Margaret Dumont

Margaret Dumont

1882-10-19 Brooklyn, New York, USA 56 Credits

Biography

Margaret Dumont would probably consider it a tragedy that she is best-known for her performances as the ultimate straight woman in seven of the Marx Brothers' films (including most of their best). By all accounts she never understood their jokes (offscreen and on), which is of course a major reason why she's so funny. Apart from a small role in a 1917 Dickens adaptation, she spent her early career on the stage, ending up with the Marxes in the late 1920s in the stage versions of The Cocoanuts (1...

Known For

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Complete Filmography

Hidden Hollywood II: More Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Vaults

Hidden Hollywood II: More Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Vaults

1999

as Self (archiveFootage)

Acting

Second installment of deleted scenes, mostly musical or comedic, from Fox films of the 30's - 50's.

The Marx Brothers in a Nutshell

The Marx Brothers in a Nutshell

1982

as (archive footage)

Acting

A fascinating look at the most beloved comedy team in motion picture history. Exclusive interviews with those closest to the brothers supplement this ...

The Hollywood Clowns

The Hollywood Clowns

1979

as (archive footage)

Acting

Glenn Ford narrates this hilarious look back at the greatest comedians in movie history.

That's Entertainment, Part II

That's Entertainment, Part II

1976

as (archive footage)

6.9
Acting

Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire present more golden moments from the MGM film library, this time including comedy and drama as well as classic musical num...

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?

1975

as Self (archive footage)

5.7
Acting

Period music, film clips and newsreel footage combined into a visual exploration of the American entertainment industry during the Great Depression.

Hollywood: The Dream Factory

Hollywood: The Dream Factory

1972

as Self (archive footage)

6.0
Acting

A documentary about the glorious history of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios and its decline leading to the sale of its back lot and props. By extension th...

What a Way to Go!

What a Way to Go!

1964

as Mrs. Foster

7.1
Acting

A four-time widow discusses her four marriages, in which all of her husbands became incredibly rich and died prematurely because of their drive to be ...

Zotz!

Zotz!

1962

as Persephone Updike

5.7
Acting

Jonathan Jones, a professor of ancient languages, comes into possession of an ancient coin. He translates its inscription, which gives him three power...

Auntie Mame

Auntie Mame

1958

as Noblewoman in Play (uncredited)

7.0
Acting

Mame Dennis, a progressive and independent woman of the 1920s, is left to care for her nephew Patrick after his wealthy father dies. Conflict ensues w...

Shake, Rattle and Rock!

Shake, Rattle and Rock!

1956

as Georgianna Fitzdingle

4.6
Acting

A TV star meets with opposition from adults who object to the opening of a rock 'n' roll palace for teens.

Stop, You're Killing Me

Stop, You're Killing Me

1952

as Mrs. Whitelaw

5.0
Acting

With the end of Prohibition a former bootlegger and his wife attempt to go straight. Remake of the 1938 film "A Slight Case of Murder".

Three for Bedroom C

Three for Bedroom C

1952

as Mrs. Agnes Hawthorne

Acting

After beginning their train trip to California, a famous film actress and her daughter discover their compartment has also been assigned to a handsome...

Little Giant

Little Giant

1946

as Mrs. Hendrickson

5.3
Acting

Lou Costello plays a country bumpkin vacuum-cleaner salesman, working for the company run by the crooked Bud Abbott. To try to keep him under his thum...

Sunset in El Dorado

Sunset in El Dorado

1945

as Aunt Dolly / Aunt Arabella

4.2
Acting

The story involves a rather odd flashback by Dale who is visiting El Dorado, home of her grandmother. She dreams about her grandmother's adventures in...

Diamond Horseshoe

Diamond Horseshoe

1945

as Mrs. Standish

4.0
Acting

Joe Davis Sr., headliner at a big nightclub, is visited by medical student son Joe Jr., who to Dad's chagrin wants to be a crooner, and soon comes bet...

The Horn Blows at Midnight

The Horn Blows at Midnight

1945

as Mme. Traviata / Miss Rodholder

5.8
Acting

A trumpet player in a radio orchestra falls asleep during a commercial and dreams he's Athanael, an angel deputized to blow the Last Trumpet at exactl...

