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IMDbPro

Glenda Farrell(1904-1971)

  • Actress
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Glenda Farrell in I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932)
Official Trailer
Play trailer2:07
The Disorderly Orderly (1964)
12 Videos
99+ Photos
Glenda Farrell began as the archetypal wisecracking blonde in 1930s gangland films like Little Caesar (1931) and I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932). Diminutive, grey-eyed and undeniably sassy, she was a seasoned performer long before Warner Brothers snapped her up as a contract player in 1929. She made her debut on the stage as a 7 year-old playing Little Eva in "Uncle Tom's Cabin". Via provincial theatre Glenda eventually made her way to Broadway where she scored a palpable hit in "Life Begins" (later recreating her role for the screen). That attracted the Hollywood talent scouts and her movie contract followed in due course. Though seemingly destined for typecasting as hardboiled gangster molls, showgirls and gold diggers, it was her role as fast-talking, resourceful girl reporter Torchy Blane in her own series of films (beginning with Smart Blonde (1936)) that made her a star, albeit a minor one. She later recalled "Warners never made you feel you were just a member of the cast. They might star you in one movie and give you a bit part in the next...You were still well paid and you didn't get a star complex. We were a very close group..."

Glenda was also paired with another livewire, Joan Blondell, for a series of high octane, madcap farces which consistently made money at the box office. Inevitably, though, her roles became more and more repetitive. After her contract with Warner Brothers expired, she continued to appear with diminishing effectiveness in films for Universal (1938) and Columbia (1942-44). In the 50s, Glenda made the transition to more mature character roles, alternating screen work with Broadway plays -- pretty much throughout the remainder of her acting career -- eventually winning a Primetime Emmy Award in 1963 as Best Supporting Actress for the television series Ben Casey (1961). She took ill during a stage performance of "Forty Carats" in New York in 1969 and died at her home two years later. As the wife of a former U.S. Army colonel, Glenda became the only actress to be interred in the cemetery of West Point Military Academy.
BornJune 30, 1904
DiedMay 1, 1971(66)
BornJune 30, 1904
DiedMay 1, 1971(66)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • Won 1 Primetime Emmy
    • 2 wins total

Photos239

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+ 233
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Known for

Glenda Farrell and Ben Lyon in Girl Missing (1933)
Girl Missing
6.6
  • Kay Curtis
  • 1933
Glenda Farrell and Barton MacLane in Blondes at Work (1938)
Blondes at Work
6.4
  • Torchy Blane
  • 1938
Glenda Farrell and Barton MacLane in The Adventurous Blonde (1937)
The Adventurous Blonde
6.4
  • Torchy Blane
  • 1937
Joan Blondell, Glenda Farrell, Ethelreda Leopold, Victor Moore, and Dick Powell in Gold Diggers of 1937 (1936)
Gold Diggers of 1937
6.4
  • Genevieve Larkin
  • 1936

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actress



  • Charo and Christopher George in Tiger by the Tail (1970)
    Tiger by the Tail
    5.5
    • Sarah Harvey
    • 1970
  • Elizabeth Montgomery, Agnes Moorehead, and Dick York in Bewitched (1964)
    Bewitched
    7.6
    TV Series
    • Hortense Rockeford
    • 1969
  • The Name of the Game (1968)
    The Name of the Game
    7.6
    TV Series
    • Woman
    • 1968
  • The Felony Squad (1966)
    The Felony Squad
    7.4
    TV Series
    • Jeanette Anderson
    • 1968
  • Directions (1960)
    Directions
    6.4
    TV Series
    • Mother
    • 1966
  • Jerry Lewis and Susan Oliver in The Disorderly Orderly (1964)
    The Disorderly Orderly
    6.3
    • Dr. Jean Howard
    • 1964
  • The Bing Crosby Show (1964)
    The Bing Crosby Show
    6.2
    TV Series
    • Aunt Lulu
    • 1964
  • Bonanza (1959)
    Bonanza
    7.3
    TV Series
    • Lulabelle 'Looney' Watkins
    • 1964
  • Elvis Presley, Teri Garr, Pamela Austin, Yvonne Craig, Lynn Fields, Gail Ganley, Cynthia Pepper, Hortense Petra, and Beverly Powers in Kissin' Cousins (1964)
    Kissin' Cousins
    5.3
    • Ma Tatum
    • 1964
  • David Janssen in The Fugitive (1963)
    The Fugitive
    8.1
    TV Series
    • Mrs. Maggie Lambert
    • 1963
  • Rawhide (1959)
    Rawhide
    7.9
    TV Series
    • Mrs. Elizabeth Farragut
    • 1963
  • Dr. Kildare (1961)
    Dr. Kildare
    7.0
    TV Series
    • Vera Dennis
    • 1963
  • Kraft Theatre (1947)
    The United States Steel Hour
    7.8
    TV Series
    • Grace Smith
    • Mrs. Stevenson
    • Edna Huntington ...
    • 1960–1963
  • Ben Casey (1961)
    Ben Casey
    7.1
    TV Series
    • Martha Morrison
    • 1963
  • George Maharis and Martin Milner in Route 66 (1960)
    Route 66
    7.7
    TV Series
    • Laverne
    • 1962

