Marie Wilson(1916-1972)
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Lovely, innocent-looking, well-endowed comedienne Marie Wilson was a
featherbrained delight instantly reminiscent of the zany
Gracie Allen. Unlike Allen, however, Marie
was a knockout--with high cheekbones, a wide slash of a mouth and a
figure that wouldn't quit.
She was born Katherine Elizabeth Wilson on August 19, 1916, in Anaheim,
California. Her family moved to Hollywood after her businessman
father's death and Marie set her sights on an entertainment career
while quite young. Educated at Miss Page School and the Hollywood
Cumnock School for Girls, she found extra work in films upon graduation
and made ends meet at one point by taking a job as a salesgirl in a
department store. Her big break occurred after an "accidental" meeting
with the director Nick Grinde. The relationship
grew intimate, and he was instrumental in the formulation of her early
Hollywood career. She appeared in his comedy short
My Girl Sally (1935) with the inimitable
Sterling Holloway and, to start with,
had an extra part in Grinde's feature film
Ladies Crave Excitement (1935).
After the 18-year-old was cast (unbilled) as Mary, Quite Contrary in
the Stan Laurel and
Oliver Hardy musical fantasy
March of the Wooden Soldiers (1934), Marie
started sharpening up her "dumb blonde" skills. It was Grinde who
helped secure her a contract at Warner Brothers in 1935. She would
stay with the studio for four years. After making her Warners debut in
Broadway Hostess (1935), Marie
adroitly moved around and about the "B"-level chain (along with an
intermittent "A" movie). As the quintessential dizzy, dim-witted foil,
Marie scored in several Prohibition-style entertainment showcases,
including the comedy potboilers
Stars Over Broadway (1935), Miss Pacific Fleet (1935),
Satan Met a Lady (1936),
Melody for Two (1937),
Public Wedding (1937) (directed by
Grinde),
The Great Garrick (1937),
Fools for Scandal (1938),
Boy Meets Girl (1938) (one of her
best),
Broadway Musketeers (1938)
and Sweepstakes Winner (1939).
Her last film for Warners was the forgettable
The Cowboy Quarterback (1939).
Following the termination of her Warners contract in 1939, Marie had
trouble securing film work. As compensation, she found great stage
success as the sexy stooge for impresario
Ken Murray in his extremely popular
Los Angeles "Blackout" vaudeville-style stage shows of the early
1940s. Her mock striptease bit was a particular highlight and she
stayed with the show for an incredible seven years. Intermixed were an
array of film opportunities for various studios:
Rookies on Parade (1941),
She's in the Army (1942),
The Fabulous Joe (1947),
A Girl in Every Port (1952),
Never Wave at a WAC (1953),
Marry Me Again (1953) and her
last,
Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation (1962).
She reached her "dumb blonde" zenith with the successful radio, film
and TV versions of
My Friend Irma (1949). Most of her
subsequent kooky characterizations from then on were patterned on her
Irma persona.
A smart, ambitious woman known to do crazy stunts for publicity, Marie
took to the stage, nightclub and TV circuits once her film career
bottomed out after the spectacular arrival of
Marilyn Monroe. On the road in summer
stock and dinner theater engagements, Marie appeared to find advantage
in such well-suited vehicles as "Bus Stop," "Born Yesterday and
"Gentlemen Prefer Blondes." One of her last roles was in animated form
as a voice in the cartoon
Where's Huddles? (1970).
Married twice, she had an adopted son, Gregson (Greg) via her second
marriage to actor/TV producer
Robert Fallon. Her first, to actor
Allan Nixon, ended in divorce. Marie
had undergone surgery several times for cancer by the time she died at
age 56, surrounded by her family, in 1972.
featherbrained delight instantly reminiscent of the zany
Gracie Allen. Unlike Allen, however, Marie
was a knockout--with high cheekbones, a wide slash of a mouth and a
figure that wouldn't quit.
She was born Katherine Elizabeth Wilson on August 19, 1916, in Anaheim,
California. Her family moved to Hollywood after her businessman
father's death and Marie set her sights on an entertainment career
while quite young. Educated at Miss Page School and the Hollywood
Cumnock School for Girls, she found extra work in films upon graduation
and made ends meet at one point by taking a job as a salesgirl in a
department store. Her big break occurred after an "accidental" meeting
with the director Nick Grinde. The relationship
grew intimate, and he was instrumental in the formulation of her early
Hollywood career. She appeared in his comedy short
My Girl Sally (1935) with the inimitable
Sterling Holloway and, to start with,
had an extra part in Grinde's feature film
Ladies Crave Excitement (1935).
After the 18-year-old was cast (unbilled) as Mary, Quite Contrary in
the Stan Laurel and
Oliver Hardy musical fantasy
March of the Wooden Soldiers (1934), Marie
started sharpening up her "dumb blonde" skills. It was Grinde who
helped secure her a contract at Warner Brothers in 1935. She would
stay with the studio for four years. After making her Warners debut in
Broadway Hostess (1935), Marie
adroitly moved around and about the "B"-level chain (along with an
intermittent "A" movie). As the quintessential dizzy, dim-witted foil,
Marie scored in several Prohibition-style entertainment showcases,
including the comedy potboilers
Stars Over Broadway (1935), Miss Pacific Fleet (1935),
Satan Met a Lady (1936),
Melody for Two (1937),
Public Wedding (1937) (directed by
Grinde),
The Great Garrick (1937),
Fools for Scandal (1938),
Boy Meets Girl (1938) (one of her
best),
Broadway Musketeers (1938)
and Sweepstakes Winner (1939).
Her last film for Warners was the forgettable
The Cowboy Quarterback (1939).
Following the termination of her Warners contract in 1939, Marie had
trouble securing film work. As compensation, she found great stage
success as the sexy stooge for impresario
Ken Murray in his extremely popular
Los Angeles "Blackout" vaudeville-style stage shows of the early
1940s. Her mock striptease bit was a particular highlight and she
stayed with the show for an incredible seven years. Intermixed were an
array of film opportunities for various studios:
Rookies on Parade (1941),
She's in the Army (1942),
The Fabulous Joe (1947),
A Girl in Every Port (1952),
Never Wave at a WAC (1953),
Marry Me Again (1953) and her
last,
Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation (1962).
She reached her "dumb blonde" zenith with the successful radio, film
and TV versions of
My Friend Irma (1949). Most of her
subsequent kooky characterizations from then on were patterned on her
Irma persona.
A smart, ambitious woman known to do crazy stunts for publicity, Marie
took to the stage, nightclub and TV circuits once her film career
bottomed out after the spectacular arrival of
Marilyn Monroe. On the road in summer
stock and dinner theater engagements, Marie appeared to find advantage
in such well-suited vehicles as "Bus Stop," "Born Yesterday and
"Gentlemen Prefer Blondes." One of her last roles was in animated form
as a voice in the cartoon
Where's Huddles? (1970).
Married twice, she had an adopted son, Gregson (Greg) via her second
marriage to actor/TV producer
Robert Fallon. Her first, to actor
Allan Nixon, ended in divorce. Marie
had undergone surgery several times for cancer by the time she died at
age 56, surrounded by her family, in 1972.