Barbara Britton

Barbara Britton

Born: September 26, 1919
Died: January 17, 1980
in Long Beach, California, USA
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Barbara Britton (born Barbara Maurine Brantingham, September 26, 1919 – January 17, 1980) was an American film and television actress. She is best known for her Western film roles opposite Randolph Scott, Joel McCrea, and Gene Autry and for her two-year tenure as inquisitive amateur sleuth Pam North on the television and radio series Mr. and Mrs. North.

In 1941, while appearing in a Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade, a photo of Britton was used on the front page of a local newspaper. A talent scout took notice, and she was soon signed to a Paramount Pictures contract. (Another source says that a talent scout spotted her as the lead in the production of The Old Maid at her college, and "three weeks later she was signed by Paramount Pictures as a stock player.")

That same year, she appeared in her first two films: the William Boyd Western Secrets of the Wasteland and Louisiana Purchase starring Bob Hope. Her first major film appearance was in a small role in the John Wayne film Reap the Wild Wind (1942).

During the 1940s Britton starred in three films for which she is most recognized today, two of which co-starred Randolph Scott. The first was the 1945 film Captain Kidd with Scott, followed by The Virginian in 1946 opposite Joel McCrea. The third was the 1947 Randolph Scott film Gunfighters. She teamed with Scott again in the 1948 Western Albuquerque, and that same year she starred opposite Gene Autry in Loaded Pistols. In total, she starred or appeared in 26 films during that decade.

Britton starred in the 1950s television show Mr. and Mrs. North, a Thin Man-like mystery show, with Richard Denning and Francis De Sales. She was probably best known for being the spokesperson for Revlon products in the 1950s and 1960s, appearing in advertisements and commercials that included live spots on The $64,000 Question. She also portrayed Laura Petrie in Carl Reiner's Head of the Family, the 1959 pilot for the later Dick Van Dyke Show.

One of Britton's last roles was on the daytime television soap opera One Life to Live in 1979.

Movies for Barbara Britton...

