Leading Ladies Norma Shearer
Marie Antoinette/ Queen Marie Antoinette
The Barretts Of Wimpole Street/ Elizabeth Barrett
The Women/ Mrs. Stephen Haines
A Free Soul/ Jan Ashe
Per Quinlan's Film Stars:
Brown haired Canadian actress who married M-G-M's top producer of the twenties and the thirties, Irving Thalberg, and became the studio's first lady until his death.
She was born Edith Norma Shearer in 1902 at Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Ms. Shearer won a beauty contest at age 14. She was rejected by the Ziegfeld Follies, but got extra work in films where Irving Thalberg spotted her. He gave her a 5 year contract with M-G-M.
After they were married Thalberg thought that she should retire, but Ms. Shearer wanted bigger parts.
They were married from 1927 until his death in 1936. The couple had two children.
Her first talkie was The Trial Of Mary Dugan in 1929. After four more films she won an Academy Award for Best Actress in The Divorcee (1930).
She was nominated six times for best actress but only won for The Divorcee.
Her other Best Actress Nominations were:
1930 - Their Own Desire ( She was nominated twice in the same year)
1931 - A Free Soul
1935- The Barretts Of Wimpole Street
1936 - Romeo & Juliette
1939 - Marie Antoinette
She cut her film exposure in the 1930's performing major roles in Thalberg's prestige productions. After his death she wanted to retire but was more or less forced into a six picture contract.
The film roles of Norman Shearer were:
The Flapper (1920) as Schoolgirl
Way Down East (1920) as Barn Dancer
The Stealers (1920) as Julie Martin
The Man Who Paid (1922) as Jeanne Thornton
The Leather Pushers (1922) as Rose Delmar
The Bootleggers (1922) as Helen Barnes
Channing Of The Northwest (1922) as Jess Driscoll
A Clouded Name (1923) as Marjorie Dare
Man And Wife (1923) as Dora Perkins
The Devil's Partner (1923) as Jeanne
Pleasure Mad (1923) as Elinor Benton
The Wanters (1923) as Marjorie
Lucretia Lombard (1923) as Mimi Winship
The Trail Of The Law (1924) as Jerry Vardon
The Wolf Man (1924) as Elizabeth Gordon
Blue Water (1924) as Lillian Denton
Broadway After Dark (1924) as Rose Dulane
Broken Barriers (1924) as Grace Durland
Empty Hands (1924) as Claire Endicott
He Who Gets Slapped (1924) as Consuelo
The Snob (1924) as Nancy Claxton
Excuse Me (1925) as Marjorie Newton
Lady Of The Night (1925) as Molly Helmer/ Florence Browning
Waking Up The Town (1925) as Mary Ellen Hope
Pretty Ladies (1925) as Frances White
A Slave Of Fashion (1925) as Katherine Emerson
The Tower Of Lies (1925) as Glory or Goldie
His Secretary (1925) as Ruth Lawrence
The Devil's Circus (1926) as Mary
The Waning Sex ( 1926) as Nina Duane
Upstage (1926) as Dolly Haven
The Demi-Bride (1927) as Criquette
After Midnight (1927) as Mary Miller
The Student Prince In Old Heidelberg (1927) as Kathi
The Latest From Paris (1928) as Ann Dolan
The Actress (1928) as Rose Trelawny
A Lady Of Chance (1928) as Dolly Morgan aka Angel face
The Trial Of Mary Dugan (1929) as Mary Elizabeth Dugan
The Last Of Mrs. Cheyney (1929) as Fay Cheyney
Their Own Desire (1929) as Lally
The Divorcee (1930) as Jerry
Let Us Be Gay (1930) as Kitty Brown
Strangers May Kiss (1931) as Lisbeth
A Free Soul (1931) as Jan Ashe
Private Lives (1931) as Amanda
Strange Interlude (1932) as Nina Leeds
Smilin' Through (1932) as Kathleen/ Moonyeen
Riptide (1934) as Mary
The Barretts Of Wimpole Street (1934) as Elizabeth Barrett
Romeo And Juliette (1936) as Juliette
Marie Antoinette (1938) as Queen Marie Antoinette
Idiot's Delight (1938) as Irene Fellara
The Women (1939) as Mrs. Stephen Haines - Mary
Escape (1940) as Countess von Treck
We Were Dancing (1942) as Victoria Anastasia Wilomirska
Her Cardboard Lover (19420 as Consuelo Croyden
In 1942, Ms. Shearer remarried to Martin Arroge, a ski instructor. He was twenty years her junior. The couple had two children. They were married until her death in 1983.
After that Ms. Shearer shunned the limelight. In the last decade of her life she was in very poor health.
Norma Shearer passed away in 1983 of pneumonia.
This actress was outstanding in the film Marie Antoinette. I also enjoyed her the films The Barretts Of Wimpole Street, A Free Soul and Escape.
Louie The Movie Buff