Edna May Oliver
Edna May Oliver is known for Pride and Prejudice (1940), Little Women (1933), Cimarron (1931).
Biography
Edna May Oliver (November 9, 1883 – November 9, 1942) was an American stage and film actress. During the 1930s, she was one of the best-known character actresses in American films, often playing tart-tongued spinsters.
She was born Edna May Nutter in Malden, Massachusetts. The daughter of Ida May and Charles Edward Nutter, Edna was a descendant of the 6th American president John Quincy Adams. Miss Oliver took an early interest in the stage, and she would quit school at the age of 14 to pursue her ambitions in the theater.
Despite abandoning traditional schooling, Edna continued to study the performing arts, including speech and piano. One of her first jobs was as pianist with an all female orchestra which toured America around the turn of the century. By 1917 she had achieved success on Broadway in the hit play "Oh, Boy". By 1923 she had appeared in her first film. Edna May Oliver seems to have been born to play the classics of American and British literature. Some of her most memorable film roles were in adaptations of works of Charles Dickens. Although some have described her as plain or "horse faced", Edna May Oliver's comedic talents lent a beautiful droll warmth to her characters. She was usually called upon to play less glamorous roles such as a spinsters, but she played them with such soul, wit, and depth that to this day she remains one of the best loved of Hollywood's character actresses. A fine example of her comedic talent can be found in Laugh and Get Rich (1931). Here we find her playing a role almost autobiographical in nature, that of a proud woman with Boston roots who has married "down". As the plot unwinds, she is invited to a society gala despite her modest circumstances. At the gala she becomes tipsy. With a frolicsome air Edna May seems to use the role to gently mock her real self. Her slightly drunk character seizes upon a bit of flattery, and alluding to her old New England family, proudly proclaims to each who will listen, "I am a Cranston. That explains everything!". In real life, Edna May Oliver was a Nutter, and perhaps that explains everything.
Edna May Oliver married stock broker David Pratt in 1928, but the marriage ended in divorce five years later. In 1939 she received an Oscar nomination for her supporting role as Widow McKlennar in the picture Drums Along the Mohawk (1939). That was to be one of her last films. Miss Oliver was struck ill in August of 1942. Although she seemed to recover briefly, she was re-admitted to Los Angeles's Cedars of Lebanon hospital in October Her dear friend actress Virginia Hammond flew out from New York to stay by her bedside. Edna May Oliver died on her 59th birthday, 9th November 1942. Virginia Hammond was with her and said, "She died without ever being aware of the gravity of her condition. She just went peacefully asleep."
Questions about Edna May Oliver
How many Edna May Oliver films are in the catalogue?
The CineQuiz catalogue has 34 films with Edna May Oliver, from 1926 to 1999.
What is the best rated Edna May Oliver film?
The best rated Edna May Oliver film in the catalogue is Pride and Prejudice (1940), rated 6.9.
What was the first Edna May Oliver film?
The first Edna May Oliver film in the catalogue is Cimarron, from 1931.
Who has Edna May Oliver worked with the most?
In the catalogue, Edna May Oliver shares the most credits with Herbert Stothart (3 films), Basil Rathbone (2 films) and David O. Selznick (2 films).
People data: TMDb.
Known for
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6.9 Pride and Prejudice
1940
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6.8 Little Women
1933
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6.5 Drums Along the Mohawk
1939
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5.5 Cimarron
1931
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6.1 Alice in Wonderland
1933
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6.7 David Copperfield
1935
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6.8 A Tale of Two Cities
1935
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6.3 Romeo and Juliet
1936
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4.6 Parnell
1937
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5.9 The Penguin Pool Murder
1932
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6.0 Rosalie
1937
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7.0 The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle
1939
Full filmography
50 films — 34 in the catalogue
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8.3 Clara Bow: Discovering the "It" Girl
1999 · Self (from The Saturday Night Kid [1929]) (archive footage)
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Brasileiros em Hollywood
1970 · Self (archive footage)
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6.5 Lydia
1941 · Sarah MacMillan
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6.9
Pride and Prejudice
1940 · Lady Catherine de Bourgh
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6.5
Drums Along the Mohawk
1939 · Mrs. Mc Klennar
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6.6 Nurse Edith Cavell
1939 · Countess de Mavon
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5.1 Second Fiddle
1939 · Aunt Phoebe
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7.0
The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle
1939 · Maggie Sutton
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6.5 Little Miss Broadway
1938 · Sarah Wendling
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7.4 Paradise for Three
1938 · Mrs. Kunkel
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6.0
Rosalie
1937 · Queen of Romanza
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6.3 My Dear Miss Aldrich
1937 · Mrs. Atherton
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4.6
Parnell
1937 · Aunt Ben Wood
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6.3
Romeo and Juliet
1936 · Juliet's Nurse
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6.8
A Tale of Two Cities
1935 · Miss Pross
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5.0 No More Ladies
1935 · Fanny 'Grandma' Townsend
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6.5 Murder on a Honeymoon
1935 · Hildegarde Withers
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6.7
David Copperfield
1935 · Aunt Betsey Trotwood
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6.2 We're Rich Again
1934 · Maude Stanley
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6.4 Murder on the Blackboard
1934 · Hildegarde Withers
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5.0 The Last Gentleman
1934 · Augusta Pritchard, Cabot's sister
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8.0 The Poor Rich
1934 · Harriet Spottiswood
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6.1
Alice in Wonderland
1933 · Red Queen
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6.8
Little Women
1933 · Aunt March
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7.1 Only Yesterday
1933 · Leona
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5.3 Meet the Baron
1933 · Dean Primrose
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5.8 Ann Vickers
1933 · Malvina Wormser
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6.5 It's Great to Be Alive
1933 · Dr. Prodwell
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8.0 The Great Jasper
1933 · Madame Talma
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5.9
The Penguin Pool Murder
1932 · Hildegarde Withers
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5.6 The Conquerors
1932 · Matilda Blake
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6.8 Hold 'Em Jail
1932 · Violet Jones
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6.8 Ladies of the Jury
1932 · Mrs. Livingston Baldwin Crane
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7.0 Fanny Foley Herself
1931 · Fanny Foley
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4.3 Newly Rich
1931 · Bessie Tate
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8.0 Cracked Nuts
1931 · Aunt Minnie Van Varden
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6.0 Laugh and Get Rich
1931 · Sarah Cranston Austin
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5.5
Cimarron
1931 · Mrs. Tracy Wyatt
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6.0 Half Shot at Sunrise
1930 · Mrs. Marshall
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4.7 The Saturday Night Kid
1929 · Miss Streeter
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8.0 Let's Get Married
1926 · J.W. Smith
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8.0 The American Venus
1926 · Mrs. Niles
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8.0 Lovers in Quarantine
1925 · Amelia Pincent
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7.2 The Lucky Devil
1925 · Mrs. McDee
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9.0 The Lady Who Lied
1925
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6.5 Manhattan
1924 · Mrs. Trapes
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9.0 Icebound
1924 · Hannah
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9.0
Restless Wives
1924 · Benson's Secretary
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7.0 Three O'Clock in the Morning
1923 · Hetty
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8.0 Wife in Name Only
1923 · Mrs. Dornham
People data: TMDb.
Cast
