Thelma Ritter (February 14, 1902 – February 5, 1969) was an American character actress who, known for her strong New York City accent, diminutive size, and plain look, favored working-class roles. She earned a Tony Award and six Academy Award nominations, more than any other actress in the Best Supporting Actress category.
Thelma Ritter | |
|---|---|
 Ritter in All About Eve (1950) | |
| Born | February 14, 1902 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | February 5, 1969 (aged 66) New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1913–1968 |
| Spouse |
Joseph Moran
(m. 1927) |
| Children | 2 |
These nominations were for her performances in All About Eve (1950), The Mating Season (1951), With a Song in My Heart (1952), Pickup on South Street (1953), Pillow Talk (1959), and Birdman of Alcatraz (1962). Her other film roles include those in Miracle on 34th Street (1947), Rear Window (1954), The Misfits (1961), and How the West Was Won (1962).
Ritter shared the 1958 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for performance in the musical New Girl in Town with her co-star Gwen Verdon. She received a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series nomination for Goodyear Television Playhouse in 1956.
Early and personal life
editRitter was born in Brooklyn, New York, on February 14, 1902, the first child of Charles and Lucy Ritter.[1][2] Her father was a bookkeeper,[1] later an office manager.[3]
At age 11, Ritter played Puck in a semi-professional dramatic society's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.[3] As a teenager she appeared in high-school plays and stock companies. After initially being rebuffed, she received formal training at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts (ADA)[4] upon her graduation from Manual Training High School in Park Slope, Brooklyn.[3]
Although she subsequently struggled to establish a stage career, Ritter decided to take a hiatus from acting to raise her two children, Monica and Joe.[5] Their father, her husband, Joseph Moran, was also an actor; in the mid-1930s, he changed professions, becoming an actors' agent and then an advertising executive.[4]
Career
editRitter's first professional experience came with stock theater companies in New York and New England.[3] Her Broadway credits include UTBU (1965), New Girl in Town (1956), In Times Square (1931), and The Shelf (1926).[6]
Ritter's first movie role was in Miracle on 34th Street (1947). She made a memorable impression in a brief uncredited part, as a frustrated mother unable to find the toy that Kris Kringle has promised her son. Her third role, in writer-director Joseph L. Mankiewicz's A Letter to Three Wives (1949), left a mark, although Ritter was again uncredited. Mankiewicz kept Ritter in mind, and cast her as Birdie Coonan in All About Eve (1950), which earned her an Oscar nomination. A second nomination followed for her work in the Mitch Leisen ensemble screwball comedy The Mating Season (1951) starring Gene Tierney and John Lund. She enjoyed steady film work for the next dozen years.
She appeared in many of the episodic drama TV series of the 1950s and 1960s, such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents, General Electric Theater, and The United States Steel Hour ‘’Wagon Train’’. Other film roles were as James Stewart's nurse in Rear Window (1954) and as Doris Day's housekeeper, Alma, in Pillow Talk (1959). Although best known for comedy roles, she played the occasional dramatic role, most notably in With a Song in My Heart (1952), Pickup on South Street (1953), Titanic (1953), The Misfits (1961), and Birdman of Alcatraz (1962), for which she received her final Oscar nomination. Her last work was an appearance on The Jerry Lewis Show on January 23, 1968.[7]
Death
editOn January 27, 1969, Ritter suffered a heart attack at her residence in Queens, New York City.[8] She died from a second heart attack on February 5, in New York City, at age 66.[3][9]
Legacy
editIn 2019, Ritter was listed at number 1 on The Evening Standard list of ten women who changed the face of film forever.[10]
Work
editFilm
editTelevision
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | Lux Video Theatre | Lux Video Theatre Guest | Episode: Christmas in July |
| 1955 | The Best of Broadway | Mrs. Fisher | Episode: The Show-Off |
| The 20th Century Fox Hour | Abby | Episode: Christopher Bean | |
| Goodyear Television Playhouse | Aggie Hurley | Episode: The Catered Affair | |
| 1956 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Lottie Slocum | Season 1 Episode 32: The Baby Sitter |
| 1957 | Telephone Time | Mary Devlin | Episode: Plot to Save a Boy |
| The United States Steel Hour | Ma Garfield | Episode: The Human Pattern | |
| 1960 | GE True Theatre | Doris Green | Episode: Sarah's Laughter |
| Startime | Mrs. Gillis | Episode: The Man | |
| 1961 | Frontier Circus | Bertha Marie Beecher | Episode: Journey from Hannibal |
| 1962 | Wagon Train | Madame Sagittarius | Episode: The Madame Sagittarius Story |
Theatre
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1926 | The Shelf | Miss Paterson | Morosco Theatre, Broadway |
| 1931 | In Times Square | Sally Stewart | Longacre Theatre, Broadway |
| 1957 | New Girl in Town | McCathy | 46th Street Theatre, Broadway |
| 1961 | UTBU | Performer | Hayes Theatre, Broadway |
Radio
edit| Year | Program | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1953 | Theatre Guild on the Air | Episode: A Square Peg | [11] |
Awards and nominations
editRitter received six Academy Award nominations during her career, without a win. This ties her with Deborah Kerr and Amy Adams with the second most such nominations among actresses, behind Glenn Close’s eight. Peter O'Toole also has eight without a win among men. Only Kerr and O'Toole have received honorary awards from the Academy.
