Mary Alice "Maris" Wrixon (December 28, 1916 – October 6, 1999) was an American film and television actress. She appeared in over 50 films between 1939 and 1951.

Early years

Wrixon was born in

Billings, Montana Billings is the most populous Lists of populated places in the United States, city in the U.S. state of Montana, with a population of 117,116 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located in the south-central portion of the state, i ...

, and raised in Great Falls, one of three children born to Mr. and Mrs. W.H. Wrixon. Her interest in acting was sparked by a role she had in a class play when she was a student at Great Falls High School. She gained acting experience at the Pasadena Community Playhouse.

Career

Wrixon first appeared in films in the late 1930s, making one film in 1938 and 10 in 1939. Between 1940 and 1942, she appeared in 29 films at

Warner Brothers 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 ...

, alternating between uncredited parts (in films including '' High Sierra'' and ''

Dark Victory ''Dark Victory'' is a 1939 American melodrama film directed by Edmund Goulding, starring Bette Davis, and featuring George Brent, Humphrey Bogart, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Ronald Reagan, Henry Travers, and Cora Witherspoon. The screenplay by Casey ...

'') and supporting roles. Wrixon worked primarily in

B-movie A B movie, or B film, is a type of cheap, low-budget commercial motion picture. Originally, during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood, this term specifically referred to films meant to be shown as the lesser-known second ...

s and, in addition to her Warners films, in films produced by Poverty Row studios such as

Monogram Pictures Monogram Pictures Corporation was an American film studio that produced mostly low-budget films between 1931 and 1953, when the firm completed a transition to the name Allied Artists Pictures Corporation. Monogram was among the smaller studios i ...

. Monogram released the film in which ''

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'' says "horror fans remember her best", '' The Ape'', which starred

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 ...

. Her final film was '' As You Were'' (1951).

Personal life

Wrixon was married to

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...

-nominated film editor Rudi Fehr. She died in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to Cardiac cycle, fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF ...

Selected filmography

* '' Off the Record'' (1939) - Telephone Operator (uncredited) * ''

The Adventures of Jane Arden ''The Adventures of Jane Arden'' is a 1939 American crime film directed by Terry O. Morse and written by Vincent Sherman, Lawrence Kimble, and Charles W. Curran. The film stars Rosella Towne, William Gargan, James Stephenson, Benny Rubin, D ...

'' (1939) - Martha Blanton - Debutante * '' No Place to Go'' (1939) - Mrs. Harriet Washburn (uncredited) * ''

The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex ''The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex'', for a time also entitled ''Elizabeth the Queen'', is a 1939 American historical romantic drama film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Bette Davis, Errol Flynn, and Olivia de Havilland. Based on ...

'' (1939) - Lady of the Court (uncredited) * '' Jeepers Creepers'' (1939) - Connie Durant * ''

British Intelligence The Government of the United Kingdom maintains several intelligence agencies that deal with secret intelligence. These agencies are responsible for collecting, analysing and exploiting foreign and domestic intelligence, providing military intell ...

'' (1940) - Dorothy Bennett (uncredited) * '' 'Til We Meet Again'' (1940) - Girl (uncredited) * '' Saturday's Children'' (1940) - City Hospital Nurse (uncredited) * '' Flight Angels'' (1940) - Bonnie * '' The Man Who Talked Too Much'' (1940) - Roscoe's Secretary * '' The Ape'' (1940) - Miss Frances Clifford * ''

Knute Rockne All American ''Knute Rockne, All American'' is a 1940 American biographical film that tells the story of Knute Rockne, Notre Dame's legendary football coach. It stars Pat O'Brien as Rockne and Ronald Reagan as player George Gipp, as well as Gale Page, Do ...

'' (1940) - Telephone Operator (uncredited) * '' Lady with Red Hair'' (1940) - Miss Annie Ellis (uncredited) * ''

Santa Fe Trail The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century route through central North America that connected Franklin, Missouri, with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1821 by William Becknell, who departed from the Boonslick region along the Missouri River, the ...

'' (1940) - Girl at Wedding (uncredited) * '' The Case of the Black Parrot'' (1941) - Sandy Vantine * '' High Sierra'' (1941) - Blonde at Auto Accident (uncredited) * '' Footsteps in the Dark'' (1941) - June Brewster * ''

Meet John Doe ''Meet John Doe'' is a 1941 American comedy drama film directed and produced by Frank Capra, written by Robert Riskin, and starring Gary Cooper, Barbara Stanwyck and Edward Arnold. The film is about a "grassroots" political campaign created ...

'' (1941) - Autograph Hound (uncredited) * '' A Shot in the Dark'' (1941) - Helen Armstrong * ''

Million Dollar Baby ''Million Dollar Baby'' is a 2004 American sports drama film directed, co-produced, scored by and starring Clint Eastwood from a screenplay by Paul Haggis. It is based on stories from the 2000 collection ''Rope Burns: Stories from the Corner' ...

'' (1941) - Diana Bennet * '' Sunset in Wyoming'' (1941) - Wilmetta 'Billie' Wentworth * '' Bullets for O'Hara'' (1941) - Elaine Standish * '' Navy Blues'' (1941) - Hawaii Pickup #2 (uncredited) * '' Spy Ship'' (1942) - Sue Mitchell * ''

Sons of the Pioneers The Sons of the Pioneers are one of the United States' earliest Western singing groups. Known for their vocal performances, their musicianship, and their songwriting, they produced innovative recordings that have inspired many Western music per ...

'' (1942) - Louise Harper * '' The Old Homestead'' (1942) - Mary Jo Weaver * ''

Silent Witness ''Silent Witness'' is a British crime drama television series produced by the BBC that focuses on a team of forensic pathology experts and their investigations into various crimes. The series was created by Nigel McCrery, a former murder squa ...

'' (1943) - Betty Higgins, Special Investigator * '' Women in Bondage'' (1943) - Grete Ziegler * '' Phantom Lady'' (1944) - Blonde (uncredited) * '' Waterfront'' (1944) - Freda Hauser * '' Trail to Gunsight'' (1944) - Mary Wagner * '' The Master Key'' (1945, Serial) - Dorothy Newton * '' White Pongo'' (1945) - Pamela Bragdon * ''

This Love of Ours ''This Love of Ours'' is a 1945 American drama film directed by William Dieterle and starring Merle Oberon, Maris Wrixon, Claude Rains, Charles Korvin and Carl Esmond. The film's composer, Hans J. Salter, was nominated for an Academy Award f ...

'' (1945) - Evelyn * '' Black Market Babies'' (1945) - Helen Roberts * '' The Face of Marble'' (1946) - Linda Sinclair * '' The Glass Alibi'' (1946) - Linda Vale * '' The Saxon Charm'' (1948) - Mrs. McCarthy (uncredited) * '' Highway 13'' (1948) - Mary Hadley * '' As You Were'' (1951) * '' Sea Hunt'' (1960, TV Series) - Edith Judd * ''

The Graduate ''The Graduate'' is a 1967 American independent romantic comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols and written by Buck Henry and Calder Willingham, based on the 1963 novella by Charles Webb. It stars Dustin Hoffman as Benjamin Braddoc ...

'' (1967) - Guest at Welcoming Party (uncredited) * '' Dayton's Devils'' (1968) - Cashier (final film role)

References

External links

* * Brief biography and filmography at
The New York Times
' {{DEFAULTSORT:Wrixon, Maris 1916 births 1999 deaths American television actresses Actresses from Montana American film actresses People from Billings, Montana People from Great Falls, Montana 20th-century American actresses