Mary Tyler Moore: A Celebration
Title: Mary Tyler Moore: A Celebration
Character: Laura Petrie (archive footage)
Released: October 13, 2015
Type: Movie
Not only did Mary Tyler Moore “turn the world on with her smile,” as her show’s theme song declared, she also influenced a generation of women to become more independent and to pursue successful and fulfilling careers. Moore’s own 50-plus-year career has spanned award-winning films and Broadway shows, as well as two beloved television series that broke ground and continue to entertain viewers. ​ This one-hour special includes highlights from a recent interview with Mary Tyler Moore, tributes from her co-stars and clips from iconic moments throughout her career. The program looks at her breakthrough role on The Dick Van Dyke Show, her iconic turn as TV's first independent career woman on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and her Academy Award-nominated work on Ordinary People.
bee
Caroline?
Title: Caroline?
Character: Hilary
Released: April 29, 1990
Type: Movie
Hallmark Hall of Fame presents the story of a mysterious woman claiming to be the deceased daughter of a rich man tries to solve the problems of his untrusting son and supposedly physically and mentally handicaped daughter. But one question stands in her way: is she really Caroline?
bee
Title: The Dick Van Dyke Show
Character: Laura Petrie
Released: October 3, 1961
Type: TV
The Dick Van Dyke Show centers around the work and home life of television comedy writer Rob Petrie. The plots generally revolve around problems at work, where Rob got into various comedic jams with fellow writers Buddy Sorrell, Sally Rogers and producer Mel Cooley.
bee
Title: The Big Party
Character: Self
Released: October 8, 1959
Type: TV
bee
Title: The Big Party
Character: Self – Hostess
Released: October 8, 1959
Type: TV
bee
The Spoilers
Title: The Spoilers
Character: Helen Chester
Released: December 23, 1955
Type: Movie
In 1899 Alaska, miners have to protect themselves from a phony legal team trying to steal their gold claims.
bee
Title: A Date With Life
Released: October 10, 1955
Type: TV
bee
Night Freight
Title: Night Freight
Character: Wanda
Released: August 28, 1955
Type: Movie
Trucker tries to put a railroad man out of business.
bee
Ain't Misbehavin'
Title: Ain't Misbehavin'
Character: Pat Beaton
Released: June 30, 1955
Type: Movie
Rowdy young girl crashes high society when wealthy older man falls for her.
bee
Title: The $64,000 Question
Character: Assistant
Released: June 7, 1955
Type: TV
The $64,000 Question is an American game show broadcast from 1955–1958, which became embroiled in the scandals involving TV quiz shows of the day. The $64,000 Challenge was its popular spin-off show.
bee
Title: Climax!
Character: Duana Clarke
Released: October 7, 1954
Type: TV
Climax! is an American anthology series that aired on CBS from 1954 to 1958. The series was hosted by William Lundigan and later co-hosted by Mary Costa. It was one of the few CBS programs of that era to be broadcast in color. Many of the episodes were performed and broadcast live.
bee
Title: The George Gobel Show
Character: Self
Released: October 2, 1954
Type: TV
The George Gobel Show is an American television series hosted George Gobel that aired on NBC from 1954 to 1960.
bee
Dragonfly Squadron
Title: Dragonfly Squadron
Character: Donna Cottrell
Released: March 21, 1954
Type: Movie
A Korean War film with a secondary plot of the training of South Korean pilots, to fly fighters in air defense, by American Air Force instructors,led by Major Brady, a famed and skilled-but-grounded pilot, assigned to the Kongku base.
bee
Ride the Man Down
Title: Ride the Man Down
Character: Lottie Priest
Released: November 25, 1952
Type: Movie
After Celia's father dies, a war erupts over control of his land.
bee
The Raiders
Title: The Raiders
Character: Elizabeth Ainsworth
Released: November 20, 1952
Type: Movie
A rancher who has staked a claim during the California gold rush goes after the gang of murderous claim-jumpers who have stolen his claim and murdered his wife.
bee
Title: Mr. & Mrs. North
Released: October 3, 1952
Type: TV
Mr. & Mrs. North is an American comedy/mystery television series that aired on CBS from October 3, 1952 to May 25, 1954. The series centers on Jerry North, a mystery magazine publisher who thinks he is a good amateur detective, and his wife, Pamela, as they solve crimes in New York City.
bee
Bwana Devil
Title: Bwana Devil
Character: Alice Hayward
Released: August 22, 1952
Type: Movie
British railway workers in Kenya are becoming the favorite snack of two man-eating lions. Head engineer Bob Hayward becomes obsessed with trying to kill the beasts before they maul everyone on his crew.
bee
Title: Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
Character: Pamela
Released: October 5, 1951
Type: TV
