Marian Marsh (born Violet Ethelred Krauth; October 17, 1913 – November 9, 2006) was a Trinidad-born American film actress and later an

environmentalist Environmentalism is a broad Philosophy of life, philosophy, ideology, and social movement about supporting life, habitats, and surroundings. While environmentalism focuses more on the environmental and nature-related aspects of Green politics, g ...

Early life

Violet Ethelred Krauth was born on October 17, 1913, in Trinidad, British West Indies (now

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

), the youngest of four children of a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

chocolate Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cocoa beans that can be a liquid, solid, or paste, either by itself or to flavoring, flavor other foods. Cocoa beans are the processed seeds of the cacao tree (''Theobroma cacao''); unprocesse ...

manufacturer and, as noted by encyclopaedist

Leslie Halliwell Robert James Leslie Halliwell (23 February 1929 – 21 January 1989) was a British film critic, encyclopaedist and television rights buyer for ITV, the British commercial network, and Channel 4. He is best known for his reference guides, '' Fi ...

in his book The Filmgoer's Companion, his French- English wife. Owing to

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Marsh's father moved his family to

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. By the time she was 10, the family had relocated to Hollywood,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. Her older sister, Harriet, an actress who went by the name of Jean Fenwick and Jean Morgan, landed a job as a contract player with FBO Studios. Marsh attended Le Conte Junior High School and

Hollywood High School Hollywood High School is a four-year public secondary school in the Los Angeles Unified School District, located at the intersection of North Highland Avenue and West Sunset Boulevard in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California. His ...

. In 1928 she was approached by silent screen actress Nance O'Neil, who offered her speech and movement lessons, and with her sister Jean's help, she soon entered the movies. She secured a contract with

Pathé Pathé SAS (; styled as PATHÉ!) is a French major film production and distribution company, owning a number of cinema chains through its subsidiary Pathé Cinémas and television networks across Europe. It is the name of a network of Fren ...

, where she was featured in many short subjects under the name Marilyn Morgan. She was seen in small roles in

Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American Aerospace engineering, aerospace engineer, business magnate, film producer, and investor. He was The World's Billionaires, one of the richest and most influential peo ...

's classic '' Hell's Angels'' (1930) and

Eddie Cantor Eddie Cantor (born Isidore Itzkowitz; January 31, 1892 – October 10, 1964) was an American comedian, actor, dancer, singer, songwriter, film producer, screenwriter and author. Cantor was one of the prominent entertainers of his era. Some of h ...

's lavish

Technicolor Technicolor is a family of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes. The first version, Process 1, was introduced in 1916, and improved versions followed over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black-and ...

musical ''

Whoopee! ''Whoopee!'' is a 1928 musical comedy play with a book based on Owen Davis's play, ''The Nervous Wreck.'' The musical libretto was written by William Anthony McGuire, with music by Walter Donaldson and lyrics by Gus Kahn. The musical premiered o ...

'' (1930). The part in ''Whoopee!'' resulted from Marsh's visit to a film studio with her sister. Not long afterwards, she was signed by

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

and her name was changed to Marian Marsh. In 1930, at age 17, Marsh had the female lead in ''Young Sinners'', a play at the Belasco Theater. A contemporary news article reported that she "has scored a distinct hit" in her first stage production.

Hollywood success

In 1931, after appearing in a number of short films, Marsh landed one of her most important roles in ' opposite

John Barrymore John Barrymore (born John Sidney Blyth; February 14 or 15, 1882 – May 29, 1942) was an American actor on stage, screen, and radio. A member of the Drew and Barrymore theatrical families, he initially tried to avoid the stage, and briefly a ...

. Marsh was chosen by Barrymore for the role of Trilby. Barrymore, who had selected her partly because she resembled his wife, coached her performance throughout the picture's filming. ''Svengali'' was based on the 1894 novel ''

Trilby A trilby is a narrow-brimmed type of hat. The trilby was once viewed as the rich man's favored hat; it is sometimes called the "brown trilby" in UK, BritainBernhard Roetzel, Roetzel, Bernhard (1999). ''Gentleman's Guide to Grooming and Style''. B ...

