73-481: Patsy Kelly (born Sarah Veronica Rose Kelly; January 12, 1910 – September 24, 1981) was an American actress. She is known for her role as the brash, wisecracking sidekick to Thelma Todd in a series of short comedy films produced by Hal Roach in the 1930s. Kelly's career continued in similar roles after Todd's death in 1935. After her film career declined in the mid-1940s, Kelly returned to New York , where she worked in radio and summer stock . She also became
146-576: A Vitaphone short subject filmed there in Brooklyn, The Grand Dame (1931), where she plays a rich gangster 's moll. In 1933, reputedly after seeing her in Flying Colors , producer Hal Roach hired Kelly to team up with Thelma Todd in a series of short-subject comedies, and to replace her then-current co-star ZaSu Pitts after a contract dispute, beginning with Beauty and the Bus (1933). Pitts had demanded
219-466: A Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars was dedicated to him. Demarest was married twice. His first wife was his vaudeville partner Estelle Collette, born Esther Zichlin. Demarest helped raise her daughter, author Phyllis Gordon Demarest, from her earlier marriage, in 1907, to English poet and novelist Samuel Gordon , who had divorced Zichlin before his death. Demarest's second wife
292-660: A Musical for her performance in the show. She matched that success the following year when she starred in Irene with Debbie Reynolds , and was again nominated for a Tony. In 1976, she appeared as the housekeeper Mrs. Schmauss in the Walt Disney film Freaky Friday starring Jodie Foster and Barbara Harris . Her last role in a feature film was in another comedy for Disney, The North Avenue Irregulars (1979), also co-starring Harris, along with Cloris Leachman , Edward Herrmann and Karen Valentine . Kelly's final onscreen appearance
365-494: A Song Coming On" and "Speaking Confidentially". The movie introduced the world to the song " I'm in the Mood for Love ", which is sung by Langford. The tap-dancing she learned when she was young was put to good use in films like 20th Century Fox 's Thanks a Million and Warner Bros. ' Go Into Your Dance (1935) starring Ruby Keeler and Al Jolson in their only screen pairing together. According to columnist Ruth White: "Wherever you find
438-401: A falling out with Hal Roach over a contract disagreement, there was talk of Kelly joining Oliver Hardy to play his wife and Spanky McFarland ’s mother in a series called The Hardy Family , but the project was jettisoned when Laurel returned to the fold. A pilot, entitled Their Night Out was announced, with James W. Horne slated to direct, but it never got past the talking stage. She was in
511-617: A female version of Laurel and Hardy, Roach teamed Todd with ZaSu Pitts for 17 shorts, from Let's do Things (June 1931) through One Track Minds (May 1933). When Pitts left in 1933, she was replaced by Patsy Kelly , who appeared with Todd in 21 shorts, from Beauty and the Bus (September 1933) through An All American Toothache (January 1936). These shorts often cast Todd as a levelheaded working girl doing her best to remain poised and charming despite numerous problems and her ditzy sidekick's embarrassing antics. In 1931, Todd starred in Corsair ,
584-471: A fight with her lover at a party that night. I wasn’t there but friends of mine were and they told me about it. There were a lot of suspicious things surrounding her death that never got explained. She most certainly wasn't drunk. Thelma used to nurse one drink for a whole evening and she never touched drugs of any kind. She was a strong New England woman with a powerful sense of humor and a wonderful zest for life. I always figured God wanted another angel. She
657-651: A film directed by Roland West , with whom she became romantically involved. Todd became highly regarded as a capable film comedian, and Roach loaned her to other studios to play opposite Wheeler & Woolsey , Buster Keaton , Joe E. Brown , and the Marx Brothers . She also successfully appeared in dramas, such as the original 1931 version of The Maltese Falcon starring Ricardo Cortez as Sam Spade , where she played Miles Archer's treacherous widow. She appeared in around 120 feature films and shorts in her career. Todd continued her short-subject series through 1935 and
