Barbara Britton

Birthday: 1919-09-26
Deathday: 1980-01-17
Birthplace: Long Beach, California, USA
Gender: Female
Owned By: Unowned

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Barbara Britton (born Barbara Maurine Brantingham, September 26, 1919 – January 17, 1980) was an American film and television actress. She is best known for her Western film roles opposite Randolph Scott, Joel McCrea, and Gene Autry and for her two-year tenure as inquisitive amateur sleuth Pam North on the television and radio series Mr. and Mrs. North.

In 1941, while appearing in a Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade, a photo of Britton was used on the front page of a local newspaper. A talent scout took notice, and she was soon signed to a Paramount Pictures contract. (Another source says that a talent scout spotted her as the lead in the production of The Old Maid at her college, and "three weeks later she was signed by Paramount Pictures as a stock player.")

That same year, she appeared in her first two films: the William Boyd Western Secrets of the Wasteland and Louisiana Purchase starring Bob Hope. Her first major film appearance was in a small role in the John Wayne film Reap the Wild Wind (1942).

During the 1940s Britton starred in three films for which she is most recognized today, two of which co-starred Randolph Scott. The first was the 1945 film Captain Kidd with Scott, followed by The Virginian in 1946 opposite Joel McCrea. The third was the 1947 Randolph Scott film Gunfighters. She teamed with Scott again in the 1948 Western Albuquerque, and that same year she starred opposite Gene Autry in Loaded Pistols. In total, she starred or appeared in 26 films during that decade.

Britton starred in the 1950s television show Mr. and Mrs. North, a Thin Man-like mystery show, with Richard Denning and Francis De Sales. She was probably best known for being the spokesperson for Revlon products in the 1950s and 1960s, appearing in advertisements and commercials that included live spots on The $64,000 Question. She also portrayed Laura Petrie in Carl Reiner's Head of the Family, the 1959 pilot for the later Dick Van Dyke Show.

One of Britton's last roles was on the daytime television soap opera One Life to Live in 1979.

Credits

Year Title Character
1990-04-29 Caroline? Hilary
1955-12-23 The Spoilers Helen Chester
1955-08-28 Night Freight Wanda
1955-06-30 Ain't Misbehavin' Pat Beaton
1954-03-21 Dragonfly Squadron Donna Cottrell
1952-11-25 Ride the Man Down Lottie Priest
1952-11-20 The Raiders Elizabeth Ainsworth
1952-08-22 Bwana Devil Alice Hayward
1950-12-22 The Bandit Queen Zarra Montalvo, alias Lola Belmont
1950-05-11 Champagne for Caesar Gwenn Bottomley
1949-02-26 I Shot Jesse James Cynthy Waters
1949-02-25 Cover Up Anita Weatherby
1948-12-15 Loaded Pistols Mary Evans
1948-10-20 The Untamed Breed Cherry Lucas
1948-03-26 Mr. Reckless Betty Denton
1948-02-20 Albuquerque Letty Tayler
1947-07-15 Gunfighters Bess Banner
1946-12-19 The Return of Monte Cristo Angela Picard
1946-12-15 The Fabulous Suzanne Suzanne
1946-05-05 The Virginian Molly Wood
1946-05-03 They Made Me a Killer June Reynolds
1945-11-22 Captain Kidd Lady Anne Dunstan
1945-05-25 The Great John L. Kathy Harkness
1944-08-30 Till We Meet Again Sister Clothilde aka Louise Dupree
1944-07-04 The Story of Dr. Wassell Ruth
1943-09-09 So Proudly We Hail Lt. Rosemary Larson
1943-09-09 The Last Will and Testament of Tom Smith Grace
1943-02-05 Young and Willing Marge Benson Dennison
1943-01-01 Freedom Comes High
1942-10-01 Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch Lucy Olcott
1942-08-11 Wake Island Sally Cameron (uncredited)
1942-03-26 Reap the Wild Wind Charleston Lady #1
1942-01-24 The Fleet's In Eileen Wright
1941-12-31 Louisiana Purchase Louisiana Belle
1941-11-15 Secret of the Wastelands Jennifer Kendall