Ann Marie Blyth is an American actress and singer, often cast in
Hollywood musicalsMusical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
, but also successful in dramatic roles. Her performance as Veda Pierce in the 1945 film
Mildred PierceMildred Pierce is a 1945 American drama film starring Joan Crawford, Ann Blyth, Jack Carson, Zachary Scott, and Eve Arden in a film noir about a long-suffering mother and her ungrateful daughter. The screenplay by Ranald MacDougall, William Faulkner, and Catherine Turney was based upon the 1941...
was nominated for an
Academy Award for Best Supporting ActressPerformance by an Actress in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
.
Life and career
Blyth was born in
Mount Kisco, New YorkMount Kisco is a community that is both a village and a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The Town of Mount Kisco is coterminous with the village. The population was 10,877 at the 2010 census.- History :...
, to parents who divorced shortly after her birth. She was raised a devout Roman Catholic by her mother. Blyth began her acting career initially as "Anne Blyth," changing the spelling of her name back to the original (Ann) at the beginning of her film career. Her first acting role was on Broadway in
Watch on the RhineWatch on the Rhine is a 1943 American drama film directed by Herman Shumlin. The screenplay by Dashiell Hammett is based on the 1941 play of the same title by Lillian Hellman.-Plot:...
(from 1941 until 1942). She was signed to a contract with
Universal StudiosUniversal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
, and made her film debut in
Chip Off the Old BlockChip Off the Old Block is 1944 American film starring Donald O'Connor, Peggy Ryan, and Ann Blyth. In the story, the son of a strict man from the Navy falls in love with a girl from a performing family . In the end, the families learn to except their differences and they are allowed to be in love...
in
1944The year 1944 in film involved some significant events, including the wholesome, award-winning Going My Way plus popular murder mysteries such as Double Indemnity, Gaslight and Laura.-Events:*July 20 - Since You Went Away is released....
. In musical films such as
Babes on Swing Street, and
Bowery to BroadwayBowery to Broadway is a 1944 American film starring Maria Montez, Jack Oakie, and Susanna Foster. Donald O'Connor and Peggy Ryan also had a small specialty act, and it was the only film they were in together where they didn't have a name or character....
(both 1944), she played the part of the sweet and demure teenager.
On loan to Warner Brothers, Blyth was cast against
typeIn TV, film, and theatre, typecasting is the process by which a particular actor becomes strongly identified with a specific character; one or more particular roles; or, characters having the same traits or coming from the same social or ethnic groups...
as Veda Pierce, the scheming, ungrateful daughter of
Joan CrawfordJoan Crawford , born Lucille Fay LeSueur, was an American actress in film, television and theatre....
in the
1945The year 1945 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* Paramount Studios releases theatrical short cartoon titled The Friendly Ghost, featuring a ghost named Casper.* With Rossellini's Roma Città aperta, Italian neorealist cinema begins....
film
Mildred PierceMildred Pierce is a 1945 American drama film starring Joan Crawford, Ann Blyth, Jack Carson, Zachary Scott, and Eve Arden in a film noir about a long-suffering mother and her ungrateful daughter. The screenplay by Ranald MacDougall, William Faulkner, and Catherine Turney was based upon the 1941...
. Her dramatic portrayal won her outstanding reviews and she received a nomination for an
Academy Award for Best Supporting ActressPerformance by an Actress in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
. (Crawford won the Best Actress award for that film.)
Having injured her back after
Mildred Pierce, Blyth was not able to capitalize on its success completely, although she was still able to make a few films. She played the part of Regina Hubbard in
Another Part of the Forest (a 1948
prequelA prequel is a work that supplements a previously completed one, and has an earlier time setting.The widely recognized term was a 20th-century neologism, and a portmanteau from pre- and sequel...
to
The Little FoxesThe Little Foxes is a 1939 play by Lillian Hellman. Its title comes from Chapter 2, Verse 15 in the Song of Solomon in the King James version of the Bible, which reads, "Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes." Set in a small town in Alabama in...
), and achieved success playing a
mermaidA mermaid is a mythological aquatic creature with a female human head, arms, and torso and the tail of a fish. A male version of a mermaid is known as a "merman" and in general both males and females are known as "merfolk"...
in
Mr. Peabody and the MermaidMr. Peabody and the Mermaid is a 1948 fantasy film starring William Powell and Ann Blyth in the title roles. Irene Hervey played Mr. Peabody's wife.- Plot :...