Bathing Beauty

Bathing Beauty

1944

as Mrs. Allenwood

5.8
Acting

After breaking up with her fiancé, a gym teacher returns to work at a women's college, but a legal loophole allows him to enroll as one of her student...

Seven Days Ashore

Seven Days Ashore

1944

as Mrs. Croxton-Lynch

4.5
Acting

Circumstances force a womanizing playboy on leave from the Merchant Marine to ask two shipmates to help him by dating two surplus girlfriends.

Up in Arms

Up in Arms

1944

as Mrs. Willoughby

6.0
Acting

Hypochondriac Danny Weems gets drafted and accidentally smuggles his girlfriend aboard his Pacific-bound troopship.

The Dancing Masters

The Dancing Masters

1943

as Louise Harlan

6.0
Acting

The Dancing Masters is a 1943 Laurel and Hardy feature film. The plot involves the team running a ballet school, and getting involved with an inventor...

Rhythm Parade

Rhythm Parade

1942

as Ophelia MacDougal

Acting

A nightclub performer, jealous about the talents of an aspiring singer, tries to sabotage her chances at a professional career.

Tales of Manhattan

Tales of Manhattan

1942

as Mme. Langehanke (uncredited)

6.3
Acting

Ten screenwriters collaborated on this series of tales concerning the effect a tailcoat cursed by its tailor has on those who wear it. The video relea...

About Face

About Face

1942

as Mrs. Culpepper

6.0
Acting

Two Army sergeants disrupt a bar, a party and an Army-Navy dance.

Sing Your Worries Away

1942

as Flo Faulkner - Landlady

5.5
Acting

This package for comedy and the musical numbers has Luke Brown being drugged by the gangster operators of the swank Boathouse Inn; most notably Roxie ...

Born to Sing

Born to Sing

1942

as Mrs. E. V. Lawson

5.0
Acting

A group of children put on a show in order to prove that a down and out musician was the real composer of a Broadway show's songs.

Never Give a Sucker an Even Break

Never Give a Sucker an Even Break

1941

as Mrs. Hemogloben

6.9
Acting

Never Give a Sucker an Even Break is a 1941 film about a man who wants to sell a film story to Esoteric Studios. On the way he gets insulted by little...

The Big Store

The Big Store

1941

as Martha Phelps

6.2
Acting

A detective is hired to protect the life of a singer, who has recently inherited a department store, from the store's crooked manager.

For Beauty's Sake

For Beauty's Sake

1941

as Mrs. Franklin Evans

Acting

A woman-hater who inherits a beauty salon gets a new perspective on females after capturing a gang of thieves.

At the Circus

At the Circus

1939

as Mrs. Suzanna Dukesbury

6.3
Acting

Jeff Wilson, the owner of a small circus, owes his partner Carter $10,000. Before Jeff can pay, Carter's accomplices steal the money so he can take ov...

Dramatic School

Dramatic School

1938

as Pantomime Teacher

6.2
Acting

Aspiring actress Louise Muban attends the prestigious Paris School of Drama during the day and works at a dreary factory assembling gas meters at nigh...

Wise Girl

Wise Girl

1937

as Mrs. Bell-Rivington

7.0
Acting

Snooty heiress decides to track down her dead sister's kids, who are living a Bohemian life with their uncle in Greenwich Village. Once she finds them...

High Flyers

High Flyers

1937

as Martha Arlington

7.0
Acting

Two men running a carnival airplane ride are hired to fly to retrieve what they think are photos for a reporter. Actually, they are retrieving diamond...

Youth on Parole

Youth on Parole

1937

as Mrs. Abernathy

2.8
Acting

Two strangers, a man and a woman, are framed for a jewel robbery and thrown in jail. After they get out, they join forces to track down the real thiev...

The Life of the Party

The Life of the Party

1937

as Mrs. Penner

5.2
Acting

A singer finds another heir (Gene Raymond) to marry, to avoid the one (Joe Penner) her mother found.

A Day at the Races

A Day at the Races

1937

as Emily Upjohn

7.1
Acting

Doctor Hugo Hackenbush, Tony, and Stuffy try and save Judy's farm by winning a big race with her horse. There are a few problems. Hackenbush runs a hi...

Arbor Day

Arbor Day

1936

as Woman Outside (uncredited)

6.0
Acting

Truant officers mistake 2 midgets for members of the gang.

