Evalyn Knapp (born Evelyn Pauline Knapp; June 17, 1906 – June 12, 1981) was an American film actress of the late 1920s, 1930s and into the 1940s. She was a leading

B-movie A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feat ...

serial actress in the 1930s. She was the younger sister of the orchestra leader Orville Knapp.

Life and career

Knapp started acting in silent films, her first role being in the 1929 film ''At the Dentist's''. She was cast as leading lady in '' Smart Money'' in 1931, the only film starring both

Edward G. Robinson Edward G. Robinson (born Emanuel Goldenberg; December 12, 1893January 26, 1973) was a Romanian-American actor of stage and screen, who was popular during the Hollywood's Golden Age. He appeared in 30 Broadway plays and more than 100 films duri ...

and

James Cagney James Francis Cagney Jr. (; July 17, 1899March 30, 1986) was an American actor, dancer and film director. On stage and in film, Cagney was known for his consistently energetic performances, distinctive vocal style, and deadpan comic timing. He ...

. In 1932, Knapp was one of 14 girls, along with

Ginger Rogers Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starri ...

and

Gloria Stuart Gloria Frances Stuart (born Gloria Stewart; July 4, 1910 September 26, 2010) was an American actress, visual artist, and activist. She was known for her roles in Pre-Code films, and garnered renewed fame late in life for her portrayal of Rose ...

, selected as

WAMPAS Baby Stars The WAMPAS Baby Stars was a promotional campaign sponsored by the United States Western Association of Motion Picture Advertisers, which honored 13 (15 in 1932) young actresses each year whom they believed to be on the threshold of movie stardom. ...

. She achieved success in

cliffhanger A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a plot device in fiction which features a main character in a precarious or difficult dilemma or confronted with a shocking revelation at the end of an episode or a film of serialized fiction. A cliffhang ...

serials, which were popular at the time. She played the title character in the 1933 serial '' The Perils of Pauline''. The same year, she starred, with top billing, alongside 26-year-old

John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Go ...

in ''

His Private Secretary ''His Private Secretary'' is a 1933 American pre-Code comedy film directed by Phil Whitman and starring Evalyn Knapp and John Wayne. It is an early Wayne non-Western film appearance, made when he was 26 years old. Plot Dick Wallace (Wayne) h ...

'', a light comedy in which Wayne portrays a playboy determined to win her over. She also appeared in ''

Corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

'' that year opposite

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. One of her better known film roles was opposite

Ken Maynard Kenneth Olin Maynard (July 21, 1895 – March 23, 1973) was an American actor and producer. He was mostly active from the 1920s to the 1940s and considered one of the biggest Western stars in Hollywood. Maynard was also an occasional screenwri ...

in the 1934 film ''

In Old Santa Fe ''In Old Santa Fe'' is a 1934 American Western film directed by David Howard, starring Ken Maynard, George "Gabby" Hayes and Evalyn Knapp and featuring the first screen appearance of Gene Autry, singing a bluegrass rendition of "Wyoming Wal ...

'' featuring

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in his first screen appearance, in which he sang with a bluegrass band. She worked through 1941, but her career slowed afterward. In 1943, she played her last role, uncredited, in ''Two Weeks to Live'', one of the ''

Lum and Abner ''Lum and Abner'' was an American network radio comedy program created by Chester Lauck and Norris Goff that was aired from 1931 to 1954. Modeled on life in the small town of Waters, Arkansas, near where Lauck and Goff grew up, the show proved ...

'' films starring Chester Lauck and

Norris Goff Norris Goff (May 30, 1906 – June 7, 1978) was an American comedian in radio and film best known for his portrayal of Abner Peabody on the rural comedy ''Lum and Abner''. Biography Nicknamed "Tuffy," Goff was born in Cove, Arkansas, but ...

Personal life

In 1931, Knapp spent several months in the hospital after she fell from a cliff during a hike with her brother, Orville. Two vertebrae were fractured. Her brother, orchestra leader Orville Knapp, died in a plane crash while piloting the plane in 1936, smashing into the runway. He was 32 years old. He was married to film actress Gloria Grafton. She married Dr. George A. Snyder in 1934.

Retirement and death

Following her retirement, she concentrated on her family. She and Snyder remained married until his death in 1977. On June 12, 1981, Knapp died of heart disease at St. Vincent's Hospital in Los Angeles, California, five days before her 75th birthday.

Partial filmography

*''At the Dentist's'' (1929) *''

Sinners' Holiday ''Sinners' Holiday'' is a 1930 American pre-Code all-talking crime drama film starring Grant Withers and Evalyn Knapp, and featuring James Cagney (in his film debut), Lucille La Verne, and Joan Blondell. It is based on the 1930 play ''Penny A ...

'' (1930) – Jennie Delano *'' River's End'' (1930) – Miriam McDowell *''

Mothers Cry ''Mothers Cry'' is a 1930 American pre-Code drama film released by First National Pictures, a subsidiary of Warner Bros., and directed by Hobart Henley. The movie stars Dorothy Peterson, Helen Chandler, David Manners, Evalyn Knapp and Sidney Bla ...

'' (1930) – Jenny Williams *'' 50 Million Frenchmen'' (1931) – Miss Wheeler-Smith *'' The Millionaire'' (1931) – Barbara Alden *'' Smart Money'' (1931) – Irene Graham *'' The Bargain'' (1931) – Vorencia *''

Side Show In North America, a sideshow is an extra, secondary production associated with a circus, carnival, fair, or other such attraction. Types There are four main types of classic sideshow attractions: *The Ten-in-One offers a program of ten seq ...

