Jean Arthur
Actor
Born October 17, 1900 in Plattsburgh, New York, USA
Jean Arthur (born Gladys Georgianna Greene; October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991) was an American actress celebrated as one of the defining screen personalities of Hollywood’s Golden Age. Known for her quick wit, expressive voice, and understated charm, she became one of the era’s most beloved comedic leading ladies, especially in the screwball comedy genre. Film historian James Harvey noted that “no one was more closely identified with the screwball comedy than Jean Arthur,” and her work remains central to the style’s legacy. Arthur rose to prominence in the mid‑1930s and became best known for her collaborations with director Frank Capra, starring in Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), You Can’t Take It with You (1938), and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939). These films cemented her image as the relatable, spirited heroine of Depression‑era American cinema. She earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for her performance in The More the Merrier (1943).
Filmography
Becoming Cary Grant
Self (archive footage)
Frank Capra Jr. Remembers... You Can't Take It with You
Self (archive footage)
Clara Bow: Discovering the "It" Girl
Self (from The Saturday Night Kid [1929]) (archive footage)
Gary Cooper: The Face of a Hero
Self (archive footage)
The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind
Self (archive footage)
Going Hollywood: The '30s
(archive footage)
The Jean Arthur Show
Hollywood: The Selznick Years
Self - Actress 'Gone with the Wind' screen test (archive footage) (uncredited)
Gunsmoke
Julie Blane
Yesterday and Today
(archive footage)
Shane
Marian Starrett
A Foreign Affair
Congresswoman Phoebe Frost
The Impatient Years
Janie Anderson
A Lady Takes a Chance
Molly J. Truesdale
The More the Merrier
Constance Milligan
The Talk of the Town
Nora Shelley
The Devil and Miss Jones
Mary Jones
Arizona
Phoebe Titus
Too Many Husbands
Vicky Lowndes
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Clarissa Saunders
Only Angels Have Wings
Bonnie Lee
You Can't Take It with You
Alice Sycamore
Screen Snapshots Series 17, No. 12
Jean Arthur
Easy Living
Mary Smith
History Is Made at Night
Irene Vail
More Than a Secretary
Carol Baldwin
The Plainsman
Calamity Jane
Adventure in Manhattan
Claire Peyton
Screen Snapshots (Series 16, No. 1)
Self
The Ex-Mrs. Bradford
Paula Bradford
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
Babe Bennett
If You Could Only Cook
Joan Hawthorne
The Public Menace
Cassie Nicholls
Diamond Jim
Jane Matthews / Emma
Public Hero Number 1
Maria Theresa 'Terry' O'Reilly
Party Wire
Marge Oliver
The Whole Town's Talking
Wilhelmina 'Bill' Clark
The Defense Rests
Joan Hayes
Most Precious Thing in Life
Ellen Holmes, aka Biddy, Babe
Whirlpool
Sandy
Get That Venus
Margaret Rendleby
The Past of Mary Holmes
Joan Hoyt
Ex-Bad Boy
Ethel Simmons
The Lawyer's Secret
Beatrice Stevens
Virtuous Husband
Barbara Olwell
The Gang Buster
Sylvia Martine
Danger Lights
Mary Ryan
The Silver Horde
Mildred Wayland
The Return of Dr. Fu Manchu
Lia Eltham
Paramount on Parade
Dream Girl
Young Eagles
Mary Gordon
Street of Chance
Judith Marsden
Half Way to Heaven
Greta Nelson
The Saturday Night Kid
Janie Barry
The Greene Murder Case
Ada Greene
The Mysterious Dr. Fu Manchu
Lia Eltham
Stairs of Sand
Ruth Hutt
The Canary Murder Case
Alice LaFosse
Sins of the Fathers
Mary Spengler
Brotherly Love
Mary
Warming Up
Mary Post
Wallflowers
Sandra
Flying Luck
The Girl
The Masked Menace
Faith Newton
Bigger and Better Blondes
Ramona
Horse Shoes
Miss Baker
The Broken Gate
Ruth Hale
Hello Lafayette
Winners Of The Wilderness
Bit Role (uncredited)
Husband Hunters
Lettie Crane
The Block Signal
Grace Ryan
The College Boob
Angela Boothby
The Cowboy Cop
Virginia Selby
Double Daring
Marie Wells
Born to Battle
Eunice Morgan
The Iron Horse
Reporter (uncredited)
A Man of Nerve
Loria Gatlin
Tearin' Loose
Sally Harris
The Fighting Smile
Rose Craddock
The Drug Store Cowboy
Jean
Seven Chances
Miss Smith the Country Club Receptionist (uncredited)
Thundering Romance
Mary Watkins
Bringin' Home the Bacon
Nancy Norton
Wine of Youth
Flapper
Biff Bang Buddy
Bonnie Norton
Fast and Fearless
Mary Brown
Spring Fever
Cameo Kirby
Ann Playdell