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars is an anthology series that was telecast from 1951 until 1959 on CBS. Offering both comedies and drama, the series was sponsored by the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company. The title was shortened to Schlitz Playhouse, beginning with the fall 1957 season.
bee
The Bandit Queen
Title: The Bandit Queen
Character: Zarra Montalvo, alias Lola Belmont
Released: December 22, 1950
Type: Movie
Zara Montalve, half Spanish and half America, returns to her native California in time to see her parents murdered for their hacienda and gold by Sheriff Jim Harding and his gang. Posing as Lola Belmont, an American visiting from Detroit, teams up with Joaquin Murietta, posing as Carlos Del Rio, to form a Robin-Hood type band that takes vengeance on the gang and restores stolen gold to its rightful owners, aided by militia leader Dan Hinsdale.
bee
Title: Lux Video Theatre
Character: Hilda
Released: October 2, 1950
Type: TV
Lux Video Theatre is an American anthology series that was produced from 1950 until 1959. The series presented both comedy and drama in original teleplays, as well as abridged adaptations of films and plays.
bee
Champagne for Caesar
Title: Champagne for Caesar
Character: Gwenn Bottomley
Released: May 11, 1950
Type: Movie
When jobless genius Beauregard Bottomley interviews with Burnbridge Waters for a position at Waters' soap company, the owner rudely turns Bottomley down. As revenge, Bottomley enters a TV quiz show that Waters' company sponsors, with the goal of winning until he bankrupts the businessman. When Bottomley keeps acing the questions, becoming a media sensation, Waters desperately calls on vixen Flame O'Neal to uncover Bottomley's area of weakness.
bee
Title: Robert Montgomery Presents
Released: January 30, 1950
Type: TV
Robert Montgomery Presents is an American dramatic television series which was produced by NBC from January 30, 1950 until June 24, 1957. The live show had several sponsors during its seven-year run, and the title was altered to feature the sponsor, usually Lucky Strike cigarettes, for example, Robert Montgomery Presents Your Lucky Strike Theater, ....The Johnson's Wax Program, and so on.
bee
Title: Robert Montgomery Presents
Character: Liz
Released: January 30, 1950
Type: TV
Robert Montgomery Presents is an American dramatic television series which was produced by NBC from January 30, 1950 until June 24, 1957. The live show had several sponsors during its seven-year run, and the title was altered to feature the sponsor, usually Lucky Strike cigarettes, for example, Robert Montgomery Presents Your Lucky Strike Theater, ....The Johnson's Wax Program, and so on.
bee
Title: Lights Out
Released: July 19, 1949
Type: TV
Lights Out was an extremely popular American old-time radio program, an early example of a network series devoted mostly to horror and the supernatural, predating Suspense and Inner Sanctum. Versions of Lights Out aired on different networks, at various times, from January 1934 to the summer of 1947 and the series eventually made the transition to television. In 1946, NBC Television brought Lights Out to TV in a series of four specials, broadcast live and produced by Fred Coe, who also contributed three of the scripts. NBC asked Cooper to write the script for the premiere, "First Person Singular", which is told entirely from the point of view of an unseen murderer who kills his obnoxious wife and winds up being executed. Variety gave this first episode a rave review ("undoubtedly one of the best dramatic shows yet seen on a television screen"), but Lights Out did not become a regular NBC-TV series until 1949.
bee
I Shot Jesse James
Title: I Shot Jesse James
Character: Cynthy Waters
Released: February 26, 1949
Type: Movie
Bob Ford murders his best friend Jesse James in order to obtain a pardon that will free him to marry his girlfriend Cynthy. The guilt-stricken Ford soon finds himself greeted with derision and open mockery throughout town. He travels to Colorado to try his hand at prospecting in hopes that marriage with Cynthy is still in the cards.
bee
Cover Up
Title: Cover Up
Character: Anita Weatherby
Released: February 25, 1949
Type: Movie
Insurance investigator Sam Donovan is looking into the apparent suicide of a man in a small Midwestern town. All clues leads him into suspecting murder. Unfortunately, no one wants to assist him with the case, including Sheriff Larry Best.
bee
Loaded Pistols
Title: Loaded Pistols
Character: Mary Evans
Released: December 15, 1948
Type: Movie
A singing cowboy clears a boy accused of murder by finding the real killer.
bee
The Untamed Breed
Title: The Untamed Breed
Character: Cherry Lucas
Released: October 20, 1948
Type: Movie
A cowboy sets out to capture an escaped Brahma bull that is terrorizing local ranchers. Based on a story by Eli Colter that appeared in The Saturday Evening Post.
bee
Mr. Reckless
Title: Mr. Reckless
Character: Betty Denton
Released: March 26, 1948
