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Mary Astor

Actor

Mary Astor

Born May 3, 1906 in Quincy, Illinois, USADied September 25, 1987127 films

Mary Astor (May 3, 1906 - September 25, 1987) was an American actress. Most remembered for her role as Brigid O'Shaughnessy in The Maltese Falcon (1941) with Humphrey Bogart, Astor began her long motion picture career as a teenager in the silent movies of the early 1920s. She eventually made a successful transition to talkies, but almost saw her career destroyed due to public scandal in the mid-1930s. She was sued for support by her parents and was later branded an adulterous wife by her ex-husband during a custody fight over her daughter.

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Overcoming these stumbling blocks in her private life, Astor went on to even greater success on the screen, eventually winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of Sandra Kovak in The Great Lie (1941). She was an MGM contract player through most of the 1940s and continued to act in movies, on television and on stage until her retirement from the screen in 1964.

Astor was the author of five novels. Her autobiography became a bestseller, as did her later book, A Life on Film, which was specifically about her career. Director Lindsay Anderson wrote of her in 1990: "...(W)hen two or three who love the cinema are gathered together, the name of Mary Astor always comes up, and everybody agrees that she was an actress of special attraction, whose qualities of depth and reality always seemed to illuminate the parts she played."

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The best way into Mary Astor's work
The Maltese Falcon posterFirst watchThe Maltese Falcon19417.7as Brigid O'ShaughnessyA private detective takes on a case that involves him with three eccentric criminals, a beautiful liar, and their quest for a priceless statuette.View film

Essential films

Ranked by acclaim and reach
Meet Me in St. Louis poster7.0Meet Me in St. Louis1944Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte poster7.3Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte1964Little Women poster7.4Little Women1949The Palm Beach Story poster7.0The Palm Beach Story1942Dodsworth poster7.1Dodsworth1936Midnight poster7.4Midnight1939Act of Violence poster6.9Act of Violence1949The Prisoner of Zenda poster7.5The Prisoner of Zenda1937

