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Norma Varden

Biography

Norma Varden was an English-American actress whose long career began on the British stage and later moved to Hollywood. Born in London, she trained as a concert pianist and attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. She acted in repertory theater in England, her West End debut came in 1920 with The Wandering Jew, and she was a regular with the Aldwych Theatre company from 1929 to 1933, often playing haughty upper-class roles in British films. Offers from Hollywood led her to move to the United States at the start of World War II. She appeared in films including The Major and the Minor (1942), National Velvet (1944), Strangers on a Train (1951), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), and Witness for the Prosecution (1957). She played Frau Schmidt in The Sound of Music (1965) and Lady Petherington in Doctor Dolittle (1967). On television, she had a recurring role as Harriet Johnson in Hazel.

90years old at death

  • Born London
  • Died Santa Barbara
  • Star sign: AquariusFirst day of the sign, on the Capricorn cusp
  • Also credited as Norma Varden Shackleton

Movie Career

Films
20
Career span
31 years1936 to 1967

Genres

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  1. A change of course

    Norma Varden studied to be a concert pianist in Paris and played in England. She then chose to become an actor.

  2. Beyond film

    Varden acted with the Aldwych Theatre company as a regular player, taking roles in its productions from 1929 to 1933, in work ranging from Shakespeare to farce.

Norma Varden movies on Netflix

Best known for

The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.

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  1. Witness for the Prosecution1957 Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thrilleras Mrs. Emily Jane French

    IMDb rating 8.4164K votes

  2. Strangers on a Train1951 Crime, Film-Noir, Thrilleras Mrs. Cunningham

    IMDb rating 7.9149K votes

  3. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes1953as Lady Beekman

    IMDb rating 7.147K votes

  4. The Sound of Music1965as Frau Schmidt

    IMDb rating 8.1295K votes

  5. National Velvet1944as Miss Sims

    IMDb rating 7.39.0K votes

  6. Doctor Dolittle1967as Lady Fetherington

    IMDb rating 6.211K votes

  7. Sherlock Holmes Faces Death1943as Gracie the Barmaid

    IMDb rating 6.95.8K votes

  8. 13 Frightened Girls1963as Miss Pittford

    IMDb rating 5.31.0K votes

Most often with

Billy Wilder directed two of these films, Clarence Brown two. Five actors appear in three of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.

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Films together

Box office

What Norma Varden's films earned in cinemas worldwide.

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Combined worldwide box office

$333 million

8 of the 20 films have a worldwide figure.

Of the 20 films: 8 worldwide figure; 12 figure not found.

  • 8Worldwide figure
  • 12Figure not found

Highest grossing

The eight biggest films earned 100% of the total. The bars are drawn to scale.

  1. 1
    The Sound of Music1965as Frau Schmidt
    $286M85.9% of the total
  2. 2
    Doctor Dolittle1967as Lady Fetherington
    $9.0M2.7% of the total
  3. 3
    Witness for the Prosecution1957as Mrs. Emily Jane French
    $9.0M2.7% of the total
  4. 4
    Random Harvest1942as Julia
    $8.1M2.4% of the total
  5. 5
    Strangers on a Train1951as Mrs. Cunningham
    $7.0M2.1% of the total
  6. 6
    National Velvet1944as Miss Sims
    $5.8M1.8% of the total
  7. 7
    Gentlemen Prefer Blondes1953as Lady Beekman
    $5.3M1.6% of the total
  8. 8
    The Major and the Minor1942as Mrs. Osborne
    $2.5M0.8% of the total