Marilyn Knowlden
In 1931, a one-day effort by Marilyn Knowlden's attorney father led to an interview, a next-day screen test and a large part for four-year-old Marilyn in one of the early "talkies", Women Love Once (1931). A ten-year movie career followed, where she played the daughter of such stars as Claudette Colbert, Katharine Hepburn, Allan Jones and Norma Shearer. She appeared in some of the screen's great classics, including Angels with Dirty Faces (1938), David Copperfield (1935) and Les Misérables (1935), in which she played the child Cosette. She appeared in six films nominated by the Academy for Best Production of the Year and performed with such distinguished actors as Fredric March, Charles Laughton, Tyrone Power, Greta Garbo and Bette Davis. College, marriage and four children followed. A composer and playwright as well as an actress, she wrote the music and lyrics for ten produced musicals, including three for which she also wrote the scripts. The latter included her musical, "I'm Gonna Get You in the Movies!" for which she drew heavily on her own early experience. After a 50-year hiatus, Marilyn returned to acting in 1994. She appeared in over 20 plays and musicals in San Diego County, including the role of Aunt Abby in "Arsenic and Old Lace," the leads in "Sorry, Wrong Number" and "Quilters," and Prof. Higgins' mother in "My Fair Lady." In 2011 Bear Manor published Marilyn Knowlden's autobiography "Little Girl in Big Pictures". Knowlden died on September 15, 2025 of natural causes at an assisted living facility in Eagle, Idaho.
Filmography
Broadway Rhythm
as Co-ed in Drugstore (uncredited)
Broadway Rhythm
as Co-ed in Drugstore (uncredited)
All This, and Heaven Too
as Marianna Van Horn (uncredited)
All This, and Heaven Too
as Marianna Van Horn (uncredited)
The Way of All Flesh
as Julie Kriza
The Way of All Flesh
as Julie Kriza
Hidden Power
as Imogene
Hidden Power
as Imogene
Angels with Dirty Faces
as Laury - as a Child
Angels with Dirty Faces
as Laury - as a Child
Just Around the Corner
as Gwendolyn (uncredited)
Just Around the Corner
as Gwendolyn (uncredited)
Marie Antoinette
as Princesse Therese
Marie Antoinette
as Princesse Therese
Barefoot Boy
as Julia Blaine
Barefoot Boy
as Julia Blaine
An Evening with Edgar Guest
as Ann
An Evening with Edgar Guest
as Ann
Slave Ship
as Girl
Slave Ship
as Girl
Rainbow on the River
as Lucille Layton
Rainbow on the River
as Lucille Layton
A Woman Rebels
as Flora at Age 9 (uncredited)
A Woman Rebels
as Flora at Age 9 (uncredited)
Easy to Take
as Gwen Ferry
Easy to Take
as Gwen Ferry
Anthony Adverse
as Florence Udney
Anthony Adverse
as Florence Udney
Show Boat
as Kim as a Child
Show Boat
as Kim as a Child
Condemned to Live
as Maria
Condemned to Live
as Maria
Les Misérables
as Little Cosette (as Marilynne Knowlden)
Les Misérables
as Little Cosette (as Marilynne Knowlden)
David Copperfield
as Agnes Wickfield as a Girl
David Copperfield
as Agnes Wickfield as a Girl
Imitation of Life
as Jessie Pullman, Age 8 (uncredited)
Imitation of Life
as Jessie Pullman, Age 8 (uncredited)
As the Earth Turns
as Esther
As the Earth Turns
as Esther
The World Changes
as Young Selma (uncredited)
The World Changes
as Young Selma (uncredited)
Little Women
as Meg’s Charge (uncredited)
Little Women
as Meg’s Charge (uncredited)
Call Her Savage
as Ruth as a Girl (Uncredited)
Call Her Savage
as Ruth as a Girl (Uncredited)
The Conquerors
as Frances Standish, as a child
The Conquerors
as Frances Standish, as a child
Husband's Holiday
as Anne Boyd
Husband's Holiday
as Anne Boyd
The Cisco Kid
as Annie Benton
The Cisco Kid
as Annie Benton
Women Love Once
as Janet Fields
Women Love Once
as Janet Fields