730-509: A film or two for RKO , she then began starring in low-budget fare such as My Son, The Hero (1943) with Roscoe Karns and Maxie Rosenbloom , and Danger! Women at Work (1943), pictures released by Producers Releasing Corporation . Kelly's film career had stalled after being blackballed by the studios for outing herself as a lesbian. After leaving Hollywood, Kelly returned to New York City where she worked in radio with personalities such as Barry Wood on NBC 's The Palmolive Party (which
803-584: A friend of Jean and his wife for years in New York. Then I went down to the Ship Café that night of Jean's disappearance. I glanced up at the flashing sign over the door that said, ‘Jean Malin’s last night,’ and as clearly as I'm hearing you, a voice said, ‘Be careful, it is his last night.’ He backed the car into the ocean off the end of the pier just one hour later. We were all submerged in the water. Adrenalin worked with me. It didn't with Jean." Her feature-length debut
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#1732885125558876-471: A laughing group on a sound stage, you will find Patsy in the center of it. She's everybody's friend, as kindly to the prop boys as she is with the most famous stars... This jolly picture thief... makes picture work such play that not until the film is previewed do her co-stars realize she has stolen the show." In 1936, she told an interviewer: "Of course I was fortunate in having enjoyed a long and fairly successful stage career before going to Hollywood, but just
949-451: A lifelong friend and personal assistant of Tallulah Bankhead . Kelly returned to the screen after 17 years with guest spots on television and in film roles. Kelly returned to the stage in the 1971 revival of No, No, Nanette , for which she won a Tony Award . Kelly was born Sarah Veronica Rose Kelly in Brooklyn , New York to Irish immigrant parents John and Delia Kelly. Her father John
1022-403: A little poker . Ted Healy is my best customer, he and Jack Haley and a few others. I don't do much else. Once I took up golf , but I lost five balls on the first two holes, so I said to hell with that. When I'm trying to reduce I ride two bicycles and get beaten up by a masseuse. I'm generally trying to reduce because the thing I enjoy most is eating. The way I usually look before starting work on
1095-579: A maximum of ten years to live. Maybe they're right. When I heard that scientific verdict, I was plenty scared. But I pulled myself together and said, ‘Kelly, there’s only one way to beat this rap: don’t worry — and have fun out of the remaining years.’" The Todd-Kelly shorts cemented Kelly's image: a brash, freewheeling, fun-loving, wisecracking woman who frequently punctured the pomposity of other characters. Most were directed by Gus Meins , such as Air Fright (1933), Maid in Hollywood (1934), and Babes in
1168-561: A member of a troupe of actors whom Sturges repeatedly cast in his screen projects. He appeared in 10 films written by Sturges, eight of which were under his direction, including The Lady Eve , Sullivan's Travels , and The Miracle of Morgan's Creek . Demarest was such a familiar figure at the Paramount studio that just his name was used in the movie Sunset Boulevard as a potential star for William Holden 's unsold baseball screenplay. He played folksy Jeb Gaine, an occasional sidekick to
1241-838: A performance she once cited as the favorite performance of her own. In the early 1940s, her proficient acting and comedic talents got her to rub elbows and share the screen with big-named stars such as John Barrymore (in his final film role), Gary Cooper , Merle Oberon , Walter Brennan , John Wayne , Bert Lahr , Lupe Velez , Eddie Albert , Victor McLaglen , and even Phil Silvers and Ann Miller in their big-screen debut, Hit Parade of 1941 . She also co-starred with her predecessor ZaSu Pitts in Roach's train comedy Broadway Limited (1941) around this period. Familiar faces that appear frequently in her films include Si Jenks, Douglas Fowley , Charlie Hall , Marion Davies, Don Barclay , and Arthur Housman . In her films, one could find her often playing
1314-467: A picture, my stomach would get on the screen three seconds before I arrived. I still hoof around the house a little. But Eleanor Powell doesn't have to worry... All this time you've never had to ask for anything... a job or a new contract or more money or better parts. It seems too good to last. Things just happen." In January 1980, Kelly suffered a stroke while in San Francisco that caused her to lose