. Her other films include :
Our Very OwnOur Very Own is a 1950 American drama film directed by David Miller. The screenplay by F. Hugh Herbert focuses on a teenaged girl who learns she was adopted as an infant.-Plot:...
(with
Farley GrangerFarley Earle Granger was an American actor. In a career spanning several decades, he was perhaps best known for his two collaborations with Alfred Hitchcock, Rope in 1948 and Strangers on a Train in 1951.-Early life:...
),
The Great CarusoThe Great Caruso is a 1951 biographical film made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed by Richard Thorpe and produced by Joe Pasternak with Jesse L. Lasky as associate producer from a screenplay by Sonya Levien and William Ludwig. The original music was by Johnny Green and the cinematography by...
(with
Mario Lanzaright|thumb|[[MGM]] still, circa 1949Mario Lanza was an American tenor and Hollywood movie star of the late 1940s and the 1950s. The son of Italian emigrants, he began studying to be a professional singer at the age of 16....
),
One Minute to Zero (with
Robert MitchumRobert Charles Durman Mitchum was an American film actor, author, composer and singer and is #23 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male American screen legends of all time...
),
The World in His ArmsThe World in His Arms is a 1952 seafaring adventure film made by Universal International Pictures. It was directed by Raoul Walsh and produced byAaron Rosenberg from a screenplay by Borden Chase and Horace McCoy, based on the novel by Rex Beach...
(with
Gregory PeckEldred Gregory Peck was an American actor.One of 20th Century Fox's most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1960s, Peck continued to play important roles well into the 1980s. His notable performances include that of Atticus Finch in the 1962 film To Kill a Mockingbird, for which he won an...
),
Rose MarieRose Marie is an American actress. As a child performer she had a successful singing career as Baby Rose Marie....
,
The Student PrinceThe Student Prince is a 1954 CinemaScope color film musical featuring, as the credits read, "the singing voice of Mario Lanza". Lanza had become embroiled in a bitter dispute with MGM during production and the studio dismissed him. Under the terms of the settlement with Lanza, MGM retained the...
,
KismetKismet is an American musical film in Cinemascope and Eastman Color released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It is the fourth movie version of Kismet—the first was released in 1920 and the second in 1930 by Warner Brothers—and the second released by MGM...
,
The Buster Keaton Story, and
The Helen Morgan StoryThe Helen Morgan Story is a 1957 American biographical film directed by Michael Curtiz starring Ann Blyth and Paul Newman.The screenplay by Oscar Saul, Dean Riesner, Stephen Longstreet, and Nelson Gidding is based on the life and career of torch singer/actress Helen Morgan, with fictional touches...
(with
Paul NewmanPaul Leonard Newman was an American actor, film director, entrepreneur, humanitarian, professional racing driver and auto racing enthusiast...
). Even though her voice was more like the original Helen Morgan, her vocals were dubbed by Gogi Grant, a popular singer at the time. That soundtrack was much more successful than the film itself.
During the late 1950s and 1960s, Blyth worked in musical theater,
summer stockFor the article about the theatre genre, see Summer stock theatre.Summer Stock is a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musical made in 1950. The film was directed by Charles Walters and stars Judy Garland, Gene Kelly, Eddie Bracken, Gloria DeHaven, Marjorie Main, and Phil Silvers...
, and
televisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
, including a starring role in a 1960
adaptationThe Citadel is a 1960 American television adaptation of A. J. Cronin's 1937 novel, The Citadel. It was written by Dale Wasserman and starred James Donald as Dr. Manson and Ann Blyth as Christine Barlow...
of
A. J. CroninArchibald Joseph Cronin was a Scottish physician and novelist. His best-known works are Hatter's Castle, The Stars Look Down, The Citadel, The Keys of the Kingdom and The Green Years, all of which were adapted to film. He also created the Dr...
's
The CitadelThe Citadel is a novel by A. J. Cronin, first published in 1937, which was groundbreaking with its treatment of the contentious theme of medical ethics. It is credited with laying the foundation in Great Britain for the introduction of the NHS a decade later...
. She guest starred on October 8, 1958, on
NBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie FordThe Ford Show is a half-hour comedy/variety program, starring singer and folk humorist Tennessee Ernie Ford, which aired in color on NBC television on Thursday evenings from October 4, 1956 to June 29, 1961....
