Margaret Dumont
Margaret Dumont would probably consider it a tragedy that she is best-known for her performances as the ultimate straight woman in seven of the Marx Brothers' films (including most of their best). By all accounts she never understood their jokes (offscreen and on), which is of course a major reason why she's so funny. Apart from a small role in a 1917 Dickens adaptation, she spent her early career on the stage, ending up with the Marxes in the late 1920s in the stage versions of The Cocoanuts (1929) and Animal Crackers (1930), and was given a Paramount contract at the same time they were. She played similar roles alongside other great comedians, including W.C. Fields, Laurel & Hardy and Jack Benny and also played straight dramatic parts (her chief love), but few of them made much impact - it is as Groucho Marx's foil that she ranks among the immortals, and she died shortly after being reunited with him on "The Hollywood Palace" (1964).
Filmography (61 titles)
9.0MovieHidden Hollywood II: More Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Vaults
(archive footage) · 1999
9.0MovieThe Marx Brothers in a Nutshell
(archive footage) · 1982
MovieThe Hollywood Clowns
(archive footage) · 1979
7.0MovieThat's Entertainment, Part II
(archive footage) · 1976
6.3MovieBrother, Can You Spare a Dime?
Self (archive footage) · 1975
7.3MovieHollywood: The Dream Factory
Self (archive footage) · 1972
7.1MovieWhat a Way to Go!
Mrs. Foster · 1964
5.5MovieZotz!
Persephone Updike · 1962
10.0MovieAround the World with Nellie Bly
Dowager #1 · 1960
7.0MovieAuntie Mame
Noblewoman in Play (uncredited) · 1958
6.5ShowThe Donna Reed Show
1958
5.6MovieShake, Rattle and Rock!
Georgianna Fitzdingle · 1956
6.4ShowThe Dinah Shore Chevy Show
Self · 1956
7.7MovieStop, You're Killing Me
Mrs. Whitelaw · 1952
10.0MovieThree for Bedroom C
Mrs. Agnes Hawthorne · 1952
6.5ShowRacket Squad
1951
6.9ShowThe Colgate Comedy Hour
Self · 1950
10.0MovieSusie Steps Out
Mrs. Starr · 1946
5.3MovieLittle Giant
Mrs. Hendrickson · 1946
5.7MovieSunset in El Dorado
Aunt Dolly / Aunt Arabella · 1945
7.0MovieDiamond Horseshoe
Mrs. Standish · 1945
5.9MovieThe Horn Blows at Midnight
Mme. Traviata / Miss Rodholder · 1945
5.9MovieBathing Beauty
Mrs. Allenwood · 1944
4.2MovieSeven Days Ashore
Mrs. Croxton-Lynch · 1944
5.7MovieUp in Arms
Mrs. Willoughby · 1944
6.3MovieThe Dancing Masters
Louise Harlan · 1943
9.0MovieRhythm Parade
Ophelia MacDougal · 1942
6.5MovieTales of Manhattan
Mme. Langehanke (uncredited) · 1942
6.6MovieAbout Face
Mrs. Culpepper · 1942
6.0MovieSing Your Worries Away
Flo Faulkner - Landlady · 1942