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Una Merkel

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Years active
  
1920–1966

Name
  
Una Merkel

Role
  
Film actress


Una Merkel violdam6fileswordpresscom201303img003a1024jpg

Born
  
December 10, 1903 (
1903-12-10
)

Resting place
  
Highland Cemetery Fort Mitchell, Kentucky

Died
  
January 2, 1986, Los Angeles, California, United States

Spouse
  
Ronald L. Burla (m. 1932–1947)

Parents
  
Arno Merkel, Elizabeth Phares Merkel

Awards
  
Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play

Movies
  
42nd Street, Destry Rides Again, The Parent Trap, Abraham Lincoln, Summer and Smoke

Similar People
  
David Swift, Lloyd Bacon, Roy Del Ruth, Irving Thalberg, Norma Shearer

Una Merkel Tribute


Una Merkel (December 10, 1903 – January 2, 1986) was an American stage, film, radio, and television actress.

Contents

Una Merkel Una Merkel Wikipedia the free encyclopedia

Merkel was born in Kentucky and acted on stage in New York in the 1920s. She went to Hollywood in 1930 and became a popular film actress. Two of her best-known performances are in the films 42nd Street and Destry Rides Again. She won a Tony award in 1956, and was nominated for an Academy Award in 1961.

Una Merkel UNA MERKEL FREE Wallpapers amp Background images

Movie legends una merkel


Life and career

Una Merkel UNA MERKEL

Una Merkel was born in Covington, Kentucky, to Arno Merkel and Bessie Phares, but in her early childhood, she lived in many of the Southern United States due to her father's job as a traveling salesman. At the age of 15, her parents and she moved to Philadelphia. They stayed there a year or so before settling in New York City, where she began attending the Alviene School of Dramatic Art.

Una Merkel UNA MERKEL

Because of her strong resemblance to actress Lillian Gish, Merkel was offered a part as Gish's youngest sister in a silent film called World Shadows. Unfortunately, the public never saw the film because funding for it dried up, and it was never completed. Merkel went on to appear in a few silent films during the silent era, several of them for the Lee Bradford Corporation. She also appeared in the two-reel Love's Old Sweet Song (1923), which was made by Lee DeForest in his Phonofilm sound-on-film process and starred Louis Wolheim and Helen Weir. Not making much of a mark in films, Merkel turned her attention to the theater and found work in several important plays on Broadway. Her biggest triumph was in Coquette (1927), which starred her idol, Helen Hayes.

Invited to Hollywood by famous director D. W. Griffith to play Ann Rutledge in his Abraham Lincoln (1930), Merkel was a big success in the "talkies". During the 1930s, she became a popular second lead in a number of films, usually playing the wisecracking best friend of the heroine, supporting actresses such as Jean Harlow, Carole Lombard, Loretta Young, and Eleanor Powell.

With her Kewpie-doll looks, strong Southern accent, and wry line delivery, Merkel enlivened scores of films in the 1930s. She even had the distinction of playing Sam Spade's secretary in the original 1931 version of The Maltese Falcon. Merkel was a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract player from 1932 to 1938, appearing in as many as 12 films in a year, often on loan-out to other studios. She was also often cast as leading lady to a number of actors in their starring pictures, including Jack Benny, Harold Lloyd, Franchot Tone, and Charles Butterworth.

In 42nd Street (1933), Merkel played a streetwise show girl who was Ginger Rogers' character's buddy. In the famous "Shuffle Off to Buffalo" number, Merkel and Rogers sang the verse: "Matrimony is baloney. She'll be wanting alimony in a year or so./Still they go and shuffle, shuffle off to Buffalo." Merkel appeared in both the 1934 and the 1952 film versions of The Merry Widow, playing different roles in each.

One of her most famous roles was in the Western comedy Destry Rides Again (1939) in which her character, Lily Belle, gets into a famous "cat-fight" with Frenchie (Marlene Dietrich) over the possession of her husband's trousers, won by Frenchie in a crooked card game. She played the elder daughter to the W. C. Fields character, Egbert Sousé, in the 1940 film The Bank Dick. Her film career went into decline during the 1940s, although she continued working in smaller productions. In 1950, she was leading lady to William Bendix in the baseball comedy Kill the Umpire, which was a surprise hit.