, the episode in which the 1959 Ford vehicles were introduced to the public.
She appeared as the character Martha in "Suspected" in December 1959 in the CBS anthology series
The DuPont Show with June AllysonThe DuPont Show with June Allyson is an American anthology drama series which aired on CBS from September 21, 1959 to April 3, 1961 with rebroadcasts continuing until June 12, 1961...
. Blyth also became the
spokespersonA spokesperson or spokesman or spokeswoman is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others.In the present media-sensitive world, many organizations are increasingly likely to employ professionals who have received formal training in journalism, communications, public relations and...
for Hostess Cupcakes. Her most recent television appearances came in episodes of
Jack KlugmanJacob Joachim "Jack" Klugman is an American stage, film and television actor known for his roles in sitcoms, movies, and television and on Broadway...
's
QuincyQuincy, M.E., also called Quincy, is a United States television series from Universal Studios that aired from October 3, 1976, to September 5, 1983, on NBC...
in 1983 and
Angela LansburyAngela Brigid Lansbury CBE is an English actress and singer in theatre, television and motion pictures, whose career has spanned eight decades and earned her more performance Tony Awards than any other individual , with five wins...
's
Murder, She WroteMurder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
in 1985.
Blyth has a star on the
Hollywood Walk of FameThe Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
for her contribution to motion pictures at 6733 Hollywood Boulevard.
Blyth married James McNulty, brother of singer
Dennis DayDennis Day born Owen Patrick Eugene McNulty, was an Irish-American singer and radio, television and film personality.-Early life:...
, in 1953. The couple had five children. She is known as one of the more famous residents of the celebrity enclave of Toluca Lake, California.
Filmography
Film
| Year |
Title |
Role |
Notes |
| 1944 |
Chip Off the Old Block Chip Off the Old Block is 1944 American film starring Donald O'Connor, Peggy Ryan, and Ann Blyth. In the story, the son of a strict man from the Navy falls in love with a girl from a performing family . In the end, the families learn to except their differences and they are allowed to be in love...
|
Glory Marlow III |
|
| The Merry Monahans The Merry Monahans is a 1944, American, black-and-white film starring Donald O'Connor, Peggy Ryan, and Jack Oakie. The story is of a vaudeville family trying to make money through hard times. The film features the great song and dance duet with O'Connor and Ryan, "I Hate To Lose You"....
|
Sheila DeRoyce |
|
| Babes on Swing Street |
Carol Curtis |
|
| Bowery to Broadway Bowery to Broadway is a 1944 American film starring Maria Montez, Jack Oakie, and Susanna Foster. Donald O'Connor and Peggy Ryan also had a small specialty act, and it was the only film they were in together where they didn't have a name or character....
|
Bessie Jo Kirby |
|
| 1945 |
Mildred PierceMildred Pierce is a 1945 American drama film starring Joan Crawford, Ann Blyth, Jack Carson, Zachary Scott, and Eve Arden in a film noir about a long-suffering mother and her ungrateful daughter. The screenplay by Ranald MacDougall, William Faulkner, and Catherine Turney was based upon the 1941...
|
Veda Pierce Forrester |
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
Nomination |
| 1946 |
Swell Guy Swell Guy is a 1946 American film that was directed by Frank Tuttle. The film's screenplay by Richard Brooks is based on the play of the same name by Gilbert Emery...
|
Marian Tyler |
|
| 1947 |
Brute ForceBrute Force is a brooding, brutal film noir, starring Burt Lancaster, Hume Cronyn and Charles Bickford. It was directed by Jules Dassin, with a screenplay by Richard Brooks and the cinematography by William H. Daniels....
|
Ruth |
|
| Killer McCoy |
Sheila Carrson |
|
| 1948 |
A Woman's Vengeance A Woman's Vengeance is a film directed by Zoltán Korda, with a screenplay by Aldous Huxley based on his short story "The Gioconda Smile", and starring Charles Boyer, Ann Blyth, Jessica Tandy, Cedric Hardwicke, Rachel Kempson, and Mildred Natwick. The film was released by Universal Studios....
|
Doris Mead |
Alternative title: The Gioconda Smile |
| Another Part of the Forest Another Part of the Forest is a 1948 American drama film directed by Michael Gordon. The screenplay by is based on the 1946 play of the same name by Lillian Hellman, which was a prequel to her 1939 drama The Little Foxes.-Plot:...
