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Martha O'Driscoll

October 27, 2023

Martha O'Driscoll (March 4, 1922[citation needed] – November 3, 1998) was an American film actress from 1937 until 1947. She retired from the screen in 1947 after marrying her second husband, Arthur I. Appleton, president of Appleton Electric Company in Chicago.[1][2]

Martha O' Driscoll
O'Driscoll in Cecil B. DeMille's Reap the Wild Wind (1942)
Born(1922-03-04)March 4, 1922
DiedNovember 3, 1998(1998-11-03) (aged 76)
Ocala, Florida, U.S.
Occupations
  • Actress
  • dancer
  • socialite
Years active1936–1947
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1943; div. 1947)​
​
​
(m. 1947)​
Children4

Early life edit

O'Driscoll's mother was a financial partner in the Mar-Ken Professional Children's School, Hollywood, Los Angeles.[3][4] The school's director, Mrs. Bessire, had a son, William Kent Bessire. The two women decided to name the school after their children—Mar came from Martha and Ken from Kent. The school remained open until the early 1960s.[5][6][7][8]

Career edit

Trained in singing and dancing, O'Driscoll was seen by choreographer Hermes Pan in a local theater production in Phoenix; Pan suggested to her mother that O'Driscoll might do well in movies. Her mother and she moved to Hollywood in 1935, but Pan was out of town, so they answered an advertisement for dancers. O'Driscoll was given a role in Collegiate (1935), a musical in which Betty Grable had an early leading role.

O'Driscoll was given more visible parts and began pitching products in magazine advertisements for Max Factor and Royal Crown Cola, among many others. These ads also promoted her upcoming pictures. She had other small dancing roles in Here Comes the Band, The Big Broadcast of 1936, and The Great Ziegfeld. In the last, she was spotted by a Universal talent scout, who arranged for her to have a screen test, followed by a contract. Her roles were initially small; in her first Universal film, She's Dangerous (1937), she was not credited by name. In the Deanna Durbin vehicle Mad About Music (1937), she was billed as "Pretty Girl". Her face appeared on such advertisements as Charm-Kurl Supreme Cold Wave and Max Factor Hollywood Face Powder. Universal lent O'Driscoll to MGM for parts in The Secret of Dr Kildare (1939) and Judge Hardy and Son (1940), starring Mickey Rooney.[9]

RKO, however, gave O'Driscoll her first two starring roles, as romantic interest to the cowboy Tim Holt in Wagon Train (1940) and notably as Daisy Mae in the first screen version of Al Capp's popular comic strip Li'l Abner (1940), which also featured Buster Keaton.

 
O'Driscoll in 1946

Paramount became interested in the actress and acquired her contract, casting her first as a maid in Preston Sturges's classic comedy, The Lady Eve (1941). Later, she appeared in Cecil B. DeMille's Reap the Wild Wind (1942). DeMille was too busy filming to appear at Grauman's Theater to plant his prints in concrete for the Walk of Fame, so instead they brought concrete in a mold to him. O'Driscoll, along with Hedda Hopper and Sid Grauman, were photographed at his side during that moment.[10]

O'Driscoll was then given the lead in the B film Pacific Blackout (1942), starring Robert Preston. The actress followed this with a role in Young and Willing (1943). The studio lent her back to Universal, which cast her in Olsen and Johnson's Crazy House (1943), then to RKO for Richard Wallace's stylish thriller, The Fallen Sparrow (1943) with Maureen O'Hara.

In the early 1940s, O'Driscoll toured with Errol Flynn and the USO, performing for the troops all over the world.

O'Driscoll co-starred with Noah Beery Jr., in five films. She also starred in the cult classic House of Dracula with Lon Chaney Jr., and John Carradine; and in Week-End Pass (both 1945). The following year, she made her last Universal film, Blonde Alibi, receiving top billing as a girl who sets out to prove her lover (Tom Neal) innocent of murder. Her last film was Edgar G. Ulmer's Carnegie Hall (1947).[11]

Personal life edit

Lieutenant Commander Richard D. Adams (U.S. Navy) met O'Driscoll in 1935 while spending time at the O'Driscoll home in Beverly Hills. They were married September 18, 1943 [12] in Beverly Hills and separated ten months later. In August 1944, Adams' mother announced to the newspapers of O'Driscoll's intention to divorce her son.[13] O'Driscoll announced her intention to divorce in January 1945, but because of the Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act of 1940 it would be delayed until the end of the war.[14] When Adams was released from active duty in March 1946, he contested the divorce.[15] In March 1947, O'Driscoll established a new residence at the Hotel El Rancho in Las Vegas, Nevada with the intention of filing for divorce a second time.[16] On July 18, 1947, O'Driscoll was granted her divorce from Adams. Less than 48 hours later, O'Driscoll married Navy veteran and Chicago businessman Arthur I. Appleton, president of the Appleton Electric Company, founded by his father. At the same time, she announced her intention to retire as an actress.[17] The couple had four children: James, John, Linda, and William.[1]