1387-427: A salary hike of $ 8000 per script, so Roach terminated her services. Before making the move to Hollywood , Kelly intimated that "I'll be a flop in movies. Besides, I don't like 'em, and I never did believe there was a place called Hollywood. Somebody made it up!" She once confided to Motion Picture that, "I tried it for a few days and thought it was the silliest fool business in the world. I had to get up about five in
1460-424: A sassy maid or an assistant, as she did in features like Page Miss Glory , The Gorilla , Topper Returns , and Merrily We Live . Subsequently, these comic supporting roles were a harbinger of things to come for Kelly. She jested that she was often cast as a maid, "...because I had a maid's costume that fit. They didn’t have to get me a new outfit. They lent it from one studio to another." After appearing in
1533-440: A shoelace. It was incidents like these that further perpetuated Kelly's reputation as a jinx in Hollywood. And though some considered her bad luck, her performances were never hampered by this. "You see, something, darned if I know what it is, has happened to me since I came to this crazy town. Everyone I loved, turned to, needed, has gone, just like Thelma. It was Jean Malin, that swell New York actor and impersonator, first. I'd been
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#17328851255581606-469: A song-and-dance routine and later as Fay's comic foil . Her brother John W. (Willie) originally tried out for the job, but ultimately, it was Kelly who ended up landing the position at The Palace Theatre with Fay, while Willie went to work at the Waldorf Astoria , after being Fay's chauffeur for a spell. "My brother didn’t care. He thought it was sissy stuff, anyhow." In one routine, Kelly told Fay and
1679-562: A special recipe for. "I am mad about bread . "I especially like hot biscuits and out on the Coast we have a southern cook who can make more kinds of hot breads than I ever knew existed. And in the morning, I like coffee cake and crumb cake, especially if they are homemade." She was known to have an affinity for sauces. She was also fond of mashed potatoes . "Mash them; and if I were a man, I'd marry you any time." On Sundays, she would entertain guests and serve chicken , turkey or roast beef . She
1752-405: A trio of hopeful singers (the other two played by Alice Faye and Frances Langford ) who are discovered by an ambitious, blue-collar bandleader by the name of Tops Cardona sympathetically played by George Raft who christens them "The Swanee Sisters". In the film, Kelly gets to showcase her singing talents by crooning out Jimmy McHugh - Dorothy Fields melodies such as the light and breezy "I Feel
1825-514: A week but coming home at nearly two or three in the morning. "So," Kelly once recalled, reminiscing about the years leading up to that, "Father Quinn, who knew about me and my tap, advised my mother to send me to dancing school. He thought perhaps that would get me interested in something besides baseball . It did. I liked the dancing and in time I began to teach in the school where I had just been studying." She performed in Frank Fay's act, first in
1898-760: Is interred alongside her parents, John and Delia Kelly, in Calvary Cemetery in Queens, New York . For her contribution to the motion picture industry, she has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6669 Hollywood Boulevard , right near Musso & Frank Grill . Stage Short subjects Filmography TV credits "I'm Gonna Hang My Hat On The Tree That Grows in Brooklyn" (Shapiro/Pescal/Cherig) played by Al Goodman and His Orchestra. Sung by Patsy Kelly and Barry Wood ; V-Disc , Nov. 1944 Thelma Todd Thelma Alice Todd (July 29, 1906 – December 16, 1935)
1971-584: Is something that comes only once in a lifetime. Thelma was better than any tonic and taught me a lot about comedy.” Shortly after filming wrapped on Beauty and the Bus , in August 1933, Kelly was injured as a passenger in a car driven by Gene Malin , the prominent drag performer. Malin apparently confused the gears and reversed off a pier into the water, after performing at the Ship Cafe, a club in Venice, Los Angeles . Malin