'' (1931) – Irene *'' Taxi!'' (1931) – Actress in Movie Clip (uncredited) *'' High Pressure'' (1932) – Helen Wilson *'' Fireman, Save My Child'' (1932) – Sally Toby *''

The Strange Love of Molly Louvain ''The Strange Love of Molly Louvain'' is a 1932 American pre-Code crime drama film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Ann Dvorak and Lee Tracy. The script was based on the play ''Tinsel Girl'' by Maurine Dallas Watkins. Plot Molly Louva ...

'' (1932) – Doris *'' Madame Racketeer'' (1932) – Alice Hicks *''

The Vanishing Frontier ''The Vanishing Frontier'' is a 1932 American pre-Code adventure film directed by Phil Rosen, written by Stuart Anthony, and starring Johnny Mack Brown, Evalyn Knapp, ZaSu Pitts, Raymond Hatton, Ben Alexander, J. Farrell MacDonald and Wallac ...

'' (1932) – Carol Winfield *'' The Night Mayor'' (1932) – Doree Dawn *'' Big City Blues'' (1932) – Jo-Jo (uncredited) * '' This Sporting Age'' (1932) – Mickey Steele *'' A Successful Calamity'' (1932) – Peggy Wilton *'' Slightly Married'' (1932) – Mary Smith *''

Bachelor Mother ''Bachelor Mother'' (1939) is an American romantic comedy film directed by Garson Kanin, and starring Ginger Rogers, David Niven, and Charles Coburn. The screenplay was written by Norman Krasna from an Academy Award-nominated story by Felix Jac ...

'' (1932) – Mary Somerset *'' Air Hostess'' (1933) – Kitty King *''

State Trooper State police, provincial police or regional police are a type of sub-national territorial police force found in nations organized as federations, typically in North America, South Asia, and Oceania. These forces typically have jurisdicti ...

'' (1933) – June Brady *''

'' (1933) – Marion Hall *''

'' (1933) – Ellen Manning *''

Dance Girl Dance ''Dance Girl Dance'' is a 1933 American pre-Code musical film directed by Frank Strayer from an original screenplay by Robert Ellis. The picture stars Alan Dinehart, Evalyn Knapp, and Edward Nugent, and premiered on September 1, 1933. Cast l ...

'' (1933) – Sally Patter * ''

Police Car 17 ''Police Car 17'' is a 1933 American pre-Code crime film directed by Lambert Hillyer and starring Tim McCoy, Evalyn Knapp and Edwin Maxwell.Fetrow, p. 511 Cast * Tim McCoy as Tim Conlon * Evalyn Knapp as Helen Regan * Edwin Maxwell as Big Bil ...

'' (1933) – Helen Regan *'' The Perils of Pauline'' (1933, Serial) – Pauline Hargrave *'' Speed Wings'' (1934) – Mary Stuart *'' A Man's Game'' (1934) – Judy Manners *''

'' (1934) – Lila Miller *'' One Frightened Night'' (1935) – Fake Doris Waverly *'' Ladies Crave Excitement'' (1935) – Wilma Howell *''

Confidential Confidentiality involves a set of rules or a promise usually executed through confidentiality agreements that limits the access or places restrictions on certain types of information. Legal confidentiality By law, lawyers are often required ...

'' (1935) – Maxine Travers *'' The Fire Trap'' (1935) – Betty Marshall *''

Laughing Irish Eyes ''Laughing Irish Eyes'' is a 1936 American comedy film directed by Joseph Santley and written by Olive Cooper, Ben Ryan and Stanley Rauh. The film stars Phil Regan, Walter C. Kelly, Evalyn Knapp, Ray Walker, Mary Gordon and Warren Hymer. Th ...

'' (1936) – Peggy Kelly *'' Three of a Kind'' (1936) – Barbara Penfield *''

Bulldog Edition ''Bulldog Edition'' is a 1936 American film directed by Charles Lamont. The film is also known as ''Lady Reporter'' in the United Kingdom. Plot Newspaper editors Ken Dwyer (Ray Walker) and Evans ( Robert Warwick) compete for circulation, and t ...

'' (1936) – Randy Burns *'' Hawaiian Buckaroo'' (1938) – Paula Harrington *'' Rawhide'' (1938) – Peggy Gehrig *''

Wanted by the Police ''Wanted by the Police'' is a 1938 American crime film directed by Howard Bretherton and written by Wellyn Totman. The film stars Frankie Darro, Evalyn Knapp, Robert Kent, Matty Fain, Lillian Elliott and Don Rowan. The film was released on Sep ...

'' (1938) – Kathleen Murphy *'' Idiot's Delight'' (1939) – Nurse #4 (uncredited) *'' Mr. Smith Goes to Washington'' (1939) – Reporter Asking 'What Do You Think of the Girls in This Town?' (uncredited) *''Sauce for the Gander'' (1940) – Secretary *'' Girl in 313'' (1940) – Arrested Girl *''

The Lone Wolf Takes a Chance ''The Lone Wolf Takes a Chance'' is a 1941 American mystery film directed by Sidney Salkow, which stars Warren William, June Storey, and Henry Wilcoxon. Salkow also wrote the original screenplay, along with Earl Felton, and the film was released ...

'' (1941) – Evelyn Jordan *''

Roar of the Press ''Roar of the Press'' is a 1941 American comedy-drama crime film directed by Phil Rosen and starring Jean Parker and Wallace Ford. Plot Married only a few hours, small-town girl Alice makes her first visit to New York with new husband Wally Wi ...

'' (1941) – Evelyn *'' Two Weeks to Live'' (1943) – Miss Morris, Dr. O'Brien's Secretary (uncredited) (final film role)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Knapp, Evalyn 1906 births 1981 deaths American people of German descent Actresses from Kansas City, Missouri American film actresses American silent film actresses 20th-century American actresses WAMPAS Baby Stars