Filmography

127 films as actor
  1. 1964Hush... Hush, Sweet CharlotteJewel Mayhew
  2. 1964Youngblood HawkeIrene Perry
  3. 1961Return to Peyton PlaceRoberta Carter
  4. 1960Journey to the DayHelen May Whitfield
  5. 1960The Snows of KilimanjaroMrs. Leslie
  6. 1959A Stranger in My ArmsVirgilnie Beasley
  7. 1958This Happy FeelingMrs. Tremaine
  8. 1958The Littlest EnemyMrs. Wickens
  9. 1957The TroublemakersMattie Gerrity
  10. 1957The Devil's HairpinMrs. Jargin
  11. 1957The Ninth Day
  12. 1956The Power and the PrizeMrs. George Salt
  13. 1956A Kiss Before DyingMrs. Corliss
  14. 1955The ThiefIsabelle Lagarde
  15. 1949Any Number Can PlayAda
  16. 1949Little WomenMarmee
  17. 1949Act of ViolencePat
  18. 1947Cass TimberlaneQueenie Havock
  19. 1947CynthiaLouise Bishop
  20. 1947Desert FuryFritzi Haller
  21. 1947FiestaSeñora Morales
  22. 1946Claudia and DavidElizabeth Van Doren
  23. 1944Blonde FeverDelilah Donay
  24. 1944Meet Me in St. LouisAnna Smith
  25. 1943Thousands CheerHyllary Jones
  26. 1943Young IdeasJosephine Evans
  27. 1942Across the PacificAlberta Marlow
  28. 1942The Palm Beach StoryThe Princess Centimillia
  29. 1941The Maltese FalconBrigid O'Shaughnessy
  30. 1941The Great LieSandra Kovak
  31. 1940Brigham YoungMary Ann Young
  32. 1940TurnaboutMarion Manning
  33. 1939MidnightHelene Flammarion
  34. 1938Listen, DarlingDottie Wingate
  35. 1938Woman Against WomanCynthia Holland
  36. 1938Paradise for ThreeMrs. Irene Mallebre
  37. 1938There's Always a WomanLola Fraser
  38. 1938No Time to MarryKay McGowan
  39. 1937The HurricaneMme. DeLaage
  40. 1937The Prisoner of ZendaAntoinette de Mauban
  41. 1936Lady from NowherePolly Dunlap
  42. 1936DodsworthEdith Cortright
  43. 1936Trapped by TelevisionBarbara 'Bobby' Blake
  44. 1936And So They Were MarriedEdith Farnham
  45. 1936The Murder of Dr. HarriganLillian Cooper
  46. 1935Man of IronVida
  47. 1935Page Miss GloryGladys
  48. 1935DinkyMartha Daniels
  49. 1935Straight from the HeartMarian Henshaw
  50. 1935Red Hot TiresPatricia Sanford
  51. 1934I Am a ThiefOdette Mauclair
  52. 1934The Case of the Howling DogBessie Foley
  53. 1934The Man with Two FacesJessica Wells
  54. 1934Return of the TerrorOlga Morgan
  55. 1934UpperworldHettie Stream
  56. 1934Easy to LoveCharlotte
  57. 1933Convention CityArlene Dale
  58. 1933The World ChangesVirginia Claffin Nordholm
  59. 1933The Kennel Murder CaseHilda Lake
  60. 1933Jennie GerhardtLetty Pace
  61. 1933The Little GiantRuth Wayburn
  62. 1932Red DustBarbara "Babs" Willis
  63. 1932A Successful CalamityEmmy 'Sweetie' Wilton
  64. 1932Those We LoveMay Ballard
  65. 1932The Lost SquadronFollette Marsh
  66. 1931Men of ChanceMarthe
  67. 1931Smart WomanNancy Gibson
  68. 1931White ShouldersNorma Selbee
  69. 1931The Sin ShipFrisco Kitty
  70. 1931Behind Office DoorsMary Linden
  71. 1931Other Men's WomenLily Kulper
  72. 1931The Royal BedPrincess Anne
  73. 1930The LashDona Rosita Garcia
  74. 1930HolidayJulia Seton
  75. 1930Ladies Love BrutesMimi Howell
  76. 1930The Runaway BrideMary Gray
  77. 1929The Show of ShowsPerformer in 'The Pirate' Number (uncredited)
  78. 1929The Woman from HellDee Renaud
  79. 1929New Year's EveMarjorie Ware
  80. 1928Romance of the UnderworldJudith Andrews
  81. 1928Dry MartiniElizabeth Quimby
  82. 1928Heart to HeartPrincess Delatorre / Ellen Guthrie
  83. 19283-Ring MarriageAnna
  84. 1928Dressed to KillJeanne
  85. 1928Sailors' WivesCarol Trent
  86. 1927No Place to GoSally Montgomery
  87. 1927The Rough RidersDolly
  88. 1927Rose of the Golden WestElena
  89. 1927Two Arabian KnightsMirza
  90. 1927The Sunset DerbyMolly Gibson
  91. 1927The Sea TigerAmy Cortissos
  92. 1926Forever AfterJennie Clayton
  93. 1926Don JuanAdriana della Varnese
  94. 1926The Wise GuyMary
  95. 1926High SteppersAudrey Nye
  96. 1925Scarlet SaintFidele Tridon
  97. 1925The Pace That ThrillsDoris
  98. 1925Don Q Son of ZorroDolores de Muro
  99. 1925Playing with SoulsMargo
  100. 1925EnticementLeonore Bewlay
  101. 1925Oh, Doctor!Dolores Hicks
  102. 1924Inez from HollywoodFay Bartholdi
  103. 1924The Price of a PartyAlice Barrows
  104. 1924To the LadiesUndetermined Secondary Role
  105. 1924Unguarded WomenHelen Castle
  106. 1924The Fighting AmericanMary Brainard
  107. 1924Beau BrummelLady Margery Alvanley
  108. 1924The Fighting CowardLucy
  109. 1923Woman-ProofViolet Lynwood
  110. 1923The Marriage MakerVivian Hope-Clarke
  111. 1923Puritan PassionsRachel
  112. 1923HollywoodMary Astor
  113. 1923The Bright ShawlNarcissa Escobar
  114. 1923SuccessRose Randolph
  115. 1923Second FiddlePolly Crawford
  116. 1922The RapidsElsie Worden
  117. 1922The Man Who Played GodYoung Woman
  118. 1922HopeJoan - the Lighthouse Keeper's Daughter
  119. 1922John SmithIrene Mason
  120. 1922The Young PainterHelen Seymour