Marsha Hunt (born Marcia Virginia Hunt; October 17, 1917 – September 7, 2022) was an American actress, model and activist, with a career spanning nearly 80 years. She was blacklisted by Hollywood film studio executives in the 1950s during McCarthyism. Although initially reluctant to pursue a film career, in June 1935, at age 17, Hunt signed a seven-year contract with Paramount Pictures. Paramount discovered her when she was visiting her uncle in Los Angeles and the comedian Zeppo Marx saw a picture of her in the newspaper. She was then offered a screen test for The Virginia Judge. At Paramount, Hunt mainly played ingenue parts. Between 1935 and 1938, she made 12 pictures at Paramount, including a starring roles in Easy to Take, Gentle Julia, The Accusing Finger, Murder Goes to College, and two on "loan-out" to RKO and 20th Century Fox. In 1937, she starred opposite John Wayne, a couple of years prior to his breakthrough in Hollywood, in the Western film Born to the West. The studio terminated Hunt's contract in 1938, and she spent a few years starring in B-films produced by poverty row studios such as Republic Pictures and Monogram Pictures. She also headed to New York City for work in summer stock theatre shortly before winning a supporting role in MGM's These Glamour Girls opposite Lana Turner and Lew Ayres. The role of Betty was said to have been written specially with Hunt in mind. Other roles in major studio productions soon followed, including supporting roles as Mary Bennet in MGM's version of Pride and Prejudice with Laurence Olivier and as Martha Scott's surrogate child Hope Thompson in Cheers for Miss Bishop. In 1941, Hunt signed a contract with MGM, where she remained for the next six years. While filming Blossoms in the Dust, film director Mervyn LeRoy lauded Hunt for her heartfelt and genuine acting ability. In 1944, she polled seventh in a list by exhibitors of "Stars of Tomorrow". She also appeared in None Shall Escape, a film that is now regarded as the first about the Holocaust. She played Marja Pacierkowski, the Polish fiancé of a German Nazi officer named Wilhelm Grimm.
Movie | Journey to Royal: A WWII Rescue Mission | Unknown | 2021-02-02 |
Movie | Marsha Hunt's Sweet Adversity | Self | 2015-09-13 |
Series | Moguls & Movie Stars: A History of Hollywood | Self | 2010-11-01 |
Movie | Empire State Building Murders | Norah Strinberg | 2008-08-14 |
Movie | The Grand Inquisitor | Hazel Reedy | 2008-01-01 |
Movie | Chloe's Prayer | Unknown | 2006-12-20 |
Movie | Blacklist: Hollywood on Trial | Herself | 1996-02-27 |
Movie | The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind | Self (archive footage) | 1988-10-01 |
Series | The Play on One | Elvi Rogers | 1988-01-19 |
Movie | Unreported Incident | Elvi Rogers | 1988-02-23 |
Series | Star Trek: The Next Generation | Anne Jameson | 1987-09-28 |
Series | Matlock | Harriet | 1986-03-03 |
Series | Murder, She Wrote | Elvira Tree | 1984-09-30 |
Movie | Britannia Hospital | Nurse Amanda Persil | 1982-05-27 |
Movie | Terror Among Us | Marge | 1981-01-12 |
Movie | Rich and Famous | Malibu Party Guest | 1981-09-23 |
Series | Harry O | Unknown | 1974-09-12 |
Series | Police Story | Unknown | 1973-03-20 |
Movie | Jigsaw | Dr. Gehlen | 1972-03-26 |
Movie | Dracula A.D. 1972 | Gaynor | 1972-06-26 |
Movie | Johnny Got His Gun | Joe's Mother | 1971-08-04 |
Movie | Fear No Evil | Mrs. Varney | 1969-03-03 |
Series | Marcus Welby, M.D. | Mrs. Bellows | 1969-09-23 |
Series | The Outsider | Unknown | 1968-09-18 |
Series | The Name of the Game | Claudia Loring | 1968-09-20 |
Series | Ironside | Sissy Cardwell | 1967-03-28 |
Series | Accidental Family | Unknown | 1967-09-15 |
Series | Run for Your Life | Mrs. Southworth | 1965-09-13 |
Series | Profiles in Courage | Mrs. Ely | 1964-11-08 |
Series | The Outer Limits | Francesca Fields | 1963-09-16 |
Series | Breaking Point | Unknown | 1963-09-16 |
Series | Sam Benedict | Unknown | 1962-09-15 |
Series | The Defenders | Della Martin | 1961-09-16 |
Series | Ben Casey | Unknown | 1961-10-02 |
Series | Cain's Hundred | Gloria Bonner | 1961-09-19 |
Series | My Three Sons | Aunt Cecile Blackman | 1960-09-29 |
Movie | The Plunderers | Kate Miller | 1960-11-05 |
Series | Peck's Bad Girl | Jennifer Peck | 1959-05-05 |
Movie | Blue Denim | Jessie Bartley | 1959-07-30 |
Series | Laramie | Unknown | 1959-09-15 |
Series | The Detectives | Unknown | 1959-10-16 |