|
Regina Hubbard |
|
| Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid is a 1948 fantasy film starring William Powell and Ann Blyth in the title roles. Irene Hervey played Mr. Peabody's wife.- Plot :...
|
Lenore the Mermaid |
|
| 1949 |
Red Canyon |
Lucy Bostel |
|
| Top o' the Morning |
Conn McNaughton |
|
| Once More, My Darling Once More, My Darling is a 1949 American comedy film directed by and starring Robert Montgomery. The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Sound Recording .-Cast:* Robert Montgomery as Collier 'Collie' Laing...
|
Marita Connell |
|
| Free for All |
Ann Abbott |
|
| 1950 |
Our Very Own Our Very Own is a 1950 American drama film directed by David Miller. The screenplay by F. Hugh Herbert focuses on a teenaged girl who learns she was adopted as an infant.-Plot:...
|
Gail Macaulay |
|
| 1951 |
Katie Did It |
Katherine Standish |
|
| The Great Caruso The Great Caruso is a 1951 biographical film made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed by Richard Thorpe and produced by Joe Pasternak with Jesse L. Lasky as associate producer from a screenplay by Sonya Levien and William Ludwig. The original music was by Johnny Green and the cinematography by...
|
Dorothy Benjamin |
|
| Thunder on the Hill Thunder on the Hill is a 1951 mystery drama film made by Universal International Pictures. It was directed by Douglas Sirk and produced by Michael Kraike, from a screenplay by Oscar Saul and Andrew Solt, based on the play Bonaventure by Charlotte Hastings. The music score was by Hans J. Salter and...
|
Valerie Carns |
Alternative title: Bonaventure |
| The Golden Horde The Golden Horde is a 1951 Historical Adventure film directed by George Sherman and starring Ann Blyth and David Farrar. Many of the exterior scenes were shot in Death Valley National Park, California, USA.-Plot synopsis:...
|
Princess Shalimar |
Alternative title: The Golden Horde of Genghis Khan |
| The House in the Square The House in the Square, also titled I'll Never Forget You and Man of Two Worlds, is a 1951 science fiction film about an American atomic scientist who is transported to the 18th century, where he falls in love. It starred Tyrone Power and Ann Blyth. It was adapted from the play Berkeley Square by...
|
Helen Pettigrew/Martha Forsyth |
Alternative titles: I'll Never Forget You (USA)
Man of Two Worlds |
| 1952 |
Sally and Saint Anne |
Sally O'Moyne |
|
| One Minute to Zero One Minute to Zero is a romantic war film starring Robert Mitchum and Ann Blyth set during the Korean War. Victor Young's score includes the first recording of the love theme "When I Fall In Love" , which became a popular hit song recorded by a variety of artists.-Plot:Just prior to the North...
|
Mrs. Landa Day |
|
| The World in His Arms The World in His Arms is a 1952 seafaring adventure film made by Universal International Pictures. It was directed by Raoul Walsh and produced byAaron Rosenberg from a screenplay by Borden Chase and Horace McCoy, based on the novel by Rex Beach...
|
Countess Marina Selanova |
|
| 1953 |
All the Brothers Were Valiant All the Brothers Were Valiant is a 1953 adventure drama film made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer , based on the 1919 novel All the Brothers Were Valiant by Ben Ames Williams...
|
Priscilla "Pris" Holt |
|
| 1954 |
Rose MarieThe 1924 Broadway musical Rose-Marie has been the basis of three MGM films of the same title. The best-known film adaptation was released in 1936; however, a silent version was released in 1928 and another film was released in 1954. All three versions are set in the Canadian wilderness...
|
Rose Marie Lemaitre |
|
| The Student Prince The Student Prince is a 1954 CinemaScope color film musical featuring, as the credits read, "the singing voice of Mario Lanza". Lanza had become embroiled in a bitter dispute with MGM during production and the studio dismissed him. Under the terms of the settlement with Lanza, MGM retained the...
|
Kathie Ruder |
|
| 1955 |
The King's Thief The King's Thief is a 1955 swashbuckling adventure film directed by Robert Z. Leonard. Released on August 5, 1955, the film takes place in London at the time of Charles II and stars Ann Blyth, Edmund Purdom, David Niven, and George Sanders.-Plot:...
|
Lady Mary |
|
| Kismet Kismet is an American musical film in Cinemascope and Eastman Color released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It is the fourth movie version of Kismet—the first was released in 1920 and the second in 1930 by Warner Brothers—and the second released by MGM...
