Myrna Loy

 Myrna Loy (August 2, 1905 – December 14, 1993)

Trained as a dancer, Loy devoted herself fully to an acting career following a few minor roles in silent films. She was originally typecast in exotic roles, often as a vamp or a woman of Asian descent, but her career prospects improved greatly following her portrayal of Nora Charles in The Thin Man (1934). Loy's silent film roles were mainly those of vamps or femme fatales, and she frequently portrayed characters of Asian or Eurasian background in films such as Across the Pacific (1926), A Girl in Every Port (1928), The Crimson City (1928), The Black Watch (1929), and The Desert Song (1929), which she later recalled "kind of solidified my exotic non-American image." In 1934, Loy appeared in Manhattan Melodrama with Clark Gable and William Powell. When gangster John Dillinger was shot to death after leaving a screening of the film at the Biograph Theater in Chicago, the film received widespread publicity, with some newspapers reporting that Loy had been Dillinger's favorite actress. After appearing with Ramón Novarro in The Barbarian (1933), Loy was cast as Nora Charles in the 1934 film The Thin Man. The Thin Man became one of the year's biggest hits, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Film. Loy received excellent reviews and was acclaimed for her comedic skills. She and her costar William Powell proved to be a popular screen couple and appeared in 14 films together, one of the most prolific pairings in Hollywood history. Loy later referred to The Thin Man as the film "that finally made me... after more than 80 films". In addition, such films as Wife vs. Secretary (1936) with Clark Gable and Jean Harlow, and Petticoat Fever (1936) with Robert Montgomery gave her opportunity to develop comedic skills. She made four films in close succession with William Powell: Libeled Lady (1936), which also starred Jean Harlow and Spencer Tracy, The Great Ziegfeld (1936), in which she played Billie Burke opposite Powell's Florenz Ziegfeld, the second Thin Man film, After the Thin Man with Powell and James Stewart, and the romantic comedy Double Wedding (1937). Later, Loy was paired with Cary Grant in David O. Selznick's comedy film The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1947). The film co-starred a teenage Shirley Temple. Following its success she appeared again with Grant in Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948), and with Clifton Webb in Cheaper by the Dozen (1950). After 1950, Loy's film career continued sporadically. In 1952 she starred in the Cheaper by the Dozen sequel, Belles on Their Toes. She played opposite Montgomery Clift and Robert Ryan in Lonelyhearts (1958). Myrna Loy died on December 14, 1993 at age 88, and is interred at Forestvale Cemetery in Helena, MT.