Edna May Oliver
Biography
Edna May Oliver was an American stage and film actress who became one of the better-known character actresses of 1930s Hollywood, often cast as tart-tongued spinsters. Born in Malden, Massachusetts, she left school at fourteen to pursue a stage career. Her first Broadway success came in 1917 in Jerome Kern's musical Oh, Boy!, and she later appeared in Icebound, The Cradle Snatchers, and the original 1927 production of Show Boat as Parthy. She made her film debut in 1923 and gained notice in Wheeler and Woolsey comedies, including Half Shot at Sunrise (1930). She played Aunt March in Little Women (1933), then starred as spinster sleuth Hildegarde Withers in mystery-comedies. At MGM she appeared in A Tale of Two Cities (1935) and David Copperfield (1935), and she earned an Oscar nomination for Drums Along the Mohawk (1939). Her later films included Pride and Prejudice (1940) and Lydia (1941).
59years old at death
- Born Malden
- Died Los Angeles
- Star sign: ScorpioThe sign runs October 23 to November 21
- Edna May Nutter (birth name)
Movie Career
- Films
- 9
- Career span
- 10 years1930 to 1940
Genres
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First role
At 14, Oliver gave up school for the stage. Her first Broadway success arrived in 1917, when she played the hero's comically dour Aunt Penelope in Jerome Kern's musical comedy Oh, Boy!.
Big break
Oliver drew major notice in films from comedies with the team of Wheeler & Woolsey. One of these was Half Shot at Sunrise, her first movie under her RKO Radio Pictures contract in 1930.
A role that slipped away
Oliver played spinster sleuth Hildegarde Withers in mystery-comedies drawn from Stuart Palmer's novels. She left RKO in 1935 for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, cutting the series short.
Edna May Oliver movies on Netflix
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
Most often with
George Cukor directed three of these films. Basil Rathbone appears in three of them, more than any other actor. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.
Films together
Basil Rathbone's page
E.E. Clive's page
Maureen O'Sullivan's page
Jessie Ralph's page
Harry Beresford's page
Elizabeth Allan's page
All films by George Cukor
Also two films together1 more actor
- Violet Kemble CooperRomeo and Juliet (1936) and David Copperfield (1935)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.
Awards
One award and honor.
| Year | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other honors | |||
| Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame | Honored | ||
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.