She made a comeback as a middle-aged woman playing mothers and maiden aunts, and in 1956 won a Tony Award for her role on Broadway in The Ponder Heart. She had a major part in the MGM 1959 film The Mating Game as Paul Douglas' wife and Debbie Reynolds's mother, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in Summer and Smoke (1961). She was also featured as Brian Keith's housekeeper, Verbena, in the Walt Disney comedy The Parent Trap in 1961. Her final film role was opposite Elvis Presley in Spinout.

Personal life

On March 5, 1945, Merkel was nearly killed when her mother Bessie, with whom she was sharing an apartment in New York City, committed suicide by gassing herself. Merkel was overcome by the five gas jets her mother had turned on in their kitchen and was found unconscious in her bedroom.

On March 4, 1952, nearly seven years to the day that Merkel's mother committed suicide, Merkel overdosed on sleeping pills. She was found unconscious by a nurse who was caring for her at the time and remained in a coma for a day.

Merkel was a lifelong practicing Methodist.

Marriage

Merkel was married once and had no children. She married North American Aviation executive Ronald L. Burla in 1932. They separated in April 1944. Merkel filed for divorce on December 19, 1946 in Miami, and it was granted in March 1947.

Death

On January 2, 1986, Merkel died in Los Angeles at the age of 82. She is buried near her parents, Arno and Bessie Merkel, in Highland Cemetery in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky.

For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Una Merkel has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (6230 Hollywood Boulevard). In 1991, a historical marker was dedicated to her in her hometown of Covington, KY.

Short subjects

  • Love's Old Sweet Song (1923) two-reeler made in Phonofilm early sound process
  • Menu (1933)
  • Hollywood Goes to Town (1938)
  • Quack Service (1943)
  • To Heir Is Human (1944)
  • Filmography

