Ann Dvorak
Ann Dvorak is known for Scarface (1932), 'G' Men (1935), Three on a Match (1932).
Biography
Ann Dvorak (born Anna McKim; August 2, 1911 – December 10, 1979) was an American stage and film actress. Asked how to pronounce her adopted surname, she told The Literary Digest: "My fake name is properly pronounced vor'shack. The D remains silent."
Dvorak was the daughter and only child of silent film actress Anna Lehr and director Edwin McKim. While in New York, she attended St. Catherine's Convent. After moving to California, she attended Page School for Girls in Hollywood.
She made her film debut when she was five years old in the silent film version of Ramona (1916), credited as "Baby Anna Lehr". She continued in children's roles in The Man Hater (1917) and Five Dollar Plate (1920), but then stopped acting in films. Her parents separated in 1916 and divorced in 1920; she did not see her father again until 13 years later, when she made a public plea to the press to help her find him.
In the late 1920s, Dvorak worked as a dance instructor and gradually began to appear on film as a chorus girl. Her friend, actress Karen Morley, introduced her to billionaire movie producer Howard Hughes, who groomed her as a dramatic actress. She was a success in such pre-Code films as Scarface (1932) as Paul Muni's sister; in Three on a Match (1932) with Bette Davis and Joan Blondell as the doomed, unstable Vivian; in The Crowd Roars (1932) with James Cagney; and in Sky Devils (1932) opposite Spencer Tracy. Known for her style and elegance, she was a popular leading lady for Warner Bros. during the 1930s, and appeared in numerous contemporary romances and melodramas. At age 19, Dvorak eloped with Leslie Fenton, her English co-star from The Strange Love of Molly Louvain (1932), and they married on March 17, 1932. They left for a year-long honeymoon in spite of her contractual obligations to the studio, which led to a period of litigation and pay disputes during which she discovered she was making the same amount of money as the boy who played her son in Three on a Match. She completed her contract on permanent suspension, then worked as a freelancer. Although she worked regularly, the quality of her scripts declined sharply. She appeared as secretary Della Street to Donald Woods' Perry Mason in The Case of the Stuttering Bishop (1937). With her then-husband, Leslie Fenton, Dvorak traveled to England where she supported the war effort by working as an ambulance driver and acted in several British films. She appeared as a saloon singer in Abilene Town with Randolph Scott and Edgar Buchanan, released in 1946. The following year she adeptly handled comedy by giving an assured performance in Out of the Blue (1947). In 1948, Dvorak gave her only performance on Broadway in The Respectful Prostitute.
Dvorak's marriage to Fenton ended in divorce in 1946. In 1947, she married Igor Dega, a Russian dancer who danced with her briefly in The Bachelor's Daughters. The marriage ended two years later.
Dvorak retired from the screen in 1951, when she married her third and last husband, Nicholas Wade, to whom she remained married until his death in 1975. She had no children.
Questions about Ann Dvorak
How many Ann Dvorak films are in the catalogue?
The CineQuiz catalogue has 63 films with Ann Dvorak, from 1916 to 2008.
What is the best rated Ann Dvorak film?
The best rated Ann Dvorak film in the catalogue is Scarface (1932), rated 7.4.
What was the first Ann Dvorak film?
The first Ann Dvorak film in the catalogue is Scarface, from 1932.
Who has Ann Dvorak worked with the most?
In the catalogue, Ann Dvorak shares the most credits with Sol Polito (2 films).
People data: TMDb.
- Awards
- star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
Known for
Trivia
- Also works as
- screenwriter · dance teacher
- Spouse
- Leslie Fenton
Trivia from Wikidata, licensed CC0.
