Renee Godfrey
Encyclopedia
Renee Godfrey was an American stage and motion picture actress and singer.
(1940), the film that garnered Ginger Rogers
her Oscar. Her next movie, Unexpected Uncle, was directed by Peter Godfrey, who also directed her in the romantic thriller Highways by Night in 1942.
Beginning two years later in the Danny Kaye
starring vehicle Up in Arms (1944), she began working as Renee Godfrey. During the war, she and her husband were much-loved by the troops for the amateur magic shows that they put on through the USO. She continued working in small but important roles, such as Vivian Vedder in Terror by Night
(1946) and Mrs. Stebbins in Stanley Kramer's Inherit the Wind
. Renee Godfrey worked into the 1960s, appearing in Can-Can
and Tender Is the Night
.
With primary focus now on raising her three children (which included a set of twins), Haal was seen very sporadically on TV during the 1950s with guest roles on former film stars Loretta Young and Jane Wyman's tailor-made showcases. For the most part, however, Haal was out of view. Her director-husband, who had flourished on 50s TV, was in ill health by the end of the decade. Taking secretarial and real estate classes to help support the family income, Haal tried making a comeback of sorts, finding bit roles in the films. Still a robust beauty, she was also a guest player on such popular shows as Perry Mason, Hazel, The Donna Reed Show and Wagon Train. At the age of 44, she died on May 24, 1964 in Los Angeles, California, after an extended battle against cancer, and before the release of her final film, the Disney-produced Those Calloways. Her husband died in 1970.
Biography
Born September 1, 1919 in New York, Renee Haal was a singer and competed as Miss New York State in the 1937 Miss America pageant. In 1938, she went to London for a singing engagement and met the actor/director/screenwriter Peter Godfrey, whom she married two years later, he was almost 20 years her senior. She initially entered films at RKO, working as Renee Haal, and made her debut in Sam Wood's Kitty FoyleKitty Foyle (film)
Kitty Foyle, subtitled The Natural History of a Woman, is a 1940 film starring Ginger Rogers, Dennis Morgan, James Craig, Ernest Cossart and Gladys Cooper.-Plot:...
(1940), the film that garnered Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers was an American actress, dancer, and singer who appeared in film, and on stage, radio, and television throughout much of the 20th century....
her Oscar. Her next movie, Unexpected Uncle, was directed by Peter Godfrey, who also directed her in the romantic thriller Highways by Night in 1942.
Beginning two years later in the Danny Kaye
Danny Kaye
Danny Kaye was a celebrated American actor, singer, dancer, and comedian...
starring vehicle Up in Arms (1944), she began working as Renee Godfrey. During the war, she and her husband were much-loved by the troops for the amateur magic shows that they put on through the USO. She continued working in small but important roles, such as Vivian Vedder in Terror by Night
Terror by Night
Terror by Night is a 1946 Sherlock Holmes mystery film inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, loosely based on The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax and The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle. It was directed by Roy William Neill, and stars Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson...
(1946) and Mrs. Stebbins in Stanley Kramer's Inherit the Wind
Inherit the Wind (1960 film)
Inherit the Wind is a 1960 Hollywood film adaptation of the play of the same name, written by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee, directed by Stanley Kramer....
. Renee Godfrey worked into the 1960s, appearing in Can-Can
Can-Can (film)
Can-Can is a 1960 musical film made by Suffolk-Cummings productions and distributed by 20th Century Fox. It was directed by Walter Lang, produced by Jack Cummings and Saul Chaplin, from a screenplay by Dorothy Kingsley and Charles Lederer, loosely based on the musical play by Abe Burrows with music...
and Tender Is the Night
Tender is the Night (1962 film)
Tender Is the Night is a 1962 film directed by Henry King, based on the novel of the same name by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The soundtrack featured a song, also called "Tender Is the Night", by Sammy Fain and Paul Francis Webster , which was nominated for the 1962 Academy Award for Best Song...
.
With primary focus now on raising her three children (which included a set of twins), Haal was seen very sporadically on TV during the 1950s with guest roles on former film stars Loretta Young and Jane Wyman's tailor-made showcases. For the most part, however, Haal was out of view. Her director-husband, who had flourished on 50s TV, was in ill health by the end of the decade. Taking secretarial and real estate classes to help support the family income, Haal tried making a comeback of sorts, finding bit roles in the films. Still a robust beauty, she was also a guest player on such popular shows as Perry Mason, Hazel, The Donna Reed Show and Wagon Train. At the age of 44, she died on May 24, 1964 in Los Angeles, California, after an extended battle against cancer, and before the release of her final film, the Disney-produced Those Calloways. Her husband died in 1970.
Filmography
- Those CallowaysThose CallowaysThose Calloways is a 1965 American film adaption of a book by Paul Annixter. Annixter and his wife Jane were writers of books for young readers. The film was produced by Disney and directed by Norman Tokar...
