: "Decision" |
| 1957 | Lassie | Birdie Brockway (uncredited) | Season 4 Episode 13: "Transition" |
| 1957 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Cake Lady (uncredited) | Season 2 Episode 33: "A Man Greatly Beloved" |
| 1957 | The Ford Television Theatre | Mrs. Morris | Season 5 Episode 25: "The Man Across the Hall" |
| 1957–1959 | The Thin Man | Mrs. Blascombe | 6 episodes |
| 1958 | Trackdown | Hetty Lake | Season 2 Episode 2: "Outlaw's Wife" |
| 1958–1962 | The Real McCoys | Amanda Comstock | 5 episodes |
| 1959 | Buckskin | Mrs. Newcombe | Season 1 Episode 35: "The Manager" |
| 1959-1961 | The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis | Blossom Kenney | 10 episodes |
| 1960 | Adventures in Paradise | Agnes Higgins | Season 2 Episode 12: "Incident in Suva" |
| 1960 | The Twilight Zone | Old Woman | Season 1 Episode 31: "The Chaser" |
| 1960 | The Tom Ewell Show | Flora Roberts | Season 1 Episode 9: "Site Unseen" |
| 1961 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Elderly Woman | Season 7 Episode 3: "Maria" |
| 1961 | Hong Kong | Matron | 1 episode |
| 1962 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Mrs. Phelan the Maid (uncredited) | Season 7 Episode 36: "First Class Honeymoon" |
| 1962 | The Twilight Zone | Mrs. Summers | Season 3 Episode 21: "Kick the Can" |
| 1962 | Thriller | Mercedes | Season 2 Episode 29: "The Lethal Ladies" |
| 1963 | The Twilight Zone | Mrs. Chamberlain | Season 4 Episode 10: "No Time Like the Past" |
| 1963 | The Joey Bishop Show | Mrs. Fenton | Season 2 Episode 21: "Ellie, the Talent Scout" |
| 1964 | The Alfred Hitchcock Hour | Plump Lady | Season 2 Episode 24: "The Gentleman Caller" |
| 1964 | The Beverly Hillbillies | Mrs. Langwell | Season 2 Episode 29: "The Dress Shop" |
| 1965 | Petticoat Junction | Miss Hogan | Season 3 Episode 9: "Hooterville Hurricane" |
| 1966 | That Girl | Credited as Woman (Rose from Yonkers) | Season 1 Episode 12 "Soap Gets In Your Eyes" |
| 1966 | Hey, Landlord | Mrs. Fritzell | Season 1 Episode 15: "How're You Gonna Keep 'em Down, After They've Seen the Rug" |
| 1967 | Ironside | Hotel Clerk | Season 1 Episode 7: "Tagged for Murder" |
| 1968 | The Virginian | Soapie | Season 7 Episode 11: "The Mustangers" |
| 1969 | The Mothers-in-Law | Lucille | Season 2 Episode 26: "The Not-So-Grand Opera" |
| 1969 | Room 222 | The Supervisor | Season 1 Episode 11: "Alice in Blunderland" |
| 1970 | The Mod Squad | Mrs. MacCready | Season 2 Episode 15: "Sweet Child of Terror" |
| 1971 | The Mod Squad | Landlady | Season 4 Episode 13: "Death of a Nobody" |
| 1971 | Nanny and the Professor | Aunt Agatha | Season 2 Episode 19: "The Balloon Ladies" |
| 1971 | Adam-12 | Mrs. Sarah Pierce | Season 3 Episode 21: "Log 164: The Poachers" |
| 1972 | O'Hara, U.S. Treasury | Agnes Howett | Season 1 Episode 15: "Operation: Lady Luck" |
| 1973 | The Rookies | Mrs. Gleason | Season 2 Episode 13: "Another Beginning for Ben Fuller" |
| 1974 | Rhoda | Mrs. Fosner | Season 1 Episode 10: "The Honeymoon" |
| 1974 | Happy Days | Mrs. Harrison | Season 2 Episode 11: "Guess Who's Coming to Christmas" |
| 1975 | Happy Days | Lady | Season 2 Episode 20: "Fish and the Fins" |
| 1975 | Barney Miller | Mrs. Richline | Season 1 Episode 6: "The Stakeout" |
| 1976 | Sherlock Holmes in New York | Mrs. Martha Hudson | Television film |
| 1977 | CHiPs | Mrs. Downey | Season 1 Episode 6: "Baby Food" |
| 1977 | CHiPs | Mrs. Downey | Season 1 Episode 7: "Taking Its Toll" |
| 1978 | CHiPs | Margaret Downey | Season 1 Episode 16: "Vintage '54" |
| 1979 | Better Late Then Never | Marjorie Crane | Television film |
| 1980 | Barney Miller | Miss Stratton | Season 7 Episode 1: "Homicide: Part 1" (final appearance) |
References
edit- ^ Katz, Ephraim (1994). The Film Encyclopedia: The Most Comprehensive Encyclopedia of World Cinema in a Single Volume (2 ed.). HarperCollins Publishers. pp. 112. ISBN 0-06-273089-4.
- ^ Catherine Bennett, entry at Internet Movie Database, retrieved 13 May 2013
- ^ "Chaplin Is Almost Himself Again". The Sunday Herald. 9 December 1951. p. 4. Retrieved 6 September 2010.
- ^ Kevin Thomas, "Cheerful Little Old Lady long active as an actress," The Los Angeles Times (reprinted in The Tuscaloosa News, 24 August 1977, p. 34
- ^ "Marjorie Bennett Dead at 87; Acted in Chaplin's 'Limelight'". The New York Times. 22 June 1982. Retrieved 6 September 2010.