    Actress
    1968
    I Spy (TV Series) as
    Aunt Alta
    - Home to Judgment (1968) - Aunt Alta
    1966
    Spinout as
    Violet Ranley
    1963
    Burke's Law (TV Series) as
    Clara Lovelace / Mrs. Thomas Barrett / Miss Samantha Cartier
    - Who Killed the Rabbit's Husband? (1965) - Clara Lovelace
    - Who Killed the Strangler? (1965) - Mrs. Thomas Barrett
    - Who Killed Cynthia Royal? (1963) - Miss Samantha Cartier
    1964
    The Cara Williams Show (TV Series) as
    Amelia Hofstetter
    - Amelia Hofstetter, Please Go Home (1964) - Amelia Hofstetter
    1964
    A Tiger Walks as
    Mrs. Watkins
    1964
    Destry (TV Series) as
    Granny Farrell
    - Law and Order Day (1964) - Granny Farrell
    1963
    The Bill Dana Show (TV Series) as
    Mrs. Hatten
    - The Poker Game (1963) - Mrs. Hatten
    1963
    Summer Magic as
    Mariah Popham
    1962
    The Real McCoys (TV Series) as
    Mrs. Gaylord
    - The New Housekeeper (1962) - Mrs. Gaylord
    1961
    Summer and Smoke as
    Mrs. Winemiller
    1961
    The Parent Trap as
    Verbena
    1959
    The Mating Game as
    Ma Larkin
    1958
    The United States Steel Hour (TV Series)
    - Flint and Fire (1958)
    1958
    The DuPont Show of the Month (TV Series) as
    Aladdin's Mother
    - Cole Porter's 'Aladdin' (1958) - Aladdin's Mother
    1957
    The Girl Most Likely as
    Dodie's Mother
    1957
    Climax! (TV Series) as
    Maud
    - The Secret of the Red Room (1957) - Maud
    1957
    The Fuzzy Pink Nightgown as
    Bertha
    1957
    The Red Skelton Hour (TV Series) as
    Mrs. Van Wyck
    - Freddie and the Happy Helper (1957) - Mrs. Van Wyck
    1957
    Playhouse 90 (TV Series) as
    Louise Hoagland
    - The Greer Case (1957) - Louise Hoagland
    1956
    Bundle of Joy as
    Mrs. Dugan
    1956
    Calling Terry Conway (TV Movie) as
    Pearl McGrath
    1956
    The Kettles in the Ozarks as
    Miss Bedelia Baines
    1955
    Kraft Theatre (TV Series)
    - Trucks Welcome (1955)
    1955
    The Kentuckian as
    Sophie Wakefield
    1954
    Studio One (TV Series) as
    Parsis McHugh
    - Two Little Minks (1954) - Parsis McHugh
    1953
    Willys Theatre Presenting Ben Hecht's Tales of the City (TV Series)
    - Miracle in the Rain (1953)
    1953
    Your Jeweler's Showcase (TV Series) as
    1
    - The Monkey's Paw (1953) - 1
    1953
    I Love Melvin as
    Mom Schneider
    1953
    Schlitz Playhouse (TV Series) as
    Secretary
    - Guardian of the Clock (1953) - Secretary
    1952
    Four Star Playhouse (TV Series) as
    Rose Barton
    - My Wife Geraldine (1952) - Rose Barton
    1952
    The Merry Widow as
    Kitty Riley
    1952
    With a Song in My Heart as
    Sister Marie
    1951
    Golden Girl as
    Mary Ann Crabtree
    1951
    A Millionaire for Christy as
    Patsy Clifford
    1951
    Rich, Young and Pretty as
    Glynnie
    1950
    Emergency Wedding as
    Emma - Nurse / Receptionist
    1950
    My Blue Heaven as
    Miss Irma Gilbert
    1950
    Kill the Umpire as
    Betty Johnson
    1948
    The Man from Texas as
    Widow Weeks
    1948
    The Bride Goes Wild as
    Miss Doberly
    1947
    It's a Joke, Son! as
    Magnolia Claghorn
    1944
    Sweethearts of the U.S.A. as
    Patsy Wilkins
    1944
    To Heir Is Human (Short) as
    Una
    1943
    Quack Service (Short) as
    Daffy
    1943
    This Is the Army as
    Rose Dibble
    1942
    Twin Beds as
    Lydia
    1942
    The Mad Doctor of Market Street as
    Aunt Margaret Wentworth
    1941
    Cracked Nuts as
    Sharon Knight
    1941
    Road to Zanzibar as
    Julia Quimby
    1941
    Double Date as
    Aunt Elsie Kirkland
    1940
    The Bank Dick as
    Myrtle Sousé
    1940
    Sandy Gets Her Man as
    Nan Clark
    1940
    Comin' Round the Mountain as
    Belinda Watters
    1939
    Destry Rides Again as
    Lily Belle
    1939
    On Borrowed Time as
    Marcia Giles
    1939
    Some Like It Hot as
    Flo Saunders
    1939
    Four Girls in White as
    Gertie Robbins
    1937
    True Confession as
    Daisy McClure
    1937
    Checkers as
    Mamie Appleby
    1937
    Saratoga as
    Fritzi
    1937
    The Good Old Soak as
    Nellie
    1937
    Don't Tell the Wife as
    Nancy Dorsey
    1936
    Born to Dance as
    Jenny Saks
    1936
    We Went to College as
    Susan Standish
    1936
    Speed as
    Josephine Sanderson
    1935
    Riffraff as
    Lil
    1935
    It's in the Air as
    Alice Lane Churchill
    1935
    Broadway Melody of 1936 as
    Kitty Corbett
    1935
    Murder in the Fleet as
    Toots Timmons
    1935
    Baby Face Harrington as
    Millicent 'Millie' Harrington
    1935
    One New York Night as
    Phoebe
    1935
    The Night Is Young as
    Fanni Kerner
    1935
    Biography of a Bachelor Girl as
    Slade Kinnicott
    1934
    Evelyn Prentice as
    Amy Drexel