O'Driscoll served as an officer in such Chicago-based organizations as the Sarah Siddons Society, the Ways and Means Committee of Chicago's Junior League, and the Women's Board of the Chicago Boys' Clubs; she was also treasurer of the World's Adoption International Fund. In the 1980s and 1990s, she was a guest speaker at numerous movie-nostalgia conventions.[1][18]

The Appletons started a horse stud farm, Bridlewood, in Ocala, Florida. In 1984, the Appletons built and took delivery of a 138-ft Feadship yacht, also named Bridlewood.[19]

In 1984, the couple, along with Arthur Appleton's sister, Edith, built the Appleton Museum of Art in Ocala.[20]

After retirement, O'Driscoll and Appleton spent the remainder of their years between their home in Chicago, Bridlewood Farm, and their home in Miami on Indian Creek Island.[21]

O'Driscoll died on November 3, 1998, aged 76, in Indian Creek Village, Florida.[21]

Partial filmography edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c Obituary: Martha O'Driscoll, by Tom Vallance, for The Independent; published 9 November 1998; retrieved 10 May 2013
  2. ^ . 2013. Archived from the original on February 21, 2014.
  3. ^ Hollywood Professional School
  4. ^ "Mar Ken High School - Yearbook (Hollywood, CA), Class of 1942, Pages 1 - 17". e-yearbook.com. Retrieved June 6, 2023.
  5. ^ . www.mar-ken.org. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
  6. ^ "MAR-KEN SCHOOL in California". bizapedia.com. Retrieved June 6, 2023.
  7. ^ "historic resources survey hollywood redevelopment project area" (PDF). planning.lacity.org/eir. Retrieved June 6, 2023.
  8. ^ "Brian Sisters at School". The Brian Sisters. Retrieved June 6, 2023.
  9. ^ Galloway, Doug (November 16, 1998). "Martha O'Driscoll Appleton". Variety. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
  10. ^ David (November 16, 2012). "It's The Pictures That Got Small ...: HAND AND FOOTPRINTS OF THE STARS AT GRAUMAN'S CHINESE THEATRE - PART 3". It's The Pictures That Got Small ... Retrieved August 29, 2017.
  11. ^ "Movie Stars of the '40s", by David Ragan; published 1985, by Prentice Hall
  12. ^ "Martha O'Driscoll Weds Navy Officer". Long Beach, California. Long Beach Independent. September 19, 1943. p. 9. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
  13. ^ "To Divorce Commander". Scranton, Pennsylvania. The Times-Tribune. August 8, 1944. p. 12. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
  14. ^ "Martha O'Driscoll to Seek Divorce". Bakersfield, California. The Bakersfield Californian. January 11, 1945. p. 4. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
  15. ^ "Martha O'Driscoll Divorce Contested". Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph. March 15, 1946. p. 3. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
  16. ^ "Unperturbed". Knoxville, Tennessee. The Knoxville News-Sentinel. March 27, 1947. p. 13. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
  17. ^ "Martha O'Driscoll Weds Again Today". Miami, Florida. The Miami News. July 20, 1947. p. 13. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
  18. ^ "AllMovie | Movies and Films Database | Movie Search, Ratings, Photos, Recommendations, and Reviews". AllMovie. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
  19. ^ Netherlands, Feadship Holland B.V. The. "Homepage - Feadship Royal Dutch Shipyards". Feadship Royal Dutch Shipyards. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
  20. ^ "History of the Appleton". Appleton Museum of Art. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  21. ^ a b Oliver, Myrna (November 6, 1998). "Martha O'Driscoll; Actress, Arts Patron". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved August 29, 2017.

External links edit

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Martha O'Driscoll.