Type: Movie
An oil well digger tries to win back his former girlfriend, now engaged to another man.
bee
Albuquerque
Title: Albuquerque
Character: Letty Tayler
Released: February 20, 1948
Type: Movie
Cole Armin comes to Albuquerque to work for his uncle, John Armin, a despotic and hard-hearted czar who operates an ore-hauling freight line, and whose goal is to eliminate a competing line run by Ted Wallace and his sister Celia. Cole tires of his uncle's heavy-handed tactics and switches over to the Wallace side. Lety Tyler, an agent hired by the uncle, also switches over by warning Cole and Ted of a trap set for them by the uncle and his henchman.
bee
Gunfighters
Title: Gunfighters
Character: Bess Banner
Released: July 15, 1947
Type: Movie
Gunfighter "Brazos" Kane lays aside his guns "forever" when he is forced to shoot his best friend, and decides to join another friend, Bob Tyrell, as a cowhand on the Inskip ranch. Upon arriving there he finds the bullet-riddled body of his friend. He carries the body to the Banner ranch, the largest in the territory, and is accused by Banner of murdering Tyrell; Banner orders Deputy Sheriff Bill Yount, who is in Banner's pay, to arrest Kane. But Kane has the sympathy of Banner's daughter, Jane, who notifies Inskip of Kane's plight, and Inskip arrives in time to prevent a lynching. Sheriff Kiscade dismisses the murder charge for lack of evidence. Brazos then sets out to find the killer of his friend. Bess Bannister, Jane's sister, is in love with the Banner ranch foreman, Bard Macky, and knowing that Bard killed Tyrell and that Kane will track him down, then hampers Kane's mission somewhat by pretending to be in love with him.
bee
The Return of Monte Cristo
Title: The Return of Monte Cristo
Character: Angela Picard
Released: December 19, 1946
Type: Movie
Louis Hayward, star of 1940's Son of Monte Cristo, returns to Alexandre Dumas territory in Columbia's Return of Monte Cristo. This time, Hayward plays the grandson of his namesake Edmond Dantes, who, it will be recalled, was cheated out of his fortune and falsely imprisoned, only to escape and wreak vengeance on his betrayers by assuming the guise of the Count of Monte Cristo. Just like grandpa, the younger Dantes is framed by a trio of connivers and shipped off to Devil's Island. Escaping with a fellow convict, political radical Bombelles (Steven Geray), Dantes adopts the bearded guise of an elderly man in order to destroy his enemies and reclaim his birthright. One of his principal antagonists - at least during the first half of the film - is haughty aristocrat Angele Picard (Barbara Britton), who because she wasn't a part of the original conspiracy genuinely believes that Dantes is a criminal.
bee
The Fabulous Suzanne
Title: The Fabulous Suzanne
Character: Suzanne
Released: December 15, 1946
Type: Movie
Suzanne, a waitress, comes up with a sure-fire method for winning at the racetrack and, later, when she inherits a fortune from a customer of the restaurant, she use the same system for investing her money. Her stock broker tries to dissuade her, but she persists and her investments increases her wealth.
bee
The Virginian
Title: The Virginian
Character: Molly Wood
Released: May 5, 1946
Type: Movie
Arriving at Medicine Bow, eastern schoolteacher Molly Woods meets two cowboys, irresponsible Steve and the "Virginian," who gets off on the wrong foot with her. To add to his troubles, the Virginian finds that his old pal Steve is mixed up with black-hatted Trampas and his rustlers...then finds himself at the head of a posse after said rustlers; and Molly hates the violent side of frontier life.
bee
They Made Me a Killer
Title: They Made Me a Killer
Character: June Reynolds
Released: May 3, 1946
Type: Movie
A fugitive receives help from a victim's sister as he tries to clear his name of robbery and murder charges.
bee
Captain Kidd
Title: Captain Kidd
Character: Lady Anne Dunstan
Released: November 22, 1945
Type: Movie
Cutthroat pirate William Kidd captures Admiral Blayne's treasure ship and hides the bounty in a cave. Three years later, Kidd, posing as a respectable merchant captain, offers his services to the King of England. Seeking a social position, Kidd also negotiates for Blayne's title and lands, provided he can prove Blayne was associated with piracy. Launched upon his royal mission, Kidd is unaware that Blayne's son Adam is among the crew, determined to clear his father's name.
bee
The Great John L.
Title: The Great John L.
Character: Kathy Harkness
Released: May 25, 1945
Type: Movie
Portrait of legendary fighter John L. Sullivan, aka "The Boston Strong Boy", and his meteoric rise to become the first gloved World Heavyweight Champion. But the famed boxer is no match for the two women with holds on him, love struck actress Kathy Harkness and the real love of his life, beautiful but unyielding Anne Livingstone.
bee
Till We Meet Again
Title: Till We Meet Again