Song and Dance Man

Song and Dance Man

1936

as Mrs. Whitney

Acting

Julia and Hap are a dance team. He drinks and gambles, she succeeds for a while with the help of producer Alan.

Anything Goes

Anything Goes

1936

as Mrs. Wentworth

5.3
Acting

A young man falls in love with a beautiful blonde. When he sees her being forced onto a luxury liner, he decides to follow and rescue her. However, he...

A Night at the Opera

A Night at the Opera

1935

as Mrs. Claypool

7.4
Acting

The Marx Brothers take on high society and the opera world to bring two lovers together. A sly business manager and two wacky friends of two opera sin...

Rendezvous

Rendezvous

1935

as Mrs. Hendricks (uncredited)

4.8
Acting

A decoding expert tangles with enemy spies.

Reckless

Reckless

1935

as Woman in Audience Yelling 'Get Off the Stage' (uncredited)

5.3
Acting

A theatrical star, born on the wrong side of the tracks, marries a drunken blue-blood millionaire.

Gypsy Sweetheart

1935

as Mrs. Van Updyke

1.0
Acting

Tina, a singing Gypsy with a band of roving gypsies, is invited by Tom to come over to his mother's estate where a lawn party is in progress. She brin...

After Office Hours

After Office Hours

1935

as Mrs. Murchison (uncredited)

6.4
Acting

A managing editor sends a socialite reporter to spy on her boyfriend, mixed up in murder.

Kentucky Kernels

Kentucky Kernels

1934

as Mrs. Baxter

6.1
Acting

The Great Elmer and Company, two out-of-work magicians, help lovelorn Jerry Bronson adopt Spanky Milford, to distract him. When Bronson makes up and e...

Gridiron Flash

Gridiron Flash

1934

as Mrs. Fields

3.3
Acting

A college football team recruits a tough convict.

Fifteen Wives

Fifteen Wives

1934

as Sybilla Crum

1.0
Acting

Shortly after his arrival from South America to New York, Steven Humbolt is found dead in his apartment at the Savoia Hotel. Inspector Decker Dawes in...

We're Rich Again

We're Rich Again

1934

as Wedding Guest (uncredited)

4.0
Acting

A polo-playing grandmother and her broke brood get back in the money with a Wall Street bet.

Duck Soup

Duck Soup

1933

as Gloria Teasdale

7.3
Acting

Rufus T. Firefly is named president/dictator of bankrupt Freedonia and declares war on neighboring Sylvania over the love of wealthy Mrs. Teasdale.

Storm at Daybreak

Storm at Daybreak

1933

as Duchess Sophie (uncredited)

5.8
Acting

Sarajevo June 28, 1914. Dushan, the Serbian mayor of a Hungarian town, has come to see the parade of Archduke Ferdinand. While there he runs into Geza...

Wonderland of California

Wonderland of California

1933

as Self

Acting

Short film made up of various clips showcasing the Cinecolor process, including a visit to a Marx Brothers film set. Preserved by the Academy Film Ar...

Here, Prince

1932

as The Queen of Deleria (uncredited)

Acting

Joe Penner as a incompetent crown prince in the middle of a revolution.

The Girl Habit

The Girl Habit

1931

as Blanche Ledyard

Acting

A Lothario tries to get arrested as protection from the gangster husband who has threatened him.

Animal Crackers

Animal Crackers

1930

as Mrs. Rittenhouse

6.9
Acting

The well-known explorer and hunter Captain Spaulding has just returned from Africa, and is being welcomed home with a lavish party at the estate of in...

The Cocoanuts

The Cocoanuts

1929

as Mrs. Potter

6.4
Acting

During the Florida land boom, the Marx Brothers run a hotel, auction off some land and thwart a jewel robbery.

Enemies of Women

Enemies of Women

1923

as French Beauty

5.2
Acting

The dashing but arrogant Prince Michael Fedor Lubimoff has to flee Tsarist Russia after falling into disgrace and settles in Monte Carlo, where he res...

A Tale of Two Cities

A Tale of Two Cities

1917

as Aristocrat (uncredited)

4.8
Acting

At the outbreak of the French Revolution, Charles Darnay goes to Paris to rescue an imprisoned former family servant. He is himself imprisoned and con...