|
Marsinah |
|
| 1956 |
Slander |
Connie |
|
| 1957 |
The Buster Keaton Story |
Gloria Brent |
|
| The Helen Morgan Story The Helen Morgan Story is a 1957 American biographical film directed by Michael Curtiz starring Ann Blyth and Paul Newman.The screenplay by Oscar Saul, Dean Riesner, Stephen Longstreet, and Nelson Gidding is based on the life and career of torch singer/actress Helen Morgan, with fictional touches...
|
Helen Morgan |
Alternative titles: Both Ends of the Candle
Why Was I Born? |
Television
| Year |
Title |
Role |
Notes |
| 1954 |
Lux Video Theatre Lux Video Theatre, is a weekly television anthology series that was produced from 1950 until 1959. The series presented both comedy and drama in original teleplays, as well as abridged adaptations of films and plays....
|
|
1 episode |
| 1958–1963 |
The Christophers |
|
2 episodes |
| 1959 |
The DuPont Show with June Allyson The DuPont Show with June Allyson is an American anthology drama series which aired on CBS from September 21, 1959 to April 3, 1961 with rebroadcasts continuing until June 12, 1961...
|
Martha |
1 episode |
| 1959–1963 |
Wagon TrainWagon Train is an American Western series that ran on NBC from 1957–62 and then on ABC from 1962–65...
|
Various roles |
5 episodes |
| 1960 |
The Citadel |
Christine |
Television movie |
| 1962 |
The Dick Powell Show The Dick Powell Show is an American anthology series that ran on NBC from 1961- 1963, primarily sponsored by the Reynolds Metals Company. It was hosted by longtime film star Dick Powell until his death from lymphatic cancer on January 2, 1963, then by a series of guest hosts until the series ended...
|
Lizzie Hogan |
1 episode |
| 1963 |
Saints and Sinners |
Edith Berlitz |
1 episode |
| 1964 |
The Twilight ZoneThe Twilight Zone is an American television anthology series created by Rod Serling. Each episode is a mixture of self-contained drama, psychological thriller, fantasy, science fiction, suspense, or horror, often concluding with a macabre or unexpected twist...
|
Pamela Morris/Constance Taylor |
1 episode |
| 1964–1965 |
Burke's LawBurke's Law is a detective series that ran on ABC from 1963 to 1965 and was revived on CBS in the 1990s. The show starred Gene Barry as Amos Burke, millionaire captain of Los Angeles police homicide division, who was chauffeured around to solve crimes in his Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud...
|
Deidre DeMara
Valerie |
2 episodes |
| 1965 |
Kraft Suspense Theatre Kraft Suspense Theatre, an anthology series, was telecast from 1963 to 1965 on NBC. Sponsored by Kraft Foods, it was seen three weeks out of every four and was pre-empted for Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall specials once monthly...
|
Lady Mei |
1 episode |
| 1969 |
The Name of the Game The Name of the Game is an American television series starring Tony Franciosa, Gene Barry, and Robert Stack that ran from 1968 to 1971 on NBC, totaling 76 episodes of 90 minutes. It was a pioneering wheel series, setting the stage for the likes of The Bold Ones and the NBC Mystery Movie in the 1970s...
|
Kay Martin |
1 episode |
| 1975 |
Switch Switch is an American action-adventure, tongue-in-cheek detective series starring Eddie Albert and Robert Wagner, who worked as private eyes, for a deceptive sting operation...
|
Miriam Estabrook |
1 episode |
| 1979–1983 |
Quincy, M.E.Quincy, M.E., also called Quincy, is a United States television series from Universal Studios that aired from October 3, 1976, to September 5, 1983, on NBC...
|
Velma Whitehead
Dorothy Blake |
2 episodes |
| 1985 |
Murder, She WroteMurder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
|
Francesca Lodge |
1 episode |
Award nominations
| Year |
Award |
Result |
Category |
Film |
| 1946 |
Academy Award |
Nominated |
Best Supporting Actress Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
|
Mildred Pierce |
| 1958 |
Laurel Awards The Laurel Awards were cinema awards to honor pictures, actors, actresses, directors and composers. This award was created by Motion Picture Exhibitor magazine, and ran from 1958 to 1968, then 1970 and 1971....
|
Top Female Musical Performance |
The Helen Morgan Story |
External links