Full filmography
88 films — 63 in the catalogue
-
6.1 Thou Shalt Not: Sex, Sin and Censorship in Pre-Code Hollywood
2008 · Vivian Revere Kirkwood (archive footage)
-
Bogart: The Untold Story
1997 · Self (archive footage)
-
6.6 The Secret of Convict Lake
1951 · Rachel Schaeffer
-
6.6 I Was an American Spy
1951 · Mrs. Claire 'High Pockets' Phillips
-
7.0 Mrs. O'Malley and Mr. Malone
1950 · Connie Kepplar
-
5.3 A Life of Her Own
1950 · Mary Ashlon
-
6.0 The Return of Jesse James
1950 · Sue Ellen Younger
-
5.9 Our Very Own
1950 · Gert Lynch
-
5.6 The Walls of Jericho
1948 · Belle Connors
-
5.8 The Long Night
1947 · Charlene
-
6.2 The Private Affairs of Bel Ami
1947 · Madeleine Forestier
-
6.5 Out of the Blue
1947 · Olive Jensen
-
6.5 The Bachelor's Daughters
1946 · Terry Wilson
-
5.4 Abilene Town
1946 · Rita
-
6.0 Masquerade in Mexico
1945 · Helen Grant
-
5.5 Flame of Barbary Coast
1945 · Ann 'Flaxen' Tarry
-
8.0 Escape to Danger
1943 · Joan Grahame
-
10.0 Squadron Leader X
1943 · Barbara Lucas
-
5.9 This Was Paris
1942 · Ann Morgan
-
5.4 Girls of the Road
1940 · Kay Warren
-
5.4 Cafe Hostess
1940 · Jo
-
5.5 Stronger Than Desire
1939 · Eva McLain
-
6.0 Blind Alley
1939 · Mary
-
5.3 Gangs of New York
1938 · Connie Benson
-
7.0 Merrily We Live
1938 · Minerva Harlan
-
6.5 Manhattan Merry-Go-Round
1937 · Ann Rogers
-
8.0 She's No Lady
1937 · Jerry
-
7.2 The Case of the Stuttering Bishop
1937 · Della Street
-
5.1 Midnight Court
1937 · Carol O'Neill
-
6.0 Racing Lady
1937 · Ruth Martin
-
7.0 We Who Are About to Die
1937 · Connie Stewart
-
Breakdowns of 1936
1936 · Self
-
6.5 Thanks a Million
1935 · Sally Mason
-
6.6 Dr. Socrates
1935 · Josephine
-
5.1 Bright Lights
1935 · Fay Wilson
-
6.6 'G' Men
1935 · Jean Morgan
-
6.8 Sweet Music
1935 · Bonnie Haydon
-
5.9 A Trip Thru a Hollywood Studio
1935 · Herself (uncredited)
-
5.1 Murder in the Clouds
1934 · Judy
-
7.3 Gentlemen Are Born
1934 · Susan Merrill
-
5.0 I Sell Anything
1934 · Barbara
-
5.2 Side Streets
1934 · Marguerite Gilbert
-
7.3 Housewife
1934 · Nan Reynolds
-
6.8 Friends of Mr. Sweeney
1934 · Miss Beulah Boyd
-
6.7 Midnight Alibi
1934 · Joan
-
7.2 Heat Lightning
1934 · Myra
-
4.3 Roast-Beef and Movies
1934 · Chorine (archive footage) (uncredited)
-
5.5 Massacre
1934 · Lydia
-
4.6 College Coach
1933 · Claire Gore
-
8.0 The Way to Love
1933 · Madeleine
-
7.3 Hello Pop
1933 · Dancer
-
6.3 Three on a Match
1932 · Vivian Revere
-
6.5 Crooner
1932 · Judith 'Judy' Mason
-
5.4 Love is a Racket
1932 · Sally Condon
-
6.1 The Strange Love of Molly Louvain
1932 · Madeleine Maude 'Molly' Louvain
-
6.1 The Crowd Roars
1932 · Lee Merrick
-
7.4 Scarface
1932 · Francesca 'Cesca' Camonte
-
5.0 Sky Devils
1932 · Mary Way
-
5.2 The Guardsman
1931 · Fan Saying "There He Is" (uncredited)
-
5.9 This Modern Age
1931 · Party Guest (Uncredited)
-
5.0 Stranger in Town
1931 · Marian Crickle
-
5.7 Son of India
1931 · Dancer (uncredited)
-
7.0 A Tailor-Made Man
1931 · Bit (uncredited)
-
6.9 Politics
1931 · Rally Audience Extra (uncredited)
-
6.5 Dance, Fools, Dance
1931 · Chorus Girl (uncredited)
-
5.9 O Cabaret do Diabo
1930 · Chorine in Black (uncredited)
-
5.9 Madam Satan
1930 · Zeppelin Reveler (uncredited)
-
5.7 Love in the Rough
1930
-
7.0 The March of Time
1930 · Chorus Girl (uncredited)
-
6.3 Good News
1930 · Student
-
6.2 Way Out West
1930 · Carnival Show Girl (uncredited)
-
5.6 Our Blushing Brides
1930 · One of the 'Quartet' of Models with Tony (uncredited)
-
7.0 Estrellados
1930 · Chorine (uncredited)
-
5.5 Children of Pleasure
1930 · Chorus Girl (uncredited)
-
6.1 Free and Easy
1930 · Chorine (uncredited)
-
4.7 Lord Byron of Broadway
1930 · Chorus Girl
-
4.4 A Lady to Love
1930
-
6.0 The Woman Racket
1930 · Chorus Girl
-
6.0 Chasing Rainbows
1930 · Chorus Girl (uncredited)
-
6.2 Devil-May-Care
1929 · Chorine (uncredited)
-
4.0
Manhattan Serenade
1929 · Chorus Girl (uncredited)
-
5.0 It's a Great Life
1929 · Chorus Girl
-
5.0 The Song Writers' Revue
1929 · Member of the Chorus (uncredited)
-
5.7 The Hollywood Revue of 1929
1929 · Chorus Girl from Omaha (uncredited)
-
4.7 So This Is College
1929 · Student (uncredited)
-
8.0 The Doll Shop
1929 · Doll
-
8.0 The Man Hater
1917 · Phemie's Sister
-
Ramona
1916 · Ramona Phail (age 4)
People data: TMDb.
Cast