Series | The Twilight Zone | Mrs. Henderson | 1959-10-02 |
Series | Panic! | Unknown | 1957-03-05 |
Movie | Back from the Dead | Kate Hazelton | 1957-08-12 |
Movie | Bombers B-52 | Edith Brennan | 1957-11-22 |
Movie | No Place to Hide | Anne Dobson | 1956-08-28 |
Series | Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre | Catha Duncan | 1956-10-05 |
Series | Gunsmoke | Sarah | 1955-09-10 |
Movie | A Word to the Wives... | Alice | 1955-01-01 |
Series | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Blanche Herbert | 1955-10-02 |
Series | The 20th Century Fox Hour | Unknown | 1955-10-05 |
Movie | Diplomatic Passport | Judy Anderson | 1954-08-13 |
Movie | With This Ring | 1954-01-01 | |
Series | Climax! | Julie Brennan | 1954-10-07 |
Movie | Actors and Sin | Marcia Tillayou (segment Actor's Blood) | 1952-06-18 |
Movie | The Happy Time | Susan Bonnard | 1952-10-30 |
Series | Your Show of Shows | Unknown | 1950-02-25 |
Movie | Jigsaw | Mrs. Hartley's Secretary (uncredited) | 1949-03-11 |
Movie | Mary Ryan, Detective | Mary Ryan | 1949-11-03 |
Movie | Take One False Step | Martha Wier | 1949-08-14 |
Movie | Raw Deal | Ann Martin | 1948-05-21 |
Series | The Ed Sullivan Show | Self (archive footage) | 1948-06-20 |
Movie | The Inside Story | Francine Taylor | 1948-03-14 |
Series | Studio One | Kate Brookfield (uncredited) | 1948-11-07 |
Series | The Philco Television Playhouse | Phoebe Throssel | 1948-10-03 |
Movie | Carnegie Hall | Nora Ryan | 1947-02-28 |
Movie | Smash-Up: The Story of a Woman | Martha Gray | 1947-03-01 |
Movie | A Letter for Evie | Evie O'Connor | 1946-01-28 |
Movie | The Valley of Decision | Constance Scott | 1945-05-03 |
Movie | Twenty Years After | (archive footage) | 1944-01-01 |
Movie | None Shall Escape | Marja Pacierkowski | 1944-02-03 |
Movie | Music for Millions | Rosalind | 1944-12-18 |
Movie | Bride by Mistake | Sylvia Lockwood | 1944-07-26 |
Movie | Pilot #5 | Freddie Andrews | 1943-06-24 |
Movie | Thousands Cheer | Marsha Hunt | 1943-09-13 |
Movie | The Human Comedy | Diana Steed | 1943-03-02 |
Movie | Cry 'Havoc' | Flo Norris | 1943-11-23 |
Movie | Lost Angel | Katie Mallory | 1943-12-23 |
Movie | Kid Glove Killer | Jane Mitchell | 1942-04-17 |
Movie | Joe Smith, American | Mary Smith | 1942-02-01 |
Movie | The Affairs of Martha | Martha Lindstrom | 1942-06-21 |
Movie | Panama Hattie | Leila Tree | 1942-09-30 |
Movie | Seven Sweethearts | Regina 'Reggie' Van Maaster | 1942-11-13 |
Movie | The Penalty | Katherine Logan | 1941-03-13 |
Movie | The Trial of Mary Dugan | Agatha Hall | 1941-02-14 |
Movie | Cheers for Miss Bishop | Hope Thompson | 1941-02-21 |
Movie | I'll Wait for You | Pauline Miller | 1941-05-16 |
Movie | Unholy Partners | Gail Fenton | 1941-11-01 |
Movie | Blossoms in the Dust | Charlotte | 1941-08-15 |
Movie | Hollywood: Style Center of the World | Self | 1940-05-29 |
Movie | Irene | Miss Eleanor Worth | 1940-04-23 |
Movie | Women in Hiding | Jane Taylor | 1940-06-22 |
Movie | Pride and Prejudice | Mary Bennet | 1940-07-26 |
Movie | Flight Command | Claire | 1940-12-27 |
Movie | Ellery Queen, Master Detective | Barbara Braun | 1940-11-30 |
Movie | The Hardys Ride High | Susan Bowen | 1939-04-21 |
Movie | The Long Shot | Martha Sharon | 1939-01-06 |
Movie | Winter Carnival | Lucy Morgan | 1939-07-28 |
Movie | Star Reporter | Barbara Burnette | 1939-02-22 |
Movie | These Glamour Girls | Betty Ainsbridge | 1939-08-18 |
Movie | Joe and Ethel Turp Call on the President | Kitty Crusper | 1939-12-01 |
Movie | Rhumba Rhythm at the Hollywood La Conga | Herself (uncredited) | 1939-09-02 |
Movie | Come On, Leathernecks! | Valerie Taylor | 1938-08-08 |
Movie | Easy Living | Girl Getting Coat Dropped on Her at Finale (uncredited) | 1937-07-16 |
Movie | Annapolis Salute | Julia Clemens | 1937-09-10 |
Movie | Murder Goes to College | Nora Barry | 1937-02-24 |
Movie | Thunder Trail | Amy Morgan | 1937-10-21 |
Movie | Born to the West | Judy Worstall | 1937-12-10 |
Movie | Gentle Julia | Julia Atwater | 1936-04-10 |
Movie | Desert Gold | Judith 'Judy' Belding | 1936-03-26 |
Movie | The Arizona Raiders | Harriett Lindsay | 1936-06-27 |
Movie | Easy to Take | Donna Westlake | 1936-11-06 |
Movie | College Holiday | Sylvia Smith | 1936-12-19 |
Movie | The Accusing Finger | Claire Patterson | 1936-11-17 |
Movie | Hollywood Boulevard | Patricia Blakeford | 1936-08-20 |
Movie | The Virginia Judge | Mary Lee Calvert | 1935-09-17 |