    1934
    The Merry Widow as
    Queen Dolores
    1934
    Have a Heart as
    Joan O'Day
    1934
    Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back as
    Gwen
    1934
    The Cat's-Paw as
    Pet Pratt
    1934
    Paris Interlude as
    Cassie
    1934
    Murder in the Private Car as
    Georgia Latham
    1934
    This Side of Heaven as
    Birdie
    1933
    The Women in His Life as
    'Simmy' Simmons
    1933
    Day of Reckoning as
    Mamie
    1933
    Bombshell as
    Mac
    1933
    Menu (Short) as
    Mrs. Omsk (uncredited)
    1933
    Beauty for Sale as
    Carol Merrick
    1933
    Broadway to Hollywood as
    Flirt in Audience (uncredited)
    1933
    Her First Mate as
    Hattie
    1933
    Midnight Mary as
    Bunny
    1933
    Reunion in Vienna as
    Ilsa Hinrich
    1933
    Clear All Wires! as
    Dolly
    1933
    42nd Street as
    Lorraine Fleming
    1933
    The Secret of Madame Blanche as
    Ella
    1933
    Whistling in the Dark as
    Toby Van Buren
    1932
    Men Are Such Fools as
    Molly
    1932
    They Call It Sin as
    Dixie Dare
    1932
    Red-Headed Woman as
    Sally
    1932
    Huddle as
    Thelma
    1932
    Man Wanted as
    Ruth 'Ruthie' Holman
    1932
    The Impatient Maiden as
    Betty Merrick
    1932
    She Wanted a Millionaire as
    Mary Taylor
    1931
    Private Lives as
    Sibyl Chase
    1931
    The Secret Witness as
    Lois Martin
    1931
    Wicked as
    June
    1931
    The Bargain as
    Etta
    1931
    Daddy Long Legs as
    Sally McBride
    1931
    The Maltese Falcon as
    Effie Perine
    1931
    6 Cylinder Love as
    Margaret Rogers
    1931
    Don't Bet on Women as
    Tallulah Hope
    1931
    Command Performance as
    Princess Katerina
    1930
    The Bat Whispers as
    Dale Van Gorder
    1930
    The Eyes of the World as
    Sybil LaGrange
    1930
    Abraham Lincoln as
    1924
    The Fifth Horseman as
    Dorothy
    1923
    Love's Old Sweet Song
    Miscellaneous
    1928
    The Wind (stand-in: Lillian Gish - uncredited)
    1923
    The White Rose (stand-in)
    1920
    Way Down East (stand-in: Lillian Gish - uncredited)
    Soundtrack
    1964
    Destry (TV Series) (performer - 1 episode)
    - Law and Order Day (1964) - (performer: "Buffalo Gals" - uncredited)
    1958
    The DuPont Show of the Month (TV Series) (performer - 1 episode)
    - Cole Porter's 'Aladdin' (1958) - (performer: "Opportunity Knocks But Once")
    1955
    The Kentuckian (performer: "Possum Up a Gum Tree" - uncredited)
    1937
    Saratoga (performer: "The Horse with the Dreamy Eyes" (1937) - uncredited)
    1936
    Born to Dance ("Hey, Babe, Hey" (1936)) / (performer: "Hey, Babe, Hey" (1936))
    1935
    The Night Is Young (performer: "My Old Mare" (1935), "The Noble Duchess" (1935) - uncredited)
    1933
    42nd Street (performer: "Shuffle Off to Buffalo" (1932) - uncredited)
    1932
    They Call It Sin (performer: "Comin' Thro' the Rye" - uncredited)
    1932
    Man Wanted (performer: "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes" (1930) - uncredited)
    Self
    1980
    AFI Life Achievement Award (TV Series) as
    Self
    - AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to James Stewart (1980) - Self (uncredited)
    1978
    All-Star Party for James Stewart (TV Special) as
    Self - Audience Member
    1962
    The 34th Annual Academy Awards (TV Special) as
    Self - Nominee
    1961
    Here's Hollywood (TV Series) as
    Self
    - Episode #1.169 (1961) - Self
    1956
    The 10th Annual Tony Awards (TV Special) as
    Self - Winner
    1938
    Hollywood Goes to Town (Short documentary) as
    Self
    1934
    Screen Snapshots, Series 13, No. 5 (Documentary short) as
    Self
    Archive Footage
    2005
    The Great Man: W.C. Fields (Video documentary) as
    Myrtle Sousé (clip from The Bank Dick (1940)) (uncredited)
    2005
    Irving Thalberg: Prince of Hollywood (TV Movie documentary)
    1994
    That's Entertainment! III (Documentary) as
    Performer in Film Clip (uncredited)
    1987
    James Stewart: A Wonderful Life - Hosted by Johnny Carson (TV Movie) as
    Jenny Saks (clip from Born to Dance (1936)) (uncredited)
    1985
    That's Dancing! (Documentary) as
    Archival footage from 'Born to Dance'
    1982
    Hooray for Hollywood (Documentary) as
    Self
    1965
    The Magical World of Disney (TV Series) as
    Mrs. Watkins / Mariah Popham / Verbena
    - The Parent Trap (1976) - Verbena
    - A Tiger Walks: Part 2 (1966) - Mrs. Watkins
    - A Tiger Walks: Part 1 (1966) - Mrs. Watkins
    - Summer Magic: Part 2 (1965) - Mariah Popham
    - Summer Magic: Part 1 (1965) - Mariah Popham
    1972
    Hollywood: The Dream Factory (TV Movie documentary) as
    Self - film clips

    References

    Una Merkel Wikipedia


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