(1965) (uncredited) as Sarah Mellott - The Alfred Hitchcock Hour as Hartman's Secretary (1 episode, 1962)
- General Electric TheaterGeneral Electric TheaterGeneral Electric Theater is an American anthology series hosted by Ronald W. Reagan that was broadcast on CBS radio and television. The series was sponsored by General Electric's Department of Public Relations.-Radio:...
as Ethel (1 episode, 1962) - Perry MasonPerry MasonPerry Mason is a fictional character, a defense attorney who was the main character in works of detective fiction authored by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason was featured in more than 80 novels and short stories, most of which had a plot involving his client's murder trial...
as Lady Librarian /(2 episodes, 1960–1962) - The Donna Reed ShowThe Donna Reed ShowThe Donna Reed Show is an American sitcom starring Donna Reed as the upper middle class housewife Donna Stone. Carl Betz appears as her pediatrician husband Alex, and Shelley Fabares and Paul Petersen as their teenage children Mary and Jeff. The show originally aired on ABC at 10 pm from September...
as Gloria (1 episode, 1962) - HazelHazelThe hazels are a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate northern hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae, though some botanists split the hazels into a separate family Corylaceae.They have simple, rounded leaves with double-serrate margins...
as Miss Johnson (1 episode, 1962) - Frontier CircusFrontier CircusFor the NBC program similarly named, see Frontier .Frontier Circus is a short-lived Western television series about a traveling circus roaming the American West in the 1880s...
as Stella (1 episode, 1962) - Tender Is the NightTender is the NightTender Is the Night is a novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. It was his fourth and final completed novel, and was first published in Scribner's Magazine between January-April, 1934 in four issues...
(1962) (uncredited) as Nurse - The Ann Sothern ShowThe Ann Sothern ShowThe Ann Sothern Show is an American sitcom starring Ann Sothern that aired on CBS for 93 episodes. The series began on October 6, 1958, and ended on September 25, 1961. The Ann Sothern Show was Sothern's second sitcom for CBS...
as Martha Newton (1 episode, 1961) - Inherit the WindInherit the Wind (1960 film)Inherit the Wind is a 1960 Hollywood film adaptation of the play of the same name, written by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee, directed by Stanley Kramer....
(1960) as Mrs. Stebbins - Can-CanCan-CanThe Can-can is a dance. It may also refer to:* Popularly, the Galop Infernal movement of Jacques Offenbach's Orpheus in the Underworld, commonly associated with the dance* Can Can , a 2007 fragrance by Paris Hilton...
(1960) (uncredited) as Dowager - Zane Grey Theater as Alicia (2 episodes, 1960)
- Jane Wyman Presents The Fireside Theatre as Dorothy /(2 episodes, 1957)
- Letter to Loretta as Andree Chartaud (1 episode, 1956)
- Buffalo Bill, Jr. as Linda Abbott (2 episodes, 1956)
- The Star and the Story as Miss Harrington (1 episode, 1956)
- Dr. Hudson's Secret JournalDr. Hudson's Secret JournalDr. Hudson's Secret Journal is an American medical drama which aired in syndication from 1955 to 1957. Based on the book of the same name by Lloyd C. Douglas, a total of 78 episodes were produced....
as Nurse (1 episode, 1955) - Duffy's TavernDuffy's TavernDuffy's Tavern was a popular American radio situation comedy which ran for a decade on several networks , concluding with the December 28, 1951 broadcast....
as Renee (1 episode) - The Decision of Christopher Blake (1948) (uncredited) as Sheila, Actress in Play
- French Leave (1948) as Mimi
- Winter Wonderland (1947) as Phyllis Simpson
- Down Missouri Way (1946) as Gloria Baxter
- Terror by NightTerror by NightTerror by Night is a 1946 Sherlock Holmes mystery film inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, loosely based on The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax and The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle. It was directed by Roy William Neill, and stars Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson...
(1946) as Vivian Vedder - Bedside MannerBedside Manner (film)Bedside Manner is a 1945 American film directed by Andrew L. Stone.The film is also known as Her Favorite Patient .- Cast :*John Carroll as Morgan Hale*Ruth Hussey as Dr. Hedy Fredericks, MD...
(1945) as Stella Livingston - Up in ArmsUp in ArmsUp in Arms is a 1944 film directed by Elliott Nugent. It stars Danny Kaye and Dinah Shore. It was nominated for two Academy Awards in 1945.-Cast:*Danny Kaye as Danny Weems*Dinah Shore as Nurse Lt. Virginia Merrill*Dana Andrews as Joe Nelson...
(1944) (uncredited) as Goldwyn Girl - Highways by Night (1942) as Ellen Cromwell
- Framing Father (1942) (as Renee Haal) as Mary Adams
- Wedded Blitz (1942) (as Renee Haal)
- Unexpected Uncle (1941) (as Renee Haal) as Carol West
- Hurry, Charlie, Hurry (1941) (as Renee Haal) as Josephine Whitley
- Citizen KaneCitizen KaneCitizen Kane is a 1941 American drama film, directed by and starring Orson Welles. Many critics consider it the greatest American film of all time, especially for its innovative cinematography, music and narrative structure. Citizen Kane was Welles' first feature film...
(1941) (uncredited) as Nurse - Let's Make MusicLet's Make MusicLet's Make Music is a 1941 musical starring Bob Crosby and written by Nathanael West. The songs in Let's Make Music include the classic "Big Noise from Winnetka".-Development:...
(1941) (uncredited) as Helen, Chorus Girl - Kitty Foyle (1940) (uncredited)