October 27, 2023
martha, driscoll, march, 1922, citation, needed, november, 1998, american, film, actress, from, 1937, until, 1947, retired, from, screen, 1947, after, marrying, second, husband, arthur, appleton, president, appleton, electric, company, chicago, martha, driscol. Martha O Driscoll March 4 1922 citation needed November 3 1998 was an American film actress from 1937 until 1947 She retired from the screen in 1947 after marrying her second husband Arthur I Appleton president of Appleton Electric Company in Chicago 1 2 Martha O DriscollO Driscoll in Cecil B DeMille s Reap the Wild Wind 1942 Born 1922 03 04 March 4 1922DiedNovember 3 1998 1998 11 03 aged 76 Ocala Florida U S OccupationsActressdancersocialiteYears active1936 1947SpousesRichard D Adams m 1943 div 1947 wbr Arthur I Appleton m 1947 wbr Children4 Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Personal life 4 Partial filmography 5 References 6 External linksEarly life editO Driscoll s mother was a financial partner in the Mar Ken Professional Children s School Hollywood Los Angeles 3 4 The school s director Mrs Bessire had a son William Kent Bessire The two women decided to name the school after their children Mar came from Martha and Ken from Kent The school remained open until the early 1960s 5 6 7 8 Career editTrained in singing and dancing O Driscoll was seen by choreographer Hermes Pan in a local theater production in Phoenix Pan suggested to her mother that O Driscoll might do well in movies Her mother and she moved to Hollywood in 1935 but Pan was out of town so they answered an advertisement for dancers O Driscoll was given a role in Collegiate 1935 a musical in which Betty Grable had an early leading role O Driscoll was given more visible parts and began pitching products in magazine advertisements for Max Factor and Royal Crown Cola among many others These ads also promoted her upcoming pictures She had other small dancing roles in Here Comes the Band The Big Broadcast of 1936 and The Great Ziegfeld In the last she was spotted by a Universal talent scout who arranged for her to have a screen test followed by a contract Her roles were initially small in her first Universal film She s Dangerous 1937 she was not credited by name In the Deanna Durbin vehicle Mad About Music 1937 she was billed as Pretty Girl Her face appeared on such advertisements as Charm Kurl Supreme Cold Wave and Max Factor Hollywood Face Powder Universal lent O Driscoll to MGM for parts in The Secret of Dr Kildare 1939 and Judge Hardy and Son 1940 starring Mickey Rooney 9 RKO however gave O Driscoll her first two starring roles as romantic interest to the cowboy Tim Holt in Wagon Train 1940 and notably as Daisy Mae in the first screen version of Al Capp s popular comic strip Li l Abner 1940 which also featured Buster Keaton nbsp O Driscoll in 1946Paramount became interested in the actress and acquired her contract casting her first as a maid in Preston Sturges s classic comedy The Lady Eve 1941 Later she appeared in Cecil B DeMille s Reap the Wild Wind 1942 DeMille was too busy filming to appear at Grauman s Theater to plant his prints in concrete for the Walk of Fame so instead they brought concrete in a mold to him O Driscoll along with Hedda Hopper and Sid Grauman were photographed at his side during that moment 10 O Driscoll was then given the lead in the B film Pacific Blackout 1942 starring Robert Preston The actress followed this with a role in Young and Willing 1943 The studio lent her back to Universal which cast her in Olsen and Johnson s Crazy House 1943 then to RKO for Richard Wallace s stylish thriller The Fallen Sparrow 1943 with Maureen O Hara In the early 1940s O Driscoll toured with Errol Flynn and the USO performing for the troops all over the world O Driscoll co starred with Noah Beery Jr in five films She also starred in the cult classic House of Dracula with Lon Chaney Jr and John Carradine and in Week End Pass both 1945 The following year she made her last Universal film Blonde Alibi receiving top billing as a girl who sets out to prove her lover Tom Neal innocent of murder Her last film was Edgar G Ulmer s Carnegie Hall 1947 11 Personal life editLieutenant Commander Richard D Adams U S Navy met O Driscoll in 1935 while spending time at the O Driscoll home in Beverly Hills They were married September 18 1943 12 in Beverly Hills and separated ten months later In August 1944 Adams mother announced to the newspapers of O Driscoll s intention to divorce her son 13 O Driscoll announced her intention to divorce in January 1945 but because of the Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act of 1940 it would be delayed until the end of the war 14 When Adams was released from active duty in March 1946 he contested the divorce 15 In March 1947 O Driscoll established a new residence at the Hotel El Rancho in Las Vegas Nevada with the intention of filing for divorce a second time 16 On July 18 1947 O Driscoll was granted her divorce from Adams Less than 48 hours later O Driscoll married Navy veteran and Chicago businessman Arthur I Appleton president of the Appleton Electric Company founded