Movies:
Mildred Pierce (1945)
Cover Girl (1944)
At the Circus (1939)
Stage Door (1937)
Autobiography:
Three Phases of Eve, By Eve Arden
Web Site:
Our Miss Arden
Glenda Farrell
Born: June 30, 1904, Enid, Oklahoma, USA
Died: May 1, 1971, New York, New York, USA
Glenda Farrell was the ultimate tough-as-nails wisecrackin' dame. She laid her claim as queen of the type in dozens of sidekick roles in 'A' movies and as a star of 'B' movies throughout the thirties.
Farrell started on the stage as a child and worked steadily practically to the end of her life. She married a dance partner she had performed with while still a teenager. The union produced a much-loved son, but after struggling through poverty for seven years, they were divorced.
In the late twenties, Farrell made it to the New York stage. She was summoned to Hollywood a few years later. She cut her movie teeth as a dancer in the gangster drama Little Caesar (1930), but she didn't truly make her breakthrough as a dame until 1933.
In the horror movie Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933), Farrell played her first tough-talking reporter role and she was a hit. She went on to do strong supporting parts in big movies such as the Capra classic Lady for a Day (1933), buddy pictures with Joan Blondell, including the Gold Diggers series and Kansas City Princess(1934), and a starring role in the Torchy Blane 'B' movie series. Blane was a hardnosed and clever reporter, the ultimate Farrell role.
Farrell worked less after the thirties; there weren't anymore dame movies in production. She still found work, in movies, theater and on television. In 1962, she won an Emmy for her appearance on the Ben Casey TV series. One of her last movie performances was opposite Elvis in Kissin' Cousins(1964).
While working on Broadway in the late sixties, she discovered she had lung cancer. She died in passed on in 1971. Farrell's work hasn't received much attention in recent years and the Torchy Blane series isn't available on video, but hopefully her sharp performances will someday be revived.
Movies:
Gold Diggers of 1935 (1935)
Kansas City Princess (1934)
Lady For a Day (1934)
The Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933)
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