Biography
Thelma Ritter (February 14, 1902 – February 5, 1969) was an American actress, best known for her comedic roles as working-class characters and her strong New York accent. She was the recipient of a Tony Award and six nominations for Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, more than any other actress in the category.
Known For
Complete Filmography
Arthur Miller: Writer
2017
as Self (archive footage)
One of the greatest playwrights of the 20th century, Arthur Miller created such celebrated works as Death of a Salesman and The Crucible, which contin...
Footsteps on the Ceiling
2013
as Birdie Coonan (archive footage)
A meditation on ambition and careerism utilizing altered footage from All About Eve, with a soupçon of reflection on the themes of memory, film within...
Making 'The Misfits'
2002
as Self (archive footage)
A behind-the-scenes and in-depth look at the making of John Huston's The Misfits (1961).
The Men Who Made the Movies: Samuel Fuller
2002
as Moe Williams (archive footage)
Samuel Fuller discusses his career as a filmmaker, illustrated by plenty of clips.
Barbara Stanwyck: Straight Down The Line
1997
as Self (archive footage)
Born Ruby Stevens, she was orphaned when she was four. A chance audition led to a chorus job. By 17 she was a Ziegfeld Girl. At 20 she earned excellen...
What's So Bad About Feeling Good?
1968
as Mrs. Schwartz
A new infection that simply makes people feel happy is treated as a threat by the authorities while its "victims" work to spread it to others.
The Incident
1967
as Bertha Beckerman
Two hoodlums terrorize the passengers of a late-night New York City subway train.
Boeing, Boeing
1965
as Bertha
Living in Paris, journalist Bernard has devised a scheme to keep three fiancées: Lufthansa, Air France and British United. Everything works fine as lo...
Move Over, Darling
1963
as Grace Arden
Three years into their loving marriage, with two infant daughters at home in Los Angeles, Nicholas Arden and Ellen Wagstaff Arden are on a plane that ...
A New Kind of Love
1963
as Lena O'Connor
A down-and-out reporter and a fashion designer fall in love in Paris.
For Love or Money
1963
as Chloe Brasher
Wealthy Chloe Brasher has three beautiful daughters; Bonnie, Kate, and Jan. Chloe pays attorney Deke Gentry to fix them up with three suitable husband...
How the West Was Won
1962
as Agatha Clegg
The epic tale of the development of the American West from the 1830s through the Civil War to the end of the century, as seen through the eyes of one ...
Birdman of Alcatraz
1962
as Elizabeth Stroud
After killing a prison guard, convict Robert Stroud faces life imprisonment in solitary confinement. Driven nearly mad by loneliness and despair, Stro...
The Second Time Around
1961
as Aggie Gates
In 1911, a widow with two children leaves New York City for territorial Arizona and becomes a ranch hand and later gets herself elected sheriff. A gam...
The Misfits
1961
as Isabelle Steers
While filing for a divorce, beautiful ex-stripper Roslyn Taber ends up meeting aging cowboy-turned-gambler Gay Langland and former World War II aviato...
Pillow Talk
1959
as Alma
Playboy songwriter Brad Allen's succession of romances annoys his neighbor, interior designer Jan Morrow, who shares a telephone party line with him a...
A Hole in the Head
1959
as Sophie Manetta
An impractical widower tries to hang onto his Miami hotel and his 12-year-old son.
The Proud and Profane
1956
as Kate Connors
In this romantic drama, beautiful Red Cross volunteer Lee Ashley arrives on the South Pacific island of New Caledonia to learn more about the circumst...
Lucy Gallant
1955
as Molly Basserman
A spirited dressmaker's small store flourishes into a business empire in the midst of the Texas oil boom of the 1940s.
Daddy Long Legs
1955
as Alicia Pritchard
Wealthy American, Jervis Pendleton has a chance encounter at a French orphanage with a cheerful 18-year-old resident, and anonymously pays for her edu...
Rear Window
1954
as Stella
A wheelchair-bound photographer spies on his neighbors from his apartment window and becomes convinced one of them has committed murder.
The Farmer Takes a Wife
1953
as Lucy Cashdollar
Erie Canal, N.Y., 1850: Molly Larkins, cook on Jotham Klore's canal boat, has a love-hate relationship with her boss. She hires handsome new haul-hors...
Pickup on South Street
1953
as Moe Williams
In New York City, an insolent pickpocket, Skip McCoy, inadvertently sets off a chain of events when he targets ex-prostitute Candy and steals her wall...
Titanic
1953
as Maude Young
Unhappily married, Julia Sturges decides to go to America with her two children on the Titanic. Her husband, Richard also arranges passage on the luxu...
With a Song in My Heart
1952
as Clancy
Jane Froman (Susan Hayward), an aspiring songstress, lands a job in radio with help from pianist Don Ross (David Wayne), whom she later marries. Jane'...
The Model and the Marriage Broker
1951
as Mae Swasey
A marriage broker can't resist meddling in the life of a model, with disastrous results.
As Young as You Feel
1951
as Della Hodges
Sixty-five-year-old John Hodges must retire from Acme Printing. He later impersonates the president of the parent company and arrives at his old plant...
The Mating Season
1951
as Ellen McNulty
Ellen McNulty leaves her New Jersey hamburger stand and heads west to pay a surprise visit to her son and his new bride. When Ellen arrives, her daugh...
All About Eve
1950
as Birdie Coonan
From the moment she glimpses her idol at the stage door, Eve Harrington is determined to take the reins of power away from the great actress Margo Cha...
I'll Get By
1950
as Miss Murphy
I'll Get By is an updated remake of the 1940 20th Century-Fox musical Tin Pan Alley. William Lundigan and Dennis Day play William Spencer and Freddie ...
Perfect Strangers
1950
as Lena Fassler
Romance at a murder trial with a pair of sequestered jurors who are the only ones who think that the woman in the dock is innocent. Separated from the...
Father Was a Fullback
1949
as Geraldine
Coach George Copper's college football team is losing game after game, much to the dismay of stiff-and-stuffy but influential alumni Roger Jessup, and...
City Across the River
1949
as Mrs. Katie Cusack
Brooklyn youth Frank Cusack, good son and brother by day, is a gang member by night. The Dukes, seemingly likable dead-end-kids, are dangerously invol...
A Letter to Three Wives
1949
as Sadie Dugan (uncredited)
A letter is addressed to three wives from their "best friend" Addie Ross, announcing that she is running away with one of their husbands - but she doe...
Call Northside 777
1948
as Captain's Secretary (uncredited)
In 1932, a cop is killed and Frank Wiecek sentenced to life. Eleven years later, a newspaper ad by Frank's mother leads Chicago reporter P.J. O'Neal t...
Miracle on 34th Street
1947
as Peter's Mother (uncredited)
Kris Kringle, seemingly the embodiment of Santa Claus, is asked to portray the jolly old fellow at Macy's following his performance in the Thanksgivin...