2044-887: The Shubert Theatre . In other Broadway activity, she performed in Three Cheers (1928) with Will Rogers and Dorothy Stone , Earl Carroll's Sketch Book (1929) with William Demarest and Faith Bacon , Earl Carroll's Vanities (1930) with Jack Benny and Jimmy Savo , The Wonder Bar (1931) with Al Jolson , and in the Howard Dietz-Arthur Schwartz musical revue Flying Colors (1932) with Clifton Webb , Imogene Coca , Buddy Ebsen , and Charles Butterworth . In her later years, she appeared in No, No, Nanette (1971) with Ruby Keeler and Jack Gilford , and Irene (1973) with Debbie Reynolds . Kelly made her screen debut in
2117-444: The silent film era, Todd appeared in numerous supporting roles that made full use of her beauty but gave her little chance to act. With the advent of the talkies , she was able to expand her roles when producer Hal Roach signed her to appear with comedy stars such as Harry Langdon , Charley Chase , and Laurel and Hardy . In 1931, Roach cast Todd in her own series of 17-to-27-minute slapstick comedy shorts. In an attempt to create
2190-419: The train bound for New York. She also helped Kelly with her finances and tax trouble during the first few stages of her move out west. Already in debt , Todd suggested to her not to file for bankruptcy ; that it would damage her credit rating . “Those were the happiest days I had in pictures,” Patsy said in 1937, “I have made more money since, but the fun Thelma and I had making those silly two-reel comedies
2263-478: The 1930s ranged from the deadpan, screwball comedic to the impressively and powerfully dramatic. There was very little she couldn't handle on screen. On the comedic side of things, she showed up in such light-hearted Americana as Pick a Star (1937) with Rosina Lawrence , Jack Haley and Laurel and Hardy , in the knee-slapping boxing comedy Kelly the Second (1936) with Guinn Williams and Charley Chase , and in
Patsy Kelly - Misplaced Pages Continue
2336-418: The 1930s, when she revealed to Motion Picture magazine she had been sharing an apartment with actress Wilma Cox for several years with no intention of getting married, but she never publicly claimed to be a lesbian, which in those days would have resulted in great social and professional criticism. She later confirmed that she had an affair with Tallulah Bankhead when she worked as her personal assistant. It
2409-655: The Goods (1934). Later entries in the series, such as Slightly Static (1935), showcased Kelly's dancing skills. Referring to the time she spent at the Hal Roach Studios , Kelly exclaimed: "I laughed from the time I arrived at the studio until I left at night. I was almost ashamed to take a paycheck." Kelly made 21 shorts with Todd before Todd died in 1935 of carbon monoxide poisoning after filming An All-American Toothache (1936) with Mickey Daniels and Duke York . Years later, regarding Todd's death, Kelly revealed, "She had
2482-624: The ability to speak. She was admitted to Englewood Nursing Home in Englewood, New Jersey , on the advice of her old friend Ruby Keeler , where she underwent therapy. On September 24, 1981, Kelly died of cancer at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California . Her funeral was held on September 28 at St. Malachy Roman Catholic Church in Manhattan. She
2555-465: The audience that she had been at the beauty parlor. Fay remarked, "And they didn't wait on you?" She remained with Fay for several seasons until Fay eventually dismissed her, either for refusing a proposal of marriage, not calling him by his surname, or refusing to travel to England . Kelly made her Broadway debut in 1927, performing in Harry Delmar's Revels with Bert Lahr and Winnie Lightner at
2628-523: The biting political satire Thanks A Million (1935) with Dick Powell , Ann Dvorak , and famed radio personality Fred Allen . As far as drama, she showed off her more serious side in films such as the politically flavored Jean Harlow vehicle The Girl From Missouri (1934) with Franchot Tone and Lionel Barrymore , and in Private Number (1936) starring Loretta Young and Basil Rathbone . In 1935, before Todd's death, and after Stan Laurel had
