Rita Johnson

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Rita Johnson (* 13. August 1913 in Worcester , Massachusetts as Rita McSean ; † 31 August 1965 in Hollywood , California ) was an American actress.

life and career

Rita Johnson initially worked as a waitress in her parents' restaurant and as a hot dog seller. In 1935 the pianist, who trained at the New England Conservatory of Music , made her debut on Broadway , and two years later she starred in her first film London by Night , directed by Wilhelm Thiele . The good-looking actress initially played mainly in smaller films, but was slowly able to make a name for herself by portraying leading ladies . In 1940, Johnson starred in The Great Edison as the supportive wife of the inventor Edison , embodied by Spencer Tracy . Johnson was also able to convince in unsympathetic roles, for example as the murderess of her husband on Vacation from Heaven (1941) and as the cold-hearted fiancée of Ray Milland in Billy Wilder's US directorial debut The Major and the Girl (1942). Her portrayal of a lovable, naive wife in the film noir They Won't Believe Me (1947), who was married by her unscrupulous husband for financial reasons only and ultimately fell victim to him, was considered to be particularly outstanding .

In September 1948, Rita Johnson was critically injured and had to undergo brain surgery, allegedly caused by a hair dryer that fell on her. This bizarre reason has been questioned by many, newspaper columnists such as Walter Winchell and Hedda Hopper speculated, for example, that a physical attack could be behind it, as Johnson had injuries to almost all parts of his body. It took her a year to recover halfway from the consequences of the accident, and she was temporarily unable to walk. Several roles in the film business followed, she expanded her acting work to include radio and television, but she was never able to build on her previous successes. She played her last role in 1957 in the family film Command you your ways at the side of Glynis Johns and Cameron Mitchell .

After the accident, alcohol problems began, which probably contributed to her early death in 1965 from a cerebral haemorrhage. The actress was privately married twice in the 1940s, but both marriages ended in divorce. At times she had a relationship with colleague Broderick Crawford . She was buried in the Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City .

Filmography (selection)

Web links

Commons : Rita Johnson  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Rita Johnson at Allmovie
  2. ↑ The Bobby-Trapped Life of Rita Johnson at Los Angeles Book Reviews
  3. ↑ Newspaper article from 1952 at Newspapers
personal data
SURNAME Johnson, Rita
ALTERNATIVE NAMES McSean, Rita (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION US-american actress
DATE OF BIRTH August 13, 1913
PLACE OF BIRTH Worcester , Massachusetts
DATE OF DEATH August 31, 1965
Place of death Hollywood , California