Jean Arthur
Acting
Born: October 17, 1900 · Plattsburgh, New York, USA
Died: June 19, 1991 (aged 90)
Highest Rated
Biography
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). Although she famously disliked the pressures of Hollywood and often retreated from public life, Arthur continued to work selectively after the 1940s. She delivered a memorable dramatic turn as Marian Starrett in George Stevens’ classic Western Shane (1953). She later returned to acting on television, appearing in a 1965 episode of Gunsmoke and starring in the 1966 sitcom The Jean Arthur Show. After leaving acting, Arthur taught drama at Vassar College and the North Carolina School of the Arts, where students remembered her as a passionate and generous instructor. She lived a largely private life in her later years and died in 1991 at the age of 90.
Known for
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
1939
Shane
1953
You Can't Take It with You
1938
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
1936
Seven Chances
1925
Only Angels Have Wings
1939
A Foreign Affair
1948
The Talk of the Town
1942
Gunsmoke
1955
The More the Merrier
1943
The Iron Horse
1925
Easy Living
1937
Photos (10)
Movies (80)
Arizona
Phoebe Titus
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Clarissa Saunders
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
Babe Bennett
Shane
Marian Starrett
You Can't Take It with You
Alice Sycamore
Only Angels Have Wings
Bonnie Lee
History Is Made at Night
Irene Vail
A Foreign Affair
Congresswoman Phoebe Frost
The More the Merrier
Constance Milligan
A Lady Takes a Chance
Molly J. Truesdale
The Talk of the Town
Nora Shelley
The Devil and Miss Jones
Mary Jones
Going Hollywood: The '30s
(archive footage)
Easy Living
Mary Smith
The Ex-Mrs. Bradford
Paula Bradford
Seven Chances
Miss Smith the Country Club Receptionist (uncredited)
The Plainsman
Calamity Jane
Too Many Husbands
Vicky Lowndes
The Saturday Night Kid
Janie Barry
If You Could Only Cook
Joan Hawthorne
The Whole Town's Talking
Wilhelmina 'Bill' Clark
Most Precious Thing in Life
Ellen Holmes, aka Biddy, Babe
Virtuous Husband
Barbara Olwell
George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey
(archive footage)
The Iron Horse
Reporter (uncredited)
The Past of Mary Holmes
Joan Hoyt
The Canary Murder Case
Alice LaFosse
The Lawyer's Secret
Beatrice Stevens
Public Hero Number 1
Maria Theresa 'Terry' O'Reilly
Warming Up
Mary Post
Brotherly Love
Mary
The Greene Murder Case
Ada Greene
The Defense Rests
Joan Hayes
The Mysterious Dr. Fu Manchu
Lia Eltham
More Than a Secretary
Carol Baldwin
Half Way to Heaven
Greta Nelson
Thundering Romance
Mary Watkins
Double Daring
Marie Wells
Ex-Bad Boy
Ethel Simmons
Sins of the Fathers
Mary Spengler
Screen Snapshots Series 17, No. 12
Jean Arthur
Winners of the Wilderness
Bit Role (uncredited)
The Return of Dr. Fu Manchu
Lia Eltham
The Drug Store Cowboy
Jean
Paramount on Parade
Dream Girl
Hello Lafayette
1927
Yesterday and Today
(archive footage)
Cameo Kirby
Ann Playdell
Diamond Jim
Jane Matthews / Emma
The Impatient Years
Janie Anderson
Whirlpool
Sandy
Adventure in Manhattan
Claire Peyton
Horse Shoes
Miss Baker
Bigger and Better Blondes
Ramona
Get That Venus
Margaret Rendleby
Stairs of Sand
Ruth Hutt
Young Eagles
Mary Gordon
Danger Lights
Mary Ryan
The Silver Horde
Mildred Wayland
Bringin' Home the Bacon
Nancy Norton
The Block Signal
Grace Ryan
Street of Chance
Judith Marsden
Party Wire
Marge Oliver
The Cowboy Cop
Virginia Selby
The Broken Gate
Ruth Hale
Fast and Fearless
Mary Brown
Wine of Youth
Flapper
A Man of Nerve
Loria Gatlin
The Public Menace
Cassie Nicholls
Flying Luck
The Girl
The Masked Menace
Faith Newton
The Gang Buster
Sylvia Martine
The Fighting Smile
Rose Craddock
Tearin' Loose
Sally Harris
The College Boob
Angela Boothby
Husband Hunters
Lettie Crane
Biff Bang Buddy
Bonnie Norton
Wallflowers
Sandra
Born to Battle
Eunice Morgan
Spring Fever
1923
TV Shows (2)
Self / Appearances (8)
Becoming Cary Grant
Self (archive footage)
The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind
Self (archive footage)
Hollywood: The Selznick Years
Self - Actress 'Gone with the Wind' screen test (archive footage) (uncredited)
Clara Bow: Discovering the "It" Girl
Self (from The Saturday Night Kid [1929]) (archive footage)
Screen Snapshots (Series 16, No. 1)
Self
Beyond Tara: The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel
Self (archive footage)
Gary Cooper: The Face of a Hero
Self (archive footage)
Frank Capra Jr. Remembers... You Can't Take It with You
Self (archive footage)