Mary Beth Hughes

Dazzling blonde Mary Beth Hughes in publicity for RIDE ON VAQUERO (1941). Hughes was born in Alton, Illinois on November 13, 1919. After graduating from high school in 1937 she returned to Brown's theatre company, where she continued to appear in various stage productions until the summer of 1938, when she relocated to Los Angeles with her mother to pursue a film career. She soon landed a small, uncredited role in the MGM musical “Broadway Serenade” (1939). She also appeared in other bit parts in films such as “The Women” with Norma Shearer, “Dancing Co-Ed” with Lana Turner, and the Busby Berkeley film “Fast and Furious” (all 1939). In 1940 Hughes was offered a contract with 20th Century-Fox. Later that year she landed a role opposite John Barrymore in “The Great Profile”, a part she later noted as one of her favourites. Her most famous role was as Henry Fonda's former girlfriend in “The Ox-Bow Incident” (1943). She also appeared in the cult classic “I Accuse My Parents” (1944), Anthony Mann's early noir masterpiece “The Great Flamarion” (1945), “The Devil's Henchman” (1949), and also on the television shows “The Abbott and Costello Show”, “Dragnet” and “Studio One”. In 1961, Hughes decided to retire from acting and began working as a receptionist in a plastic surgeon's office, although she continued her appearances in nightclubs. In 1970 she landed a regular role on “The Red Skelton Show”, appearing in 11 episodes before the show ended later that year. In 1976 she again retired from show business, explaining that she was "tired of auditioning for sexy grandma roles." Hughes' last onscreen appearance was in the 1976 film “Tanya”. In the late 1970s she opened a beauty parlor in Canoga Park, California. She closed the shop in the late 1980s and began working as a telemarketer until 1991. Hughes died, aged 75, on August 27, 1995 from natural causes.

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