'' written by

George du Maurier George Louis Palmella Busson du Maurier (6 March 1834 – 8 October 1896) was a Franco-British cartoonist and writer known for work in ''Punch (magazine), Punch'' and a Gothic fiction, Gothic novel ''Trilby (novel), Trilby'', featuring the char ...

. A popular play, based on the book, also titled ''Trilby'', followed in 1895. In the film version, Marsh plays the artist's model Trilby, who is transformed into a great opera star by the sinister hypnotist Svengali. The word "

Svengali Svengali () is a character in the novel ''Trilby'' which was first published in 1894 by George du Maurier. Svengali is a Jewish man who seduces, dominates and exploits Trilby, a young half-Irish girl, and makes her into a famous singer. Defini ...

" has entered the

English language English is a West Germanic language that developed in early medieval England and has since become a English as a lingua franca, global lingua franca. The namesake of the language is the Angles (tribe), Angles, one of the Germanic peoples th ...

, defining a person who, with sometimes evil intent, tries to persuade another to do what he desires. Marsh was named as one of the

WAMPAS Baby Stars The WAMPAS Baby Stars was a promotional campaign sponsored by the United States Western Association of Motion Picture Advertisers, which honored 13 (15 in 1932) young actresses each year whom they believed to be on the threshold of movie stardom. ...

in August 1931 even before her second movie with Warner Bros. was released. With her ability to project warmth, sincerity and inner strength on the screen along with critical praise and the audience's approval of ''Svengali'', she continued to star in a string of successful films for Warner Bros., including '' Five Star Final'' (1931) with Edward G. Robinson, '' The Mad Genius'' (1931) with Barrymore, ''

The Road to Singapore ''The Road to Singapore'' is a 1931 American pre-Code romantic drama film directed by Alfred E. Green and starring William Powell and Doris Kenyon, who play two thirds of a romantic triangle, along with Louis Calhern. It was produced and ...

'' (1931) with

William Powell William Horatio Powell (July 29, 1892 – March 5, 1984) was an American actor, known primarily for his film career. Under contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, he was paired with Myrna Loy in 14 films, including the ''The Thin Man (film), Thin M ...

, '' Under 18'' (1932) with Warren William, '' Alias the Doctor'' (1932) with Richard Barthelmess, and '' Beauty and the Boss'' (1932) with Warren William. In 1932, in the midst of a grueling work schedule, Marsh left Warner Bros. and moved to RKO, where she made with

Norman Foster Norman Robert Foster, Baron Foster of Thames Bank (born 1 June 1935) is an English architect. Closely associated with the development of high-tech architecture, Lord Foster is recognised as a key figure in British modernist architecture. Hi ...

and '' The Sport Parade'' (1932) with

Joel McCrea Joel Albert McCrea (November 5, 1905 – October 20, 1990) was an American actor whose career spanned a wide variety of genres over almost five decades, including comedy, drama, romance, thrillers, adventures, and Westerns, for which he bec ...

. After that, she took several film offers in Europe that lasted until 1934. She enjoyed working in England and Germany, as well as vacationing in Paris. While in England, she appeared in the musical comedy film . Back in the United States, she appeared as the heroine Elnora in a popular adaptation of the perennial favorite '' A Girl of the Limberlost'' (1934). In 1935, Marsh signed a two-year pact with

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...

. During this time, she starred in such films as regarded as one of

Boris Karloff William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), known professionally as Boris Karloff () and occasionally billed as Karloff the Uncanny, was a British actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film ''Frankenstei ...

's best horror films of the decade,

Josef von Sternberg Josef von Sternberg (; born Jonas Sternberg; May 29, 1894 – December 22, 1969) was an American filmmaker whose career successfully spanned the transition from the Silent film, silent to the Sound film, sound era, during which he worked with mos ...

's classic ''

Crime and Punishment ''Crime and Punishment'' is a novel by the Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was first published in the literary journal '' The Russian Messenger'' in twelve monthly installments during 1866.

'' (1935) with

Peter Lorre Peter Lorre (; born László Löwenstein, ; June 26, 1904 – March 23, 1964) was a Hungarian and American actor, active first in Europe and later in the United States. Known for his timidly devious characters, his appearance, and accented vo ...