2701-475: The building housed the restaurant. On the second floor, Todd and West lived in adjoining ocean-view apartments—with only a sliding wooden door separating their bedrooms— and held parties in the adjacent, private nightclub named Joya (for West's ex-wife Jewel Carmen ) that took up the rest of the second floor. The third floor, hexagonally shaped, had a dance floor and bandstand. It attracted a diverse clientele of Hollywood celebrities, and many tourists. Todd
2774-477: The car. Todd had a wide circle of friends and associates and a busy social life. Police investigations revealed that she had spent the previous Saturday night (December 14) at the Trocadero , a popular Hollywood restaurant, at a party hosted by entertainer Stanley Lupino and his actress daughter Ida . She had a brief but unpleasant exchange there with her ex-husband, Pat DiCicco. However, her friends stated that she
2847-426: The death was held on December 18, 1935. Autopsy surgeon A. P. Wagner testified that there were "no marks of violence anywhere upon or within the body" with only a "superficial contusion on the lower lip." There are informal accounts of greater signs of injury. The jury ruled that the death appeared accidental, but recommended "further investigation to be made into the case, by proper authorities." A grand jury probe
2920-428: The home of Jewel Carmen , wife of Roland West . Todd was wearing a mauve and silver gown, mink wrap and expensive jewelry, Carmen's house was approximately a block from the topmost side of Todd's restaurant. Her death was determined to have been caused by carbon monoxide poisoning . West is quoted in a contemporaneous newspaper account as having locked her out, which may have caused her to seek refuge and warmth in
2993-519: The house, usually over chairs." She was originally inspired to become a firefighter decades before the field would open to the first FDNY woman in 1982, but her mother enrolled her in a dancing school to keep her off the streets of Manhattan . In 1922 she began her entertainment career in vaudeville as a dancer at the age of 12. Learning how to tap dance at Jack Blue's School of Rhythm and Tap, she befriended future talent and fellow hoofer Ruby Keeler . She had had more than her share of scrapes when she
Patsy Kelly - Misplaced Pages Continue
3066-520: The last of which ( The Bohemian Girl ) featured her in a part that was cut short by her sudden death in 1935 at the age of 29. Todd was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts , to John Shaw Todd, an upholsterer from Ireland, and later, a superintendent of streets, an alderman, and Lawrence's commissioner of health and charities in 1912 and Alice Elizabeth Edwards, an immigrant from Canada. She had an older brother, William, who died in an accident in 1910. She
3139-584: The main character, in the 1961–62 season of the Western series Tales of Wells Fargo . Demarest appeared as Police Chief Aloysius of the Santa Rosita Police Department in the film It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963) as well as in a memorable episode (" What's in the Box ") of Rod Serling 's The Twilight Zone , portraying a hen-pecked husband who murders his wife. His most famous television role
3212-402: The morning and get a lantern to light my way to the studio. I'd get there and there'd be no audience, no applause. It was like talking to myself. Someone was always hollering, 'Quiet!' or 'Hush!' My voice was always too loud or not loud enough. You had to knock yourself out with a powder puff in this business. Make up every minute. I was always hanging out a window, off the edge of a cliff, or from
3285-558: The movies, sometimes seeing seven or eight a week. "What do you do on the two other nights?" she was asked. "Well... there's really nothing for me to do. I just sit around wishing there were more pictures to see. But, when you see eight or ten pictures a week, the supply really runs out." When not going out to go see a picture show, she spent her off time playing cards with friends or penny roulette on Redondo Beach . When asked if she went to go see any stage shows, she answered, "Well, when I go East and see some shows," she said, "the crowds and
3358-621: The open casket, was held at Pierce Brothers Mortuary at 720 West Washington Blvd in Los Angeles . The body was cremated. After her mother's death in 1969, Todd's remains were placed in her mother's casket and buried in Bellevue Cemetery in her hometown of Lawrence, Massachusetts . For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Todd has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6262 Hollywood Blvd . William Demarest Carl William Demarest (February 27, 1892 – December 28, 1983)
