Cathleen Cordell (May 21, 1915 – August 19, 1997) was an American film and television actress. She was described as "a lass born in Brooklyn with an Irish name and an English accent; educated in India and France."

Early years

Cordell was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, New York. She moved to England, then France, in order to begin her childhood education. "My father's business took him to India when I was a baby," she said, "Then we went to France, and when I was 7 years old I was thrust into a French boarding school." She later attended the

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, also known by its abbreviation RADA (), is a drama school in London, England, which provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in Bloomsbury, Central London ...

Stage

Cordell's stage debut came in ''It's You I Want'', presented by

Seymour Hicks Sir Edward Seymour Hicks (30 January 1871 – 6 April 1949), better known as Seymour Hicks, was a British actor, music hall performer, playwright, actor-manager and producer. He became known, early in his career, for writing, starring in and p ...

' company in England. Her "first important role" in the United States came in ''Never Trouble Trouble'' at the Brighton Theater in Brooklyn, New York, August 17, 1937. A Brooklyn newspaper described Cordell as "a 'discovery' of

John Golden John Lionel Golden (June 27, 1874 – June 17, 1955) was an American actor, songwriter, author, and theatrical producer. As a songwriter, he is best-known as lyricist for " Poor Butterfly" (1916). He produced many Broadway shows and four film ...

" and said the actress "has appeared abroad previously." Cordell went on to appear on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

in ''Love of Women'' (1937), ''Romantic Mr. Dickens'' (1940), ''Golden Wings'' (1941), ''Yesterday's Magic'' (1942), ''Sheppey'' (1944), ''While the Sun Shines'' (1944), and ''The Linden Tree'' (1948).

Film

Cordell began her film career in 1938 playing in ''Who Killed Cock Robin?''. (Another source says she "made her film debut in the British version of '' Gaslight''.") She starred in ''Gaslight'' (1940) with

Anton Walbrook Adolf Anton Wilhelm Wohlbrück (19 November 18969 August 1967) was an Austrian actor who settled in the United Kingdom under the name Anton Walbrook. A popular performer in Austria and pre-war Germany, he left Germany in 1936 out of concerns f ...

, as Nancy, the housemaid, a role that later launched

Angela Lansbury Dame Angela Brigid Lansbury (October 16, 1925 – October 11, 2022) was an Irish-British and American actress, producer, and singer. In a career spanning 80 years, she played various roles on stage and screen. Among her numerous accolades wer ...

into stardom in the American remake four years later. She made numerous film and television appearances during her nearly 50-year career.

Radio

Cordell was a member of the casts of ''Hilltop House'' (playing Vicky McLain), ''Amanda'' (playing Eve Fuller), '' Valiant Lady'' (playing Monica Brewster) and '' Counterspy'' and appeared in other programs, such as Quiet Please, '' Grand Central Station'' and ''

The March of Time ''The March of Time'' is an American newsreel series sponsored by Time Inc. and shown in movie theaters from 1935 to 1951. It was based on a radio news series broadcast from 1931 to 1945 that was produced by advertising agency Batten, Barton, ...

''. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Cordell lived in England and worked for the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

Television

Cordell appeared in two episodes of ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and four short stories, all of which involve a ...

'' and ''

Family Affair ''Family Affair'' is an American sitcom starring Brian Keith and Sebastian Cabot that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966, to March 4, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do engineer and bachelor Bill Davis (Keith) as he attempt ...

'', and three times in '' Dragnet 1967'', starring

Jack Webb John Randolph Webb (April 2, 1920 – December 23, 1982) was an American actor, television producer, Television director, director, and screenwriter, most famous for his role as Joe Friday in the Dragnet (franchise), ''Dragnet'' franchise ...

. In 1963, she appeared as “Mrs. Lawson” in the S6E26 edition of ''

Wagon Train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western television series that aired for eight seasons, first on the NBC television network (1957–1962) and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and reached the top of the ...

'' in “The Michael Magoo Story”. In 1970 she played Mrs. Beamish in “The Housekeeper” - Season 1 / Episode 1 of Rod Serling's, American anthology television series, ''

Night Gallery ''Night Gallery'' is an American anthology television series that aired on NBC from December 16, 1970, to May 27, 1973, featuring stories of horror and the macabre. Rod Serling, who had gained fame from an earlier series, '' The Twilight Zon ...

''.

Later years

Cordell retired from acting in 1985 after appearing in the movie ''

The Return of the Living Dead ''The Return of the Living Dead'' is a 1985 American comedy horror film written and directed by Dan O'Bannon (in his directorial debut) from a story by Rudy Ricci, John Russo, and Russell Streiner, and starring Clu Gulager, James Karen, ...

''.

Death

Cordell died on August 19, 1997, in

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a non-profit, Tertiary referral hospital, tertiary, 915-bed teaching hospital and multi-specialty academic health science centre, academic health science center located in Los Angeles, California. Part of the Cedars ...

, Los Angeles, at age 82.

Radio appearances

Film appearances

Television appearances

References

External links

* *
Old Time Radio Researchers Database of People and Programs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cordell, Cathleen American film actresses American television actresses Deaths from emphysema Actresses from Brooklyn Actresses from Los Angeles 1915 births 1997 deaths 20th-century American actresses