In 1955 Ritter co-hosted the Oscar ceremony, notably trading wisecracks with Bob Hope.
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Best Supporting Actress | All About Eve | Nominated | [12] |
| 1951 | The Mating Season | Nominated | ||
| 1952 | With a Song in My Heart | Nominated | ||
| 1953 | Pickup on South Street | Nominated | ||
| 1959 | Pillow Talk | Nominated | ||
| 1962 | Birdman of Alcatraz | Nominated |
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Goodyear Television Playhouse | Nominated | [13] |
In 1958, Ritter won a Tony Award in a rare tie (with her co-star, Gwen Verdon) for their work in New Girl.
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | Best Actress in a Musical | New Girl in Town | Won | [14] |
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture | All About Eve | Nominated | [15] |
| 1951 | The Mating Season | Nominated | [15] | |
| 1965 | Boeing Boeing | Nominated | [15] |
References
edit- ^ a b The New York State Census of 1905", 16th Assembly District, Borough of Brooklyn, Kings County, State of New York, June 1, 1905. Digital copy of original 1905 enumeration page available on FamilySearch, an online genealogical database provided as a public service by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, Utah. Retrieved July 21, 2017.
- ^ Born in 1902 as per Social Security Death Index under the name "Thelma Ritter"
- ^ a b c d e "Thelma Ritter, Versatile Actress With the Raspy Voice, Dies at 63". The New York Times. February 5, 1969. p. 45. Retrieved September 26, 2021.
- ^ a b LoBianco, Lorraine."Thelma Ritter Profile", Turner Classic Movies (TCM), a Time Warner Company, New York, N.Y. Retrieved July 21, 2017.
- ^ Nissen, Axel (2007). Actresses of a Certain Character: Forty Familiar Hollywood Faces from the Thirties to the Fifties. McFarland. pp. 171–172. ISBN 9780786427468. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
- ^ "("Thelma Ritter" search results)". Playbill Vault. Playbill. Archived from the original on 26 September 2017. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
- ^ "Appearance on Jerry Lewis Show". Thewindmillsofyourmind.com. Retrieved 2012-12-04.
- ^ "Thelma Ritter - Actress Thelma Ritter Dies at 64". Leader-Telegram. 1969-02-07. p. 5. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
- ^ "Thelma Ritter Is Dead at 65". Janesville Daily Gazette. 1969-02-05. p. 13. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
- ^ Fletcher, Harry (2019-03-08). "10 women that changed the face of film". Evening Standard. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
- ^ Kirby, Walter (March 15, 1953). "Better Radio Programs for the Week". The Decatur Daily Review. The Decatur Daily Review. p. 46. Retrieved June 25, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "("Thelma Ritter" search results)". Academy Awards Database. Retrieved 26 September 2017.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "("Thelma Ritter" search results)". EMMYS. Television Academy. Archived from the original on 26 September 2017. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
- ^ "("Thelma Ritter" search results)". Tony Awards. Archived from the original on 31 August 2016. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
- ^ a b c "Thelma Ritter". Golden Globe Awards. HFPA. Archived from the original on 26 September 2017. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
Further reading
edit- Alistair, Rupert (2018). "Thelma Ritter". The Name Below the Title : 65 Classic Movie Character Actors from Hollywood's Golden Age (softcover) (First ed.). Great Britain: Independently published. pp. 221–223. ISBN 978-1-7200-3837-5.
External links
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