by his father At the same time she announced her intention to retire as an actress 17 The couple had four children James John Linda and William 1 O Driscoll served as an officer in such Chicago based organizations as the Sarah Siddons Society the Ways and Means Committee of Chicago s Junior League and the Women s Board of the Chicago Boys Clubs she was also treasurer of the World s Adoption International Fund In the 1980s and 1990s she was a guest speaker at numerous movie nostalgia conventions 1 18 The Appletons started a horse stud farm Bridlewood in Ocala Florida In 1984 the Appletons built and took delivery of a 138 ft Feadship yacht also named Bridlewood 19 In 1984 the couple along with Arthur Appleton s sister Edith built the Appleton Museum of Art in Ocala 20 After retirement O Driscoll and Appleton spent the remainder of their years between their home in Chicago Bridlewood Farm and their home in Miami on Indian Creek Island 21 O Driscoll died on November 3 1998 aged 76 in Indian Creek Village Florida 21 Partial filmography editThree Cheers for Love 1936 Chorine uncredited She s Dangerous 1937 Blonde Girl uncredited Mad About Music 1938 Pretty Girl uncredited Girls School 1938 Grace The Secret of Dr Kildare 1939 Mrs Roberts Judge Hardy and Son 1939 Leonora V Elvie Horton Laddie 1940 Sally Pryor Forty Little Mothers 1940 Janette Wagon Train 1940 Helen Lee Li l Abner 1940 Daisy Mae Scraggs The Lady Eve 1941 Martha Her First Beau 1941 Julie Harris Henry Aldrich for President 1941 Mary Aldrich Pacific Blackout 1941 Mary Jones The Remarkable Andrew 1942 Beamish s secretary Reap the Wild Wind 1942 Ivy Devereaux Youth on Parade 1942 Sally Carlyle My Heart Belongs to Daddy 1942 Joyce Whitman Young and Willing 1943 Dottie Coburn Paramount Victory Short No T2 4 The Aldrich Family Gets in the Scrap 1943 Short Mary Aldrich We ve Never Been Licked 1943 Deede Dunham The Fallen Sparrow 1943 Whitney The Imp Parker Crazy House 1943 Marjorie Nelson alias Marjorie Wyndingham Week End Pass 1944 Barbara Babs Bradley aka Barbara Lake Prices Unlimited 1944 Short Follow the Boys 1944 Martha O Driscoll Ghost Catchers 1944 Susanna Marshall Allergic to Love 1944 Pat Bradley Hi Beautiful 1944 Patty Callahan Under Western Skies 1945 Katie Wells Here Come the Co Eds 1945 Molly McCarthy Her Lucky Night 1945 Connie Shady Lady 1945 Gloria Wendell The Daltons Ride Again 1945 Mary Bohannon House of Dracula 1945 Miliza Morrelle Blonde Alibi 1946 Marian Gale Down Missouri Way 1946 Jane Colwell Criminal Court 1946 Georgia Gale Carnegie Hall 1947 Ruth Haines final film role References edit a b c Obituary Martha O Driscoll by Tom Vallance for The Independent published 9 November 1998 retrieved 10 May 2013 A Historical Review of Appleton Electric Creating the Brand in Chicago pt 1 2013 Archived from the original on February 21 2014 Hollywood Professional School Mar Ken High School Yearbook Hollywood CA Class of 1942 Pages 1 17 e yearbook com Retrieved June 6 2023 Mar Ken History www mar ken org Retrieved August 29 2017 MAR KEN SCHOOL in California bizapedia com Retrieved June 6 2023 historic resources survey hollywood redevelopment project area PDF planning lacity org eir Retrieved June 6 2023 Brian Sisters at School The Brian Sisters Retrieved June 6 2023 Galloway Doug November 16 1998 Martha O Driscoll Appleton Variety Retrieved August 29 2017 David November 16 2012 It s The Pictures That Got Small HAND AND FOOTPRINTS OF THE STARS AT GRAUMAN S CHINESE THEATRE PART 3 It s The Pictures That Got Small Retrieved August 29 2017 Movie Stars of the 40s by David Ragan published 1985 by Prentice Hall Martha O Driscoll Weds Navy Officer Long Beach California Long Beach Independent September 19 1943 p 9 Retrieved January 11 2020 To Divorce Commander Scranton Pennsylvania The Times Tribune August 8 1944 p 12 Retrieved January 11 2020 Martha O Driscoll to Seek Divorce Bakersfield California The Bakersfield Californian January 11 1945 p 4 Retrieved January 11 2020 Martha O Driscoll Divorce Contested Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Pittsburgh Sun Telegraph March 15 1946 p 3 Retrieved January 11 2020 Unperturbed Knoxville Tennessee The Knoxville News Sentinel March 27 1947 p 13 Retrieved January 11 2020 Martha O Driscoll Weds Again Today Miami Florida The Miami News July 20 1947 p 13 Retrieved January 11 2020 AllMovie Movies and Films Database Movie Search Ratings Photos Recommendations and Reviews AllMovie Retrieved August 29 2017 Netherlands Feadship Holland B V The Homepage Feadship Royal Dutch Shipyards Feadship Royal Dutch Shipyards Retrieved August 29 2017 History of the Appleton Appleton Museum of Art Retrieved December 11 2018 a b Oliver Myrna November 6 1998 Martha O Driscoll Actress Arts Patron Los Angeles Times ISSN 0458 3035 Retrieved August 29 2017 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Martha O Driscoll Martha O Driscoll at IMDb Martha O Driscoll at Find a Grave Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Martha O 27Driscoll amp oldid 1160169205, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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