Reta Shaw
Biography
Reta Shaw was an American character actress who played strong, hard-edged working women on screen and became a familiar face on television in the 1960s and 1970s. Born in South Paris, Maine, she studied acting at Boston's Leland Powers School of the Theater and went on to work in professional theater as a performer and music director before making her credited Broadway debut in 1947 in It Takes Two. Her stage credits included The Pajama Game, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Picnic and a tour of Annie Get Your Gun. She was best known as the cook Mrs. Brill in Mary Poppins (1964) and as the housekeeper Martha Grant on The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, and her films included Pollyanna (1960), Picnic (1955), The Pajama Game (1957), The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (1966), Bachelor in Paradise (1961) and Escape to Witch Mountain (1975).
69years old at death
- Born South Paris
- Died Encino
- Star sign: VirgoThe sign runs August 23 to September 22
Movie Career
- Films
- 11
- Career span
- 20 years1955 to 1975
First and latest
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Early training
Reta Shaw sang at the South Paris Congregational Church and took part in amateur theatricals. She later studied acting and graduated from the Leland Powers School of the Theater in Boston, Massachusetts.
A change of course
During World War II, Shaw became part of the Red Cross Entertainment Unit. Her service lasted three years, largely abroad, and included 18 months in Iceland.
Reta Shaw movies on Netflix
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
Most often with
Five actors appear in two of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.
Films together
Ellen Corby's page
George Chandler's page
Agnes Moorehead's page
Glynis Johns's page
John McGiver's page
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.