, wherein she played the sympathetic prostitute Sonya, '' Lady of Secrets'' (1936) with

Ruth Chatterton Ruth Chatterton (December 24, 1892 – November 24, 1961) was an American stage, film, and television actress, aviator and novelist. She was at her most popular in the early to mid-1930s, and in the same era gained prominence as an aviator, ...

, ''

Counterfeit A counterfeit is a fake or unauthorized replica of a genuine product, such as money, documents, designer items, or other valuable goods. Counterfeiting generally involves creating an imitation of a genuine item that closely resembles the original ...

'' (1936) with

Chester Morris John Chester Brooks Morris (February 16, 1901 – September 11, 1970) was an American stage, film, television, and radio actor. He had some prestigious film roles early in his career, and received an Academy Award nomination for ''Alibi'' ( ...

, '' The Man Who Lived Twice'' (1936) with

Ralph Bellamy Ralph Rexford Bellamy (June 17, 1904 – November 29, 1991) was an American actor whose career spanned 65 years on stage, film, and television. During his career, he played leading roles as well as supporting roles, garnering acclaim and award ...

, and '' Come Closer, Folks'' (1936) with James Dunn. When her contract expired in 1937, Marsh once again freelanced, appearing steadily in movies for

RKO Radio Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, is an American film production and distribution company, historically one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Kei ...

, where she made '' Saturday's Heroes'' (1937) with Van Heflin, and for

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...

, where she played a young woman caught up in a mystery in '' The Great Gambini'' (1937). She appeared with comic Joe E. Brown in '' When's Your Birthday?'' (1937), and Richard Arlen in . In the 1940s, Marsh played

Wallace Ford Wallace Ford (born Samuel Grundy Jones; 12 February 1898 – 11 June 1966) was an English–American vaudevillian, stage performer and screen actor. Usually playing wise-cracking characters, he combined a tough but friendly-faced demeanor with ...

's secretary in '' Murder by Invitation'' (1941) and the self-willed wife in '' Gentleman from Dixie'' (1941). In her last screen appearance, Marsh portrayed the daughter of an inventor in the comedy/mystery '' House of Errors'' (1942), which starred

Harry Langdon Henry Philmore "Harry" Langdon (June 15, 1884 – December 22, 1944) was an American actor and comedian who appeared in vaudeville, silent films (where he had his greatest fame), and talkies.Obituary ''Variety Obituaries, Variety'', December 27 ...

. In the late 1950s, she appeared with

John Forsythe John Lincoln Forsythe ( Freund; January 29, 1918 – April 1, 2010) was an American stage, film/television actor, producer, narrator, drama teacher and philanthropist whose career spanned six decades. He also appeared as a guest on several t ...

in an episode of his TV series '' Bachelor Father'' and in an episode of the TV series ''

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars ''Schlitz Playhouse of Stars'' is an anthology series that was telecast from 1951 until 1959 on CBS. Offering both comedies and drama, the series was sponsored by the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company. The title was shortened to ''Schlitz Playh ...

'' before retiring in 1959.

Personal life

Marsh married a

stockbroker A stockbroker is an individual or company that buys and sells stocks and other investments for a financial market participant in return for a commission, markup, or fee. In most countries they are regulated as a broker or broker-dealer and ...

named Albert Scott on March 29, 1938, and had two children with him, Catherine Mary Scott (1942–2018) and Albert Parker Scott Jr. (1944–2014). They divorced in 1959. In 1960, Marsh married Cliff Henderson, an

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...

pioneer and

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value in ways that generally entail beyond the minimal amount of risk (assumed by a traditional business), and potentially involving values besides simply economic ones. An entreprene ...

whom she had met in the early 1930s. They moved to

Palm Desert, California Palm Desert is a city in the Coachella Valley region of Riverside County, California. The city is located in the Colorado Desert arm of the Sonoran Desert, about east of Palm Springs, northeast of San Diego and east of Los Angeles. The popula ...

