Biography
Catherine Rosalind Russell (June 4, 1907 – November 28, 1976) was an American actress of stage and screen, perhaps best known for her role as a fast-talking newspaper reporter in the Howard Hawks screwball comedy His Girl Friday, as well as the role of Mame Dennis in the film Auntie Mame. She won all 5 Golden Globes for which she was nominated, and was tied with Meryl Streep for wins until 2007 when Streep was awarded a sixth. Russell won a Tony Award in 1953 for Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical for her portrayal of Ruth in the Broadway show Wonderful Town (a musical based the film My Sister Eileen, in which she also starred). Russell was known for playing character roles, exceptionally wealthy, dignified ladylike women. She had a wide career span from the 1930s to the 1970s and attributed her long career to the fact that, although usually playing classy and glamorous roles, she never became a sex symbol, not being famous for her looks.
Movies & TV Shows
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His Girl Friday (1940) — Hildy Johnson
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The Women (1939) — Sylvia Fowler
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Auntie Mame (1958) — Mame Dennis
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Picnic (1955) — Rosemary - The School Teacher
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The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962) — Self
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The Oscars (1953) — Self
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Gypsy (1962) — Rose Hovick
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The Trouble with Angels (1966) — Mother Superior
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Night Must Fall (1937) — Olivia Grayne
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That's Entertainment! III (1994) — (archive footage)
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China Seas (1935) — Sybil Barclay
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The Citadel (1938) — Christine Manson
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The Velvet Touch (1948) — Valerie Stanton
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Evelyn Prentice (1934) — Mrs. Nancy Harrison
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What's My Line? (1950) — Self
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My Sister Eileen (1942) — Ruth Sherwood
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The Ed Sullivan Show (1948) — Self
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The Twilight Zone: Rod Serling's Lost Classics (1994) — Hildy Johnson (archive footage) (uncredited)
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Mourning Becomes Electra (1947) — Lavinia Mannon
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Forsaking All Others (1934) — Eleanor
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Sister Kenny (1946) — Elizabeth Kenny
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They Met in Bombay (1941) — Anya Von Duren
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Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows (1968) — Mother Simplicia
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Craig's Wife (1936) — Harriet Craig
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A Majority of One (1961) — Bertha Jacoby
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The Guilt of Janet Ames (1947) — Janet Ames
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Four's a Crowd (1938) — Jean Christy
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Never Wave at a WAC (1953) — Josephine McBain
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Reckless (1935) — Josephine 'Jo' Mercer
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Take a Letter, Darling (1942) — A.M. MacGregor
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Rendezvous (1935) — Joel Carter
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The Casino Murder Case (1935) — Doris Reed
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No Time for Comedy (1940) — Linda Paige Esterbrook
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Man-Proof (1938) — Elizabeth Kent
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The Mike Douglas Show (1961) — Self
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Oh Dad, Poor Dad, Mamma's Hung You in the Closet and I'm Feeling So Sad (1967) — Madame Rosepettle
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The Feminine Touch (1941) — Julie Hathaway
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Mrs. Pollifax — Spy (1971) — Mrs. Pollifax
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Design for Scandal (1941) — Judge Cornelia C. Porter
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Flight for Freedom (1943) — Tonie Carter