Character: Sister Clothilde aka Louise Dupree
Released: August 30, 1944
Type: Movie
An American pilot is shot down over Nazi-occupied France and is taken to a convent by the Resistance. The young novice nun Clothilde is interested in him and is willing to help him escape to England, but the pilot must continue his mission undercover by posing as the husband of a different woman.
bee
The Story of Dr. Wassell
Title: The Story of Dr. Wassell
Character: Ruth
Released: July 4, 1944
Type: Movie
As the Japanese sweep through the East Indies during World War II, Dr. Wassell is determined to escape from Java with some crewmen of the cruiser Marblehead. Based on a true story of how Dr. Wassell saved a dozen or so wounded sailors who were left behind when able bodied men were evacuated to Australia.
bee
The Last Will and Testament of Tom Smith
Title: The Last Will and Testament of Tom Smith
Character: Grace
Released: September 9, 1943
Type: Movie
Tom Smith, an American pilot, is shot down and captured by the Japanese. While imprisoned and awaiting execution, he recalls his life at home in the USA.
bee
So Proudly We Hail
Title: So Proudly We Hail
Character: Lt. Rosemary Larson
Released: September 9, 1943
Type: Movie
During the start of the Pacific campaign in World War II, Lieutenant Janet Davidson is the head of a group of U.S. military nurses who are trapped behind enemy lines in the Philippines. Davidson tries to keep up the spirits of her staff, which includes Lieutenants Joan O'Doul and Olivia D'Arcy. They all seek to maintain a sense of normal life, including dating, while under constant danger as they tend to wounded soldiers.
bee
Young and Willing
Title: Young and Willing
Character: Marge Benson Dennison
Released: February 5, 1943
Type: Movie
For those, if any, who have wondered why so many Paramount contractees appeared in United Artists' films during the war years, this is another one of the Paramount productions that was sold to United Artists in the early-40's when U.A. was having trouble meeting their exhibitor contracts because of lack of product, mainly due to their loss of production in England. A group of starving, but young and willing, actors band together to share finances and an apartment. Norman Reese (William Holden) orders no love nonsense between the boys and girls till they are set on broadway, but Marge Benson (Barbara Britton) and Tony Dennison (James Beown) are already secretly married. A friend drops in to see Dottie Coburn (Martha O'Driscoll) and is shocked to find the boys and girls sharing the same apartment and insists it is her duty to inform Dottie's father (Jay Fassett.)
bee
Freedom Comes High
Title: Freedom Comes High
Released: January 1, 1943
Type: Movie
A young wife learns that freedom must sometimes be paid for in lives, when her husband's ship is struck during battle.
bee
Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch
Title: Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch
Character: Lucy Olcott
Released: October 1, 1942
Type: Movie
In the shanty town called the Cabbage Patch, Mrs. Wiggs scrabbles for survival with her brood of children and hopes for the return of her husband, who left many years before.
bee
Wake Island
Title: Wake Island
Character: Sally Cameron (uncredited)
Released: August 11, 1942
Type: Movie
In late 1941, with no hope of relief or re-supply, a small band of United States Marines tries to keep the Japanese Navy from capturing their island base.
bee
Reap the Wild Wind
Title: Reap the Wild Wind
Character: Charleston Lady #1
Released: March 26, 1942
Type: Movie
The Florida Keys in 1840, where the implacable hurricanes of the Caribbean scream, where the salvagers of Key West, like the intrepid and beautiful Loxi Claiborne and her crew, reap, aboard frail schooners, the harvest of the wild wind, facing the shark teeth of the reefs to rescue the sailors and the cargo from the shipwrecks caused by the scavengers of the sea.
bee
The Fleet's In
Title: The Fleet's In
Character: Eileen Wright
Released: January 24, 1942
Type: Movie
Shy sailor Casey Kirby suddenly becomes known as a sea wolf when his picture is taken with a famous actress. Things get complicated when bets are placed on his prowess with the ladies.
bee
Louisiana Purchase
Title: Louisiana Purchase
Character: Louisiana Belle
Released: December 31, 1941
Type: Movie
A bumbling senator investigating graft in Louisiana is the target of a scheme involving a Viennese beauty.
bee
Secret of the Wastelands
Title: Secret of the Wastelands
Character: Jennifer Kendall
Released: November 15, 1941
Type: Movie
Hoppy is leading a scientific expedition and the Chinese who have a hidden settlement nearby are trying to stop them. Saulters and his outlaw gang are also in the area looking for a gold mine. When Saulters men attack, the gold mine is found. Hoppy agrees to file for the Chinese and heads after Saulters in the chase to the land office.