, a town Henderson founded in the 1940s. In the 1960s, Marsh founded Desert Beautiful, a non-profit all-volunteer conservation organization to promote environmental and beautification programs. Cliff Henderson died in 1984 and Marsh remained in Palm Desert until her death.

Death

In 2006, at age 93, Marsh died of respiratory arrest while sleeping at her home in Palm Desert. She is buried at

Desert Memorial Park Desert Memorial Park is a cemetery in Cathedral City, California, United States, near Palm Springs, California, Palm Springs. Opening in 1956 and receiving its first interment in 1957,The Palm Springs Cemetery District itself was covers 504 square ...

in Cathedral City, California.

Complete filmography

* '' The Sophomore'' (1929) (uncredited) * ''Don't Believe It'' (1930 short) * '' Hell's Angels'' (1930) as Girl Selling Kisses * ''

'' (1930) as Harriett Underwood (uncredited) * '' The Naughty Flirt'' (1931) as Kay's Friend (uncredited) * ''

'' (1931) as Trilby O'Farrell * ''

Under Eighteen ''Under Eighteen'' is a 1931 American pre-Code romantic drama film directed by Archie Mayo and starring Marian Marsh, Anita Page, Regis Toomey and Warren William. It is based on the short story "Sky Life" by Frank Mitchell Dazey and Agnes ...

'' (1931) as Margie Evans * '' Five Star Final'' (1931) as Jenny Townsend * ''

'' (1931) as Rene March * '' The Mad Genius'' (1931) as Nana Carlova * '' Alias the Doctor'' (1932) as Lotti Brenner * '' Beauty and the Boss'' (1932) as Susie Sachs * '' Strange Justice'' (1932) as Rose * '' The Sport Parade'' (1932) as Irene Stewart * '' The Eleventh Commandment'' (1933) as Corinne Ross * '' Daring Daughters'' (1933) as Terry Cummings * '' Notorious But Nice'' (1933) as Jenny Jones * '' A Man of Sentiment'' (1933) as Julia Wilkens * '' Love at Second Sight'' (1934) as Juliet * ''

I Like It That Way ''I Like It That Way'' is a 1934 American pre-Code musical film directed by Harry Lachman and starring Gloria Stuart, Roger Pryor and Marian Marsh. Plot A telephone operator quits her job to become a singer at a nightclub. Main cast * Gloria S ...

'' (1934) as Joan Anderson * '' Over the Garden Wall'' (1934) as Mary * '' The Prodigal Son'' (1934) as Miss Lillian Comstock * '' A Girl of the Limberlost'' (1934) as Elnora Comstock * '' In Spite of Danger'' (1935) as Sally Sullivan * '' Unknown Woman'' (1935) as Helen Griffith * '' The Black Room (1935) as Thea Hassel * ''

'' (1935) as Sonya * '' Lady of Secrets'' (1936) as Joan * ''

'' (1936) as Verna Maxwell * '' The Man Who Lived Twice'' (1936) as Janet Haydon * '' Come Closer, Folks'' (1936) as Peggy Woods * '' When's Your Birthday?'' (1937) as Jerry Grant * '' The Great Gambini'' (1937) as Ann Randall * '' Youth on Parole'' (1937) as "Bobbie" Blake * '' Saturday's Heroes'' (1937) as Frances Thomas * '' Prison Nurse'' (1938) as Judy * '' A Desperate Adventure'' (1938) as Ann Carrington * '' Missing Daughters'' (1939) as Josie Lamonte *'' Fugitive from a Prison Camp'' (1940) as Ann Baldwin * '' Murder by Invitation'' (1941) as Nora O'Brien * '' Gentleman from Dixie '' (1941) as Margaret Terrill * '' House of Errors'' (1942) as Florence Randall

References

External links

*
Marian Marsh
at Virtual History {{DEFAULTSORT:Marsh, Marian 1913 births 2006 deaths Actresses from Boston Actresses from Los Angeles American environmentalists American women environmentalists American film actresses American television actresses Trinidad and Tobago emigrants to the United States Burials at Desert Memorial Park People from Palm Desert, California Activists from California 20th-century American actresses American people of English descent American people of French descent American people of German descent 21st-century American women