3431-460: The overtures make me feel sort of tingly. But I wouldn't trade it for Hollywood . Actually, I’m probably the most rabid movie fan in town. I see a picture almost every night. This is a crazy place. If you go places and drink, people talk. If you don't drink and don't go places, they still talk. I don't care what they say because I don't do night clubs and big parties. People drop in here and we play badminton . I like to play at night. Sometimes we play
3504-448: The psychological horror film Rosemary's Baby (1968), directed by Roman Polanski , alongside veteran actors Sidney Blackmer , Ruth Gordon , Ralph Bellamy , and Maurice Evans . She returned to Broadway in 1971 in the revival of No, No, Nanette with fellow hoofers Ruby Keeler and Helen Gallagher . Kelly scored a huge success as the wisecracking, tap-dancing maid, and won Broadway's 1971 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in
3577-771: The running to play Laurel's wife in Sons of the Desert (1933), but her part was eventually filled in by Dorothy Christy . During the 1930s, Kelly also appeared in musicals like Going Hollywood (1933), the college football extravaganza Pigskin Parade (1936) with Stuart Erwin and Judy Garland (in her first film role), playing second banana in Sing, Baby, Sing (1936) with Gregory Ratoff , Adolphe Menjou , and Ted Healy , and in Paramount Pictures ' Every Night at Eight (1935), playing one of
3650-443: The same, I had to start all over again as there is as much difference between stage and screen acting technique as there is between day and night... The average small-town girl who comes to Movieland without previous stage or screen experience will find the road ahead rough and heartbreaking at times." In 1937, she was sent to a sanitarium to go on a diet and she lost fifty pounds. Though the new, slimmer Kelly didn't last too long, she
3723-527: The screen in the 1950s with television and sporadic film roles. On television she appeared in guest roles on 26 Men , Kraft Television Theatre , The Man from U.N.C.L.E , The Dick Van Dyke Show , The Wild Wild West , and Alfred Hitchcock Presents , as well as many unsold pilots. During the 1960s, she made memorable appearances as Mac the Nurse in The Naked Kiss (1964) and as Laura-Louise McBirney in
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#17328851255583796-733: The screen with the real Al Jolson in The Jazz Singer . Demarest also received an Emmy nomination for the 1968–1969 season of My Three Sons as Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Role . Demarest has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to motion pictures, bestowed upon him on August 8, 1979 by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. In attendance at the ceremony and then later at Musso & Frank Grill for celebrations were his My Three Sons co-stars Fred MacMurray and his wife June Haver , Tina Cole , Stanley Livingston , Barry Livingston , and Dawn Lyn . In 1998,
3869-461: The side of a car going ninety miles an hour. Or I was being knocked on the bean with a pot or a pan. First day I was yelling, 'Say, where are those doubles I've heard about?' After a few days of it, I packed my duds and took a train back east." Kelly, therefore, was quite reluctant to make the transition to films at first, but Thelma Todd encouraged her to remain in Hollywood, and so she did. Todd even drove to Pasadena to stop Kelly from returning on
3942-510: Was a bright and successful student. Intending to become a schoolteacher, she enrolled at the Lowell Normal School (now University of Massachusetts, Lowell ) after graduating from high school in 1923. As a student, she earned money as a model, entered beauty pageants in her late teens, gained the attention of Elks Lodge 65, was crowned 1925 Miss Lawrence, and won the title of 1925 Miss Massachusetts. While representing her home state, she
4015-518: Was a guest spot in a two-part episode of The Love Boat in 1979. She continued appearing in film and television roles until she suffered a stroke in January 1980 that limited her ability to speak. Kelly was gay, but her sexuality was unknown to the public. She told a biographer that she was a "big dyke" but forbade him to publish that information until her career was over; it was published in 1994. She had obscurely hinted at her sexual orientation during
