Gertrude Michael
Gertrude Michael (June 1, 1911, Talladega, Alabama – December 31, 1964, Beverly Hills, California) was an American film, stage and television actress. Born as Lillian Gertrude Michael in Talladega, Alabama, she reportedly graduated from high school at the age of 14. She became a radio singer on the radio. She attended the University of Alabama and Converse College, Cincinnati. Her childhood home in Talladega, Alabama was destroyed by fire in 2007. In 1929 in Cincinnati she made her stage debut in a stock company. She subsequently appeared on Broadway in Rachel Crothers' Caught Wet (1931). She entered the movies playing Richard Arlen's finaceé in Wayward (1932), but her best-remembered role is probably as Rita Ross in Murder at the Vanities (1934), one of the last pre-Code films, in which she sang an ode to marijuana (Sweet Marijuana). She had an affair with writer Paul Cain (aka Peter Ruric).After they broke up, Cain wrote the role of the alcoholic lover (based on Michael) in his only novel published during his lifetime, Fast One. Gertrude Michael died, aged 53, from undisclosed causes, in Beverly Hills, California. Description above from the Wikipedia article Gertrude Michael,licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Filmography
The Continental Twist
as Letitia Clunker
The Continental Twist
as Letitia Clunker
Women's Prison
as Chief Matron Sturgess
Women's Prison
as Chief Matron Sturgess
No Escape
as Olga Valerie Lewis
No Escape
as Olga Valerie Lewis
Bugles in the Afternoon
as May
Bugles in the Afternoon
as May
Darling, How Could You!
as Mrs. Rossiter
Darling, How Could You!
as Mrs. Rossiter
Caged
as Georgia Harrison
Caged
as Georgia Harrison
Flamingo Road
as Millie
Flamingo Road
as Millie
Club Havana
as Hetty - Powder Room Attendant
Club Havana
as Hetty - Powder Room Attendant
Allotment Wives
as Gladys Smith
Allotment Wives
as Gladys Smith
Three's a Crowd
as Sophie Whipple
Three's a Crowd
as Sophie Whipple
Faces in the Fog
as Nora Brooks
Faces in the Fog
as Nora Brooks
Women in Bondage
as District Director Schneider
Women in Bondage
as District Director Schneider
Where Are Your Children?
as Nell Wilson
Where Are Your Children?
as Nell Wilson
Behind Prison Walls
as Elinor Cantwell
Behind Prison Walls
as Elinor Cantwell
Prisoner of Japan
as Toni Chase
Prisoner of Japan
as Toni Chase
Slightly Tempted
as Duchess
Slightly Tempted
as Duchess
I Can't Give You Anything But Love, Baby
as Magda Delys
I Can't Give You Anything But Love, Baby
as Magda Delys
The Farmer's Daughter
as Clarice Sheldon
The Farmer's Daughter
as Clarice Sheldon
Parole Fixer
as Collette Menthe
Parole Fixer
as Collette Menthe
Pound Foolish
as Mrs. Irene Reynolds
Pound Foolish
as Mrs. Irene Reynolds
Just like a Woman
as Ann Heston
Just like a Woman
as Ann Heston
Hidden Power
as Virginia Garfield
Hidden Power
as Virginia Garfield
Star of the Circus
as Yester
Star of the Circus
as Yester
Sophie Lang Goes West
as Sophie Lang
Sophie Lang Goes West
as Sophie Lang
Mr. Dodd Takes the Air
as Jessica Stafford
Mr. Dodd Takes the Air
as Jessica Stafford
Make Way for a Lady
as Miss Eleanor Emerson
Make Way for a Lady
as Miss Eleanor Emerson
Second Wife
as Virginia Howard
Second Wife
as Virginia Howard
The Return of Sophie Lang
as Sophie Lang
The Return of Sophie Lang
as Sophie Lang
Forgotten Faces
as Cleo / Harry's wife
Forgotten Faces
as Cleo / Harry's wife
Till We Meet Again
as Elsa Duranyi
Till We Meet Again
as Elsa Duranyi
Woman Trap
as Barbara 'Buff' Andrews
Woman Trap
as Barbara 'Buff' Andrews
The Last Outpost
as Rosemary Haydon
The Last Outpost
as Rosemary Haydon
It Happened in New York
as Vania Nardi
It Happened in New York
as Vania Nardi
Father Brown, Detective
as Evelyn Fischer
Father Brown, Detective
as Evelyn Fischer
Menace
as Helen Chalmers
Menace
as Helen Chalmers
Cleopatra
as Calpurnia
Cleopatra
as Calpurnia
The Notorious Sophie Lang
as Sophie Lang
The Notorious Sophie Lang
as Sophie Lang
Murder on the Blackboard
as Jane Davis
Murder on the Blackboard
as Jane Davis
Murder at the Vanities
as Rita Ross
Murder at the Vanities
as Rita Ross
The Witching Hour
as Margaret Price
The Witching Hour
as Margaret Price
I Believed in You
as Pamela Banks
I Believed in You
as Pamela Banks
Hold That Girl
as Dorothy Lamont
Hold That Girl
as Dorothy Lamont
George White's Scandals
as Miss Lee
George White's Scandals
as Miss Lee
Bolero
as Lady D'Argon
Bolero
as Lady D'Argon
Search for Beauty
as Jean Strange
Search for Beauty
as Jean Strange
Cradle Song
as Marcella
Cradle Song
as Marcella
Ann Vickers
as Mona Dolphin
Ann Vickers
as Mona Dolphin
Night of Terror
as Sarah Rinehart
Night of Terror
as Sarah Rinehart
A Bedtime Story
as Louise
A Bedtime Story
as Louise
Sailor Be Good
as Kay Whitney
Sailor Be Good
as Kay Whitney
Unashamed
as Marjorie
Unashamed
as Marjorie
Wayward
as Mary Morton
Wayward
as Mary Morton