Soundtrack



  • Elvis Presley, Teri Garr, Pamela Austin, Yvonne Craig, Lynn Fields, Gail Ganley, Cynthia Pepper, Hortense Petra, and Beverly Powers in Kissin' Cousins (1964)
    Kissin' Cousins
    5.3
    • performer: "Pappy, Won't You Please Come Home" (uncredited)
    • 1964
  • Harry Cording, Glenda Farrell, Sheldon Leonard, Tom Neal, Ann Savage, and Constance Worth in Klondike Kate (1943)
    Klondike Kate
    5.8
    • performer: "Keep It Under Your Old Umbrella" (uncredited)
    • 1943
  • Hugh Herbert, Glenda Farrell, Benny Goodman, Ted Healy, Lola Lane, Rosemary Lane, Louella Parsons, and Dick Powell in Hollywood Hotel (1937)
    Hollywood Hotel
    6.4
    • performer: "Sing, You Son of a Gun" (1937) (uncredited)
    • 1937
  • Glenda Farrell and Barton MacLane in The Adventurous Blonde (1937)
    The Adventurous Blonde
    6.4
    • Soundtrack ("The Wedding March" (1843))
    • 1937
  • Joan Blondell, Glenda Farrell, Ethelreda Leopold, Victor Moore, and Dick Powell in Gold Diggers of 1937 (1936)
    Gold Diggers of 1937
    6.4
    • performer: "Speaking of the Weather" (1936), "Let's Put Our Heads Together" (1936)
    • 1936
  • Sybil Jason and Jesse Scott in Little Big Shot (1935)
    Little Big Shot
    6.2
    • Soundtrack ("I'm a Little Big Shot Now" (1935), uncredited)
    • 1935
  • Joan Blondell, Hugh Herbert, and Glenda Farrell in We're in the Money (1935)
    We're in the Money
    6.3
    • performer: "The Gold Diggers' Song (We're in the Money)" (1933) (uncredited)
    • 1935
  • Gold Diggers of 1935 (1935)
    Gold Diggers of 1935
    6.8
    • performer: "The Gold Diggers' Song (We're in the Money)" (1933) (uncredited)
    • 1935
  • Spencer Tracy and Loretta Young in Man's Castle (1933)
    Man's Castle
    7.1
    • performer: "Surprise!"
    • 1933
  • Glenda Farrell, Guy Kibbee, Barry Norton, Jean Parker, May Robson, and Warren William in Lady for a Day (1933)
    Lady for a Day
    7.4
    • performer: "I Wanna Man" (uncredited)
    • 1933
  • Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933)
    Mystery of the Wax Museum
    6.8
    • performer: "The Prisoner's Song" (1925) (uncredited)
    • 1933
  • Eric Linden and Loretta Young in Life Begins (1932)
    Life Begins
    6.5
    • performer: "Frankie and Johnny" (uncredited)
    • 1932

Videos12

Trailer
Trailer 2:29
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 1:30
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 1:30
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 1:31
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 1:42
Trailer
Restoration Preview
Trailer 3:32
Restoration Preview
Smart Blonde
Trailer 1:07
Smart Blonde

Personal details

Edit
  • Height
    • 5′ 3″ (1.60 m)
  • Born
    • June 30, 1904
    • Enid, Oklahoma, USA
  • Died
    • May 1, 1971
    • New York City, New York, USA(lung cancer)
  • Spouses
      Dr. Henry RossJanuary 19, 1941 - May 1, 1971 (her death)
  • Children
    • Tommy Farrell
  • Parents
      Wilhelmina Farrell
  • Relatives
      Gene Farrell(Sibling)
  • Other works
    Active on Broadway in the following productions:
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Print Biography
    • 1 Interview
    • 4 Articles
    • 3 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    The fast-talking reporter Torchy Blane, who Farrell played in a series of movies, was the inspiration for Lois Lane.
  • Quotes
    [on the arrival of talkies] Not many actors could talk. So they shoved the ones that came from Broadway into everything. It all went so fast. I used to ask myself, 'What set am I on today? What script am I supposed to be doing - this one or that one? All I shouted for was a day off. We got it Sunday. But I had to stay in bed that one day to get ready for the next six days of shooting. I wonder if Jack Warner appreciated his movie-acting family?
  • Trademark
      Glenda Farrell is Torchy Blane

FAQ

Powered by Alexa
  • When did Glenda Farrell die?
    May 1, 1971
  • How did Glenda Farrell die?
    Lung cancer
  • How old was Glenda Farrell when she died?
    66 years old
  • Where did Glenda Farrell die?
    New York City, New York, USA
  • When was Glenda Farrell born?
    June 30, 1904

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