4088-461: Was a police officer who left Ballinrobe , County Mayo , Ireland around 1900 to escape persecution. He died in 1942. Her mother Delia died in 1930. She was the youngest of five children, only two of whom were born in America. She acquired the nickname "Patsy" by being the butt of her family's gentle teasing and becoming the "fall guy" for many of their shenanigans. "I was always spinning and tripping about
4161-423: Was also wild about sweet potatoes topped with marshmallows . "They taste like a million dollars," proclaimed Kelly. " Steak I like in any way," she added, "and I like string beans , either creamed or just with butter , mashed turnips , orange squash , and creamed spinach . And if you want to make me divinely happy, give me spareribs and cabbage ." A rabid film fan herself, she spent many evenings going to
4234-446: Was an American actor, known especially for his roles in screwball comedies by Preston Sturges and as Uncle Charley in the sitcom My Three Sons from 1965-72. Demarest, who frequently played crusty but good-hearted roles, was a prolific film and television actor, appearing in over 140 films, beginning in 1926 and ending in the late 1970s. Before his career in movies, he performed in vaudeville for two decades. Carl William Demarest
4307-586: Was an American actress and businesswoman who carried the nicknames "The Ice Cream Blonde" and "Hot Toddy." Appearing in about 120 feature films and shorts between 1926 and 1935, she is remembered for her comedic roles opposite ZaSu Pitts , and in films such as Marx Brothers ' Monkey Business and Horse Feathers and a number of Charley Chase 's short comedies. She co-starred with Buster Keaton and Jimmy Durante in Speak Easily . She also had roles in several Wheeler and Woolsey and Laurel and Hardy films,
4380-733: Was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, the youngest of three sons of Wilhelmina (née Lindgren) and Samuel Demarest. During William's infancy, the family moved to New Bridge, a hamlet in Bergen County, New Jersey. Demarest served in the U.S. Army during World War I. Demarest started in show business working in vaudeville, performing initially in his youth with his two older brothers and later with his wife Estelle Collette (real name Esther Zichlin) as "Demarest and Colette". He then moved to work on Broadway. Demarest, by 1926 also began working in films, often in productions directed by Preston Sturges and as
4453-406: Was briefly married to Pat DiCicco , who supposedly had ties to the mob . The relationship was volatile and DiCicco was abusive to Todd, resulting in her filing for divorce and changing her will to leave him only $ 1. On the morning of Monday, December 16, 1935, Todd's body was discovered inside her chocolate-colored 1934 Lincoln Phaeton convertible . Her Lincoln was parked inside the garage at
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#17328851255584526-627: Was broadcast on Saturday nights at 10 p.m.), toured the U.S. and Canada to entertain the troops during WWII , and did summer stock theatre in shows like My Sister Eileen and On the Town . She also worked as a personal assistant to Tallulah Bankhead and appeared with her on stage in Dear Charles (1955). She later moved into Bankhead's mansion "Windows" in Bedford Village, New York acting as her domestic, or "guest resident". Kelly returned to
4599-709: Was featured in the full-length Laurel and Hardy comedy The Bohemian Girl . It was her last role before her untimely death at age 29. Although she had completed all of her scenes, producer Roach had them re-shot, fearing negative publicity. He deleted all of Todd's dialogue, and limited her appearance to one musical number. Originally built in 1928, by architect Mark Daniels , as the Castellammare housing tract business block, in August 1934, Todd opened, in partnership with Jewel Carmen and Roland West , Thelma Todd's Sidewalk Cafe, at 17575 Pacific Coast Highway, Castellammare, Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles . The ground floor of
