Mothers, Mammies and Old Maids: Twenty-Five Character Actresses of Golden Age Hollywood

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Continuing the exploration which began in Actresses of a Certain Character: Forty Familiar Faces from the Thirties to the Fifties (McFarland, 2006), this companion volume analyzes the contributions of female supporting players in the films of Hollywood’s Golden Age. The twenty-five actresses profiled herein range from the easily recognizable (Marie Dressler, Ethel Waters) to the long forgotten (Esther Howard, Evelyn Varden), and from the prolific (Clara Blandick, Mary Forbes) to the
one-work wonders
(Jane Cowl, Queenie Vassar). Overall, this survey focuses upon the typical roles available to character actresses in classic Hollywood films. Each profile captures the essence of the individual performer’s on-screen persona, unique talents and popular appeal–with special emphasis on the single definitive performance of the actress’s motion picture career (who, for example, could ever forget Josephine Hull in Harvey?). The appendix offers a list of
The Top 100 Performances by Character Actresses in Hollywood, 1930-1960.