Gladys Blake

Gladys Blake (born Gladys Timmons, January 12, 1910 – May 21, 1983) was an American character actress from the 1930s to the 1950s.[1]

Gladys Blake
Blake in the 1942 film, Ship Ahoy
Born
Gladys Timmons

(1910-01-12)January 12, 1910
Luray, Virginia, U.S.
DiedMay 21, 1983(1983-05-21) (aged 73)
Sacramento, California, U.S.
OccupationActress
Years active1933–52
Spouse(s)Lee Gresham

Biography

Blake was born on January 12, 1910 in Luray, Virginia. Her mother, Ada Timmons, died when Gladys was less than a year old.[2]

At fourteen, she entered the theater world in a stock company, before moving on to vaudeville. In vaudeville, she met her husband, Lee Gresham, and the two formed an act together. While performing in Los Angeles, they were noticed by producer Edward Small, which led to her beginning in the film industry.[2]

Blake made her film debut in a small role in I Have Lived (1933), directed by Richard Thorpe.[3] She had her first featured role later that same year in Rainbow over Broadway, which Thorpe also directed.[4]

Over her 20-year career, she appeared in over 100 films.[5] She was noted for playing very talkative supporting roles.[6]

Appearing mostly in supporting or bit parts, she was occasionally given a featured role, as in Lucky Night (1939), which starred Myrna Loy and Robert Taylor;[7] or Woman of the Year (1942), which starred Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn, in which she played Flo Peters, the wife of a friend of Tracy's character.[8] Even more rarely she would be given the lead in a film, such as in Racing Blood (1936).[9] In the early 1940s, she played the recurring role of "Maisie" in several of the Dr. Kildare films starring Lew Ayres, Lionel Barrymore, and Laraine Day.[10][11][12]

Other notable films in which she appeared include: Ship Ahoy (1942), starring Eleanor Powell and Red Skelton;[13] the Abbott and Costello film, Who Done It?;[14] the 1943 version of Phantom of the Opera, starring Claude Raines;[15] The Naughty Nineties, again with Abbott and Costello;[16] On the Town;[17] The Yellow Cab Man, starring Red Skelton;[18] and the 1952 epic, The Greatest Show on Earth.[19]

Blake's final role was in 1952's This Woman is Dangerous, starring Joan Crawford and Dennis Morgan, in which she plays a garrulous hairdresser.[20]

Blake died on May 21, 1983, in Sacramento, California.[1]

Filmography

(Per AFI database)[5]

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References
  1. "Gladys Blake (actress) profile". Omnilexica. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  2. "Gladys Blake biography". MoviePictures.org. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  3. "I Have Lived details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  4. "Rainbow over Broadway details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  5. "Gladys Blake profile". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  6. "Gladys Blake biography". AllMovie.com. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  7. "Lucky Night details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  8. "Woman of the Year details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  9. "Racing Blood details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  10. "Dr. Kildare's Crisis details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  11. "Dr. Kildare's Wedding Day details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  12. "The People vs. Dr. Kildare details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  13. "Ship Ahoy details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  14. "Who Done It? details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  15. "Phantom of the Opera details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  16. "The Naughty Nineties details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  17. "On the Town details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  18. "The Yellow Cab Man details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  19. "The Greatest Show on Earth details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  20. "This Woman Is Dangerous details". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
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