Dorothy Short (June 29, 1915 – June 4, 1963) was an American film actress, mainly in low-budget

Westerns The Western is a genre of fiction typically set in the American frontier (commonly referred to as the "Old West" or the "Wild West") between the California Gold Rush of 1849 and the closing of the frontier in 1890, and commonly associated wit ...

and serials in the 1930s and 1940s. A native of

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Short was the daughter of Mrs. E. M. Short. She began working in films for

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

in 1933 on a trial basis. In November 1933, a court in California approved a seven-year contract, with options, between the 18-year-old actress and the studio. Short married

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

Dave O'Brien in 1936, the same year they appeared together in the low-budget exploitation cheapie ''

Reefer Madness ''Reefer Madness'' (originally made as ''Tell Your Children'' and sometimes titled ''The Burning Question'', ''Dope Addict'', ''Doped Youth'', and ''Love Madness'') is a 1938/1939 American exploitation film about drugs, revolving around the me ...

'', which in modern times has become a well-known

cult film A cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase, which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage in repeated ...

. She also appeared in another anti-

marijuana Cannabis (), commonly known as marijuana (), weed, pot, and ganja, List of slang names for cannabis, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform psychoactive drug from the ''Cannabis'' plant. Native to Central or South Asia, cannabis has ...

film, '' Assassin of Youth'', in 1937. She often appeared alongside her husband in various 'B' pictures and the Pete Smith series of comedy shorts, in which O'Brien played the lead on many occasions during the 1940s. After their divorce in 1954, Short retired from film acting, and died nine years later at age 47.

Selected filmography

*'' The Call of the Savage'' (1935) as Mona Andreas *''

'' (1936) as Mary * '' Damaged Goods'' (1937) as Table Dancer *'' Brothers of the West'' (1937) as Annie Wade *'' Assassin of Youth'' (1938) as Marjorie 'Marge' Barry *''

Heart of Arizona ''Heart of Arizona'' is a 1938 American Western film directed by Lesley Selander and written by Norman Houston. The film stars William Boyd, George "Gabby" Hayes, Russell Hayden, John Elliott, Billy King, Natalie Moorhead and Dorothy Short. ...

'' (1938) as Jacqueline 'Jackie' Starr *''

The Singing Cowgirl ''The Singing Cowgirl'' is a 1938 American Western (genre), Western film directed by Samuel Diege. Plot Cast *Dorothy Page (actress), Dorothy Page as Dorothy Hendricks *Dave O'Brien (actor), Dave O'Brien as Dick Williams *Vince Barnett as Kew ...

'' (1938) as Nora Pryde *''

Where the Buffalo Roam ''Where the Buffalo Roam'' is a 1980 American semi-biographical comedy film which loosely depicts author Hunter S. Thompson's rise to fame in the 1970s and his relationship with Chicano attorney and activist Oscar "Zeta" Acosta. The film was ...

'' (1938) as Laddie Gray *'' Wild Horse Canyon'' (1938) as Jean Hall *'' Code of the Cactus'' (1939) as Joan *'' Daughter of the Tong'' (1939) as Marion Morgan *'' Phantom Rancher'' (1940) as Ann Markham * '' Frontier Crusader'' (1940) as Jenny Mason *'' Pony Post'' (1940) as Alice Goodwin *''

Trail of the Silver Spurs ''Trail of the Silver Spurs'' is a 1941 American Western film directed by S. Roy Luby and written by Earle Snell. The film is the fourth in Monogram Pictures' " Range Busters" series, and it stars Ray "Crash" Corrigan as Crash, John "Dusty" K ...

'' (1941) as Nancy Nordick * '' Buzzy and the Phantom Pinto'' (1941) as Ruth Wade *''

Spooks Run Wild ''Spooks Run Wild'' is a 1941 American horror comedy film and the seventh film in the East Side Kids series. It stars Bela Lugosi with Leo Gorcey, Bobby Jordan and Huntz Hall. It is directed by Phil Rosen, in his first and only outing in the ser ...

'' (1941) as Linda Mason *''

The Lone Rider Fights Back ''The Lone Rider Fights Back'' is a 1941 American western film directed by Sam Newfield and written by Joseph O'Donnell. The film stars George Houston as the Lone Rider and Al St. John as his sidekick "Fuzzy" Jones, with Dorothy Short, Denn ...

'' (1941) as Jean Dennison * '' Bullets for Bandits'' (1942) as Dakota Brown *''

Captain Midnight ''Captain Midnight'' (later rebranded on television as ''Jet Jackson, Flying Commando'') is an American adventure franchise first broadcast as a radio serial from 1938 to 1949. The character's popularity throughout the 1940s and into the mid-19 ...

'' (1942) as Joyce Edwards

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Short, Dorothy 1915 births 1963 deaths American film actresses Film serial actresses 20th-century American actresses Western (genre) film actresses Actresses from Philadelphia Burials at Inglewood Park Cemetery