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Edna May Oliver

Edna May Oliver

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."

Personal information

Birthday

1883-11-08

Birth Place

Malden, Massachusetts, USA

Movies and TV shows :

A Tale of Two Cities

A Tale of Two Cities

1935

6.8

Movie
Alice in Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland

1933

6.1

Movie
Ann Vickers

Ann Vickers

1933

5.9

Movie
Cimarron

Cimarron

1931

5.6

Movie
Clara Bow: Discovering the It Girl

Clara Bow: Discovering the It Girl

1999

7.7

Movie
Cracked Nuts

Cracked Nuts

1931

7.0

Movie
David Copperfield

David Copperfield

1935

6.6

Movie
Drums Along the Mohawk

Drums Along the Mohawk

1939

6.4

Movie
Fanny Foley Herself

Fanny Foley Herself

1931

0.0

Movie
Half Shot at Sunrise

Half Shot at Sunrise

1930

6.2

Movie
Hold 'Em Jail

Hold 'Em Jail

1932

6.8

Movie
Icebound

Icebound

1924

0.0

Movie
It's Great to Be Alive

It's Great to Be Alive

1933

5.0

Movie
Ladies of the Jury

Ladies of the Jury

1932

6.4

Movie
Laugh and Get Rich

Laugh and Get Rich

1931

4.7

Movie
Let's Get Married

Let's Get Married

1926

0.0

Movie
Little Miss Broadway

Little Miss Broadway

1938

6.6

Movie
Little Women

Little Women

1933

6.8

Movie
Lovers in Quarantine

Lovers in Quarantine

1925

0.0

Movie
Lydia

Lydia

1941

6.4

Movie
Manhattan

Manhattan

1924

6.0

Movie
Meet the Baron

Meet the Baron

1933

4.3

Movie
Murder on a Honeymoon

Murder on a Honeymoon

1935

5.8

Movie
Murder on the Blackboard

Murder on the Blackboard

1934

5.3

Movie
My Dear Miss Aldrich

My Dear Miss Aldrich

1937

6.1

Movie
Newly Rich

Newly Rich

1931

3.0

Movie
No More Ladies

No More Ladies

1935

5.1

Movie
Nurse Edith Cavell

Nurse Edith Cavell

1939

6.4

Movie
Only Yesterday

Only Yesterday

1933

6.8

Movie
Paradise for Three

Paradise for Three

1938

6.8

Movie
Parnell

Parnell

1937

4.6

Movie
Penguin Pool Murder

Penguin Pool Murder

1932

5.5

Movie
Pride and Prejudice

Pride and Prejudice

1940

6.9

Movie
Restless Wives

Restless Wives

1924

0.0

Movie
Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet

1936

6.2

Movie
Rosalie

Rosalie

1937

5.5

Movie
Second Fiddle

Second Fiddle

1939

5.0

Movie
The American Venus

The American Venus

1926

0.0

Movie
The Conquerors

The Conquerors

1932

5.7

Movie
The Great Jasper

The Great Jasper

1933

0.0

Movie
The Lady Who Lied

The Lady Who Lied

1925

0.0

Movie
The Last Gentleman

The Last Gentleman

1934

3.0

Movie
The Lucky Devil

The Lucky Devil

1925

6.5

Movie
The Poor Rich

The Poor Rich

1934

0.0

Movie
The Saturday Night Kid

The Saturday Night Kid

1929

4.4

Movie
The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle

The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle

1939

7.0

Movie
Three O'Clock in the Morning

Three O'Clock in the Morning

1923

0.0

Movie
We're Rich Again

We're Rich Again

1934

4.0

Movie
Wife in Name Only

Wife in Name Only

1923

0.0

Movie