4672-402: Was in good spirits and were aware of nothing in her life that suggested a reason for her to commit suicide. She was driven home from the party in the early hours of December 15 by her chauffeur, Ernest O. Peters. LAPD detectives concluded that Todd's death was accidental, the result of her either warming up the car to drive it or using the heater to keep herself warm. A coroner's inquest into
4745-641: Was in the sitcom My Three Sons from 1965 to 1972, playing Uncle Charley O'Casey. He replaced William Frawley , who was in failing health. Demarest had worked with Fred MacMurray previously in the films Hands Across the Table (1935), Pardon My Past (1945), On Our Merry Way (1948), and The Far Horizons (1955) and was a personal friend of MacMurray. Demarest received a single Academy Award nomination for his supporting role in The Jolson Story (1946), playing Al Jolson 's fictional mentor. He shared
4818-404: Was killed; Kelly and fellow passenger Jimmy Forlenza suffered serious injuries. She was told by the doctors that she had only ten years left to live based on the amount of sandy water that got into her lungs, but actually survived for decades after the accident. Kelly once said that "I overheard a jury of grave-faced doctors nodding their heads over my supposedly unconscious body. They were giving me
4891-520: Was once reported that she was once temporarily engaged to a serviceman named Otto Malde in 1942, but the marriage never materialized. "It doesn't matter to me whether you are a private, sergeant, or lieutenant," she told the press, "but I guess we'll just have to wait." Kelly loved food and eventually learned how to cook well. She said, "I will go out of my way anytime to get a shrimp cocktail." As far as desserts, she enjoyed apple and lemon pie , gelatins , ice cream , and peach shortcake , which she had
4964-501: Was playing the role of Jill Barker in MGM ’s Going Hollywood (1933) and shared screen time with the likes of Marion Davies , Bing Crosby , Fifi D’Orsay , and Ned Sparks . The part was a little more than a mere walk-on, and she didn't have a chance to show off her musical talents in it, although the picture does contain several delightful musical moments supplied by entertainers like Crosby and The Radio Rogues. Kelly's various film roles in
5037-531: Was quite proud of her accomplishment. "Look! I can almost hide behind Gary Cooper sideways!" By the end of the decade, she appeared as shopgirl Peggy O' Brien in Hal Roach's There Goes My Heart (1938) starring Fredric March and Virginia Bruce playing Alan Mowbray 's love interest, and as Kitty in The Gorilla (1939) featuring a creepy Bela Lugosi and the always delightfully zany and offbeat Ritz Brothers ,
5110-517: Was spotted by a Hollywood talent scout. She was offered a slot at the Paramount Players School in Astoria, Queens , New York City , at a time when Paramount Studios was training would-be-actors in acting, diction, athletics and manners. Of the 16 members of her cohort, only Charles "Buddy" Rogers also made it to Hollywood. Todd later found work, in 1929, at Hal Roach Studios . During
5183-463: Was subsequently held to determine whether Todd was murdered. After four weeks of testimony, the inquiry concluded with no evidence of foul play. The case was closed by the Homicide Bureau, which declared the death "accidental with possible suicide tendencies". However, investigators found no motive for suicide, and Todd left no suicide note. Todd's memorial service, which drew large crowds to view
5256-438: Was too young and too beautiful..." Todd was eventually replaced by the bubbly Pert Kelton for one short, Pan Handlers (1936), but Kelton was quickly replaced by Lyda Roberti , a Polish-born comedienne with a thick foreign accent. Together, they starred in the cute Hal Roach comedy Nobody's Baby (1937) just before Roberti's untimely death. According to Kelly, Roberti died of heart failure in 1938 while bending over to tie
5329-492: Was young. She fell from a fire escape when she was seven, was struck by an automobile when she was eight, and was involved in no less than five accidents in one week at the age of nine. It was at this point her parents decided to send her to dancing school, where she broke her ankle at the end of her first week. She first attended St. Paul's Cathedral School, then Professional Children's School with Keeler. In 1923, at age 13, she advanced from pupil to instructor, raking in $ 18
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