Marsha Hunt
Acting
Marsha Hunt (born Marcia Virginia Hunt; October 17, 1917 – September 7, 2022) was an American actress, model and activist, with a career spanning nearly 80 years. She was blacklisted by Hollywood film studio executives in the 1950s during McCarthyism. Although initially reluctant to pursue a film career, in June 1935, at age 17, Hunt signed a seven-year contract with Paramount Pictures. Paramount discovered her when she was visiting her uncle in Los Angeles and the comedian Zeppo Marx saw a picture of her in the newspaper. She was then offered a screen test for The Virginia Judge. At Paramount, Hunt mainly played ingenue parts. Between 1935 and 1938, she made 12 pictures at Paramount, including a starring roles in Easy to Take, Gentle Julia, The Accusing Finger, Murder Goes to College, and two on "loan-out" to RKO and 20th Century Fox. In 1937, she starred opposite John Wayne, a couple of years prior to his breakthrough in Hollywood, in the Western film Born to the West. The studio terminated Hunt's contract in 1938, and she spent a few years starring in B-films produced by poverty row studios such as Republic Pictures and Monogram Pictures. She also headed to New York City for work in summer stock theatre shortly before winning a supporting role in MGM's These Glamour Girls opposite Lana Turner and Lew Ayres. The role of Betty was said to have been written specially with Hunt in mind. Other roles in major studio productions soon followed, including supporting roles as Mary Bennet in MGM's version of Pride and Prejudice with Laurence Olivier and as Martha Scott's surrogate child Hope Thompson in Cheers for Miss Bishop. In 1941, Hunt signed a contract with MGM, where she remained for the next six years. While filming Blossoms in the Dust, film director Mervyn LeRoy lauded Hunt for her heartfelt and genuine acting ability. In 1944, she polled seventh in a list by exhibitors of "Stars of Tomorrow". She also appeared in None Shall Escape, a film that is now regarded as the first about the Holocaust. She played Marja Pacierkowski, the Polish fiancé of a German Nazi officer named Wilhelm Grimm.
Journey to Royal: A WWII Rescue Mission
Self
Marsha Hunt's Sweet Adversity
Self
Empire State Building Murders
Norah Strinberg
The Grand Inquisitor
Hazel Reedy
Chloe's Prayer
Dalton Trumbo: Rebel in Hollywood
Herself
Blacklist: Hollywood on Trial
Herself
The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind
Self (archive footage)
Terror Among Us
Marge
Jigsaw
Dr. Gehlen
Johnny Got His Gun
Joe's Mother
Fear No Evil
Mrs. Varney
The Plunderers
Kate Miller
Blue Denim
Jessie Bartley
Bombers B-52
Edith Brennan
Back from the Dead
Kate Hazelton
No Place to Hide
Anne Dobson
A Word to the Wives...
Alice
Diplomatic Passport
Judy Anderson
With This Ring
Elise Miller John
The Happy Time
Susan Bonnard
Actors and Sin
Marcia Tillayou (segment Actor's Blood)
She Loves Me Not
Midge Mercer
Mary Ryan, Detective
Mary Ryan
Take One False Step
Martha Wier
Jigsaw
Mrs. Hartley's Secretary (uncredited)
Raw Deal
Ann Martin
The Inside Story
Francine Taylor
Smash-Up: The Story of a Woman
Martha Gray
Carnegie Hall
Nora Ryan
A Letter for Evie
Evie O'Connor
The Valley of Decision
Constance Scott
Music for Millions
Rosalind
Bride by Mistake
Sylvia Lockwood
None Shall Escape
Marja Pacierkowski
Twenty Years After
(archive footage)
Lost Angel
Katie Mallory
Cry 'Havoc'
Flo Norris
Thousands Cheer
Marsha Hunt
Pilot #5
Freddie Andrews
The Human Comedy
Diana Steed
Seven Sweethearts
Regina 'Reggie' Van Maaster
Panama Hattie
Leila Tree
The Affairs of Martha
Martha Lindstrom
Kid Glove Killer
Jane Mitchell
Joe Smith, American
Mary Smith
Unholy Partners
Gail Fenton
Blossoms in the Dust
Charlotte
I'll Wait for You
Pauline Miller
The Penalty
Katherine Logan
Cheers for Miss Bishop
Hope Thompson
The Trial of Mary Dugan
Agatha Hall
Flight Command
Claire
Ellery Queen, Master Detective
Barbara Braun
Pride and Prejudice
Mary Bennet
Women in Hiding
Jane Taylor
Hollywood: Style Center of the World
Self
Irene
Miss Eleanor Worth
Joe and Ethel Turp Call on the President
Kitty Crusper
Rhumba Rhythm at the Hollywood La Conga
Herself (uncredited)
These Glamour Girls
Betty Ainsbridge
Winter Carnival
Lucy Morgan
The Hardys Ride High
Susan Bowen
Star Reporter
Barbara Burnette
The Long Shot
Martha Sharon
Come On, Leathernecks!
Valerie Taylor
Hell Town
Judy Rustoe
Born to the West
Judy Worstall
Thunder Trail
Amy Morgan
Annapolis Salute
Julia Clemens
Easy Living
Girl Getting Coat Dropped on Her at Finale (uncredited)
Murder Goes to College
Nora Barry
College Holiday
Sylvia Smith
The Accusing Finger
Claire Patterson
Easy to Take
Donna Westlake
Hollywood Boulevard
Patricia Blakeford
The Arizona Raiders
Harriett Lindsay
Gentle Julia
Julia Atwater
Desert Gold
Judith 'Judy' Belding
The Virginia Judge
Mary Lee Calvert