Judith Barrett (born Lucille Kelley, February 2, 1909 – March 10, 2000), also known as Nancy Dover, was an American film actress of the late 1920s and through the 1930s, up until 1940.

Early life

Born and raised in Venus, Texas, Barrett was one of three children of a cattle rancher Sam Kelley. Barrett made several appearances at ''The Palace Theatre'', Dallas while still at school. She did modeling at a department store for ladies tea/fashion shows.

Career

At sixteen, she got on a train to Hollywood. Her first big chance came when she started in a lavish commercial film in 1928, ''The Sock Exchange'' opposite

Bobby Vernon Bobby Vernon (born Sylvion de Jardin) (March 9, 1897 – June 28, 1939) was an American comedic actor in silent films. He later became a writer and comedy supervisor at Paramount for W. C. Fields and Bing Crosby, when the sound era arrived. Blu ...

. In 1929 she starred in five films, and made a successful transition to "talking films". From 1928 to 1933 she was billed as "Nancy Dover", and from 1930 to 1933 she appeared in nine films, all credited. In 1933, she appeared in only one film, ''Marriage Humor'' opposite

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and

Vernon Dent Vernon Bruce Dent (February 16, 1895 – November 5, 1963) was an American comic actor, who appeared in over 400 films. He co-starred in many short films for Columbia Pictures, frequently as the foil and the main antagonist and ally to The Thr ...

, while doing stage work. She would not have another role until 1936, when she starred in the

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combin ...

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'' opposite Henry Hunter, and alongside

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and Alan Hale. It was the first film that she was billed as "Judith Barrett". She appeared in two films that year, and five in 1937, one of which was her first uncredited role. From 1938 to 1940, Barrett appeared in ten films, all credited, including ''

Road to Singapore ''Road to Singapore'' is a 1940 American semi- musical comedy film directed by Victor Schertzinger and starring Bing Crosby, Dorothy Lamour and Bob Hope. Based on a story by Harry Hervey, the film is about two playboys trying to forget previo ...

'', the first "road" picture by the team of Bing Crosby and

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. Barrett retired from film acting following her appearance in the 1940 comedy '' Those Were the Days!'', starring

William Holden William Holden (born William Franklin Beedle Jr.; April 17, 1918 – November 12, 1981) was an American actor, and one of the biggest box-office draws of the 1950s. Holden won the Academy Award for Best Actor for the film ''Stalag 17'' (1953) ...

and Bonita Granville.

Telegenic

Noted for her beauty, the October 16, 1939 edition of the '' Baltimore Sun'' said of her: "Judith Barrett, pretty and blonde actress, is the first Telegenic Girl to go on record. In other words, she is the perfect type of beauty for television. ... She is slated for the first television motion picture." '' The Salt Lake Tribune'' noted that Barrett was "selected after months of exhaustive tests by television experts, sound engineers, photographers and make-up specialists." Paramount Pictures followed up on the selection by featuring her in its film, ''

Television Spy ''Television Spy'' is a 1939 American drama film directed by Edward Dmytryk and starring William Henry. Plot A scientist invents a television called the Iconoscope, which thieves try to steal. Cast * William Henry as Douglas Cameron * Judith ...

'' (1939).

Personal life

In March 1940, Barrett married

Lindsay C. Howard Lindsay Coleman Howard (March 31, 1904 – September 6, 1971) was an American sportsman. Early life Lindsay was born on March 31, 1904, in San Francisco, California. He was the son of Fannie May Howard and Charles S. Howard, a prominent businessm ...

in Yuma, Arizona. They divorced on April 8, 1952. She had earlier been married to actor

Cliff Edwards Clifton Avon "Cliff" Edwards (June 14, 1895 – July 17, 1971), nicknamed "Ukulele Ike", was an American singer, musician and actor. He enjoyed considerable popularity in the 1920s and early 1930s, specializing in jazzy renditions of pop standar ...

. She eventually settled in

Palm Desert, California Palm Desert is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, in the Coachella Valley, approximately east of Palm Springs, northeast of San Diego and east of Los Angeles. The population was 48,445 at the 2010 census. The city has bee ...

, where she was residing at the time of her death at the age of 91 on March 10, 2000. She had two children with Howard and the marriage ended in divorce.

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Barrett, Judith American silent film actresses American film actresses People from Arlington, Texas Actresses from Texas 1909 births 2000 deaths 20th-century American actresses