Withers, while making the cause of the wife's frustration just as plainly sexual, might well have conveyed a certain residual warmth and humanity that would have transformed melodrama into drama. July 18, 2011, 3:11 PM. Googie Withers photo shoot. 2023 Variety Media, LLC. [31] Her other films in the 1940s were The North Star (1943) for RKO Pictures and Danger Street (1947) for Paramount Pictures.[31]. Your login session has expired. [49] As a child, Withers's "stocky and sturdy" build and straight black hair also contrasted with Temple's "pudgy but delicate" figure and blonde ringlets. [11] She was a trustee of the Church of Religious Science in Los Angeles. Withers died on 15 July 2011 at her Sydney home, aged 94. [6][106] Withers purchased some of the dolls herself and received presents from fans; President Franklin D. Roosevelt sent her one of his teddy bears and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt contributed a French doll she had received as a child. Googie Withers. Shop googie withers t-shirts created by independent artists from around the globe. Or purchase a subscription for unlimited access to real news you can count on. [79] Numerous dolls were made in her likeness,[5] including four Madame Alexander dolls in 1937 ranging in height from 13.520in (340510mm).[80][81]. Handle with Care was Withers's first film appearance, though she and all the children were photographed with their backs to the camera. January 24, 1948 - February 3, 2010 (his death, 3 children). SYDNEY, Australia (AP) Googie Withers, a British actress best known for her performance in the Alfred Hitchcock film The Lady Vanishes, died on Friday at her home here. Leo Kirch. She became one of the most popular child stars in Hollywood in the 1930s and early 1940s, with her films ranking in the top ten list for box-office gross in 1937 and 1938. [20][21] Withers was concerned that filmgoers would hate her for being so mean to Temple, but the film was a box-office hit. [93][96], Withers invested much of her own personality into the character of Josephine, making her friendly, caring, and helpful. [1] In 1937, she created 400 dolls using scraps she had recovered from the 20th Century Fox wardrobe department and gave them to needy children at Christmas. View the latest Googie Withers photos. In her film work of the 1940s she showed an individuality, strength, and sensuality that was very unusual for the time. Googie Withers, 94, a British actress best known for her appearance in Alfred Hitchcock's 1938 film "The Lady Vanishes," died July 15 at her home in Sydney. Birthday March Mar 12, 1917. Born Georgette Lizette Withers on March 12, 1917, in what was then British India, she was given what proved to be her lifelong nickname by her Indian nanny. She did cabaret in Midnight Follies at the Mayfair hotel and the Kit Kat Club. She went to do a screen test for them at the Riverside Studios and was invited to become an extra. She was dubbed by the English press as the best bad girl in British films.. Her stage credits include appearances in the West End productions of "The Boy Friend" (1954) and "No, No, Nanette" (1957). I came with our friends", she replied. [97] She cared for her mother for eight years until Ruth's death in 1983. She passed away on August 7 at the age of 95. She was also known for her philanthropy and her extensive doll collection. [3] She determined before Jane was born that she would have one daughter who would go into show business, and chose the name Jane so that "even with a long last name like Withers, it would fit on a marquee". [111], Withers was active in dozens of charities. Her husband died last year, and she is survived by her children. [109], Withers engaged in philanthropy throughout her life. [96][105], Withers was a devout Christian. Georgette Lizette Withers, CBE, AO (12 March 1917 - 15 July 2011), known professionally as Googie Withers, was an English entertainer who had a lengthy career in theatre, film, and television. [42] She had her first screen kiss in the 1939 film Boy Friend. Also that year, following the death of Sir Frank Tait, John McCallum became Managing Director of J.C. Williamson's. 1965, Googie played Lady Piper in Samuel Taylor's slick New York comedy Beekman Place . [16] Butler was the first to notice this about her. She became one of the most popular child stars in Hollywood in the 1930s and early 1940s, with her films ranking in the top ten list for box-office gross in 1937 and 1938. Googie Withers, British stage and screen actress, waits by the dartboard while Chips Rafferty gulps his drink and Jean Kent looks at her boots. Her death was confirmed by the theater producer John Frost, with whom she worked frequently. [1], A month after Jane's twenty-first birthday, her mother Ruth appeared in a California Superior Court and listed her daughter's assets as $40,401.85 (equivalent to $490,000 in 2021). Georgette Lizette Withers was born March 12, 1917, in Karachi, then part of British India. Trivia. She was born Georgette Lizette Withers in. Googie Withers, a sly, stylish British star who was best liked by her public when she was behaving wickedly, died July 15 in Sydney, Australia, where she had lived for many years. 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Withers made her screen debut in the 1951 comedy "The Lavender Hill Mob". Her family moved back to Britain where Ms. Withers began acting at age 12. At its height, Kirch's media group was valued at $5 billion. She was 94. At 16 she was the youngest member of the chorus of Nice Goings On and was soon appearing in other popular musicals. [108] A small part of the doll collection was sold at auction, and Withers participated in tours of her collection held in conjunction with these auctions. The top global causes of death, in order of total number of lives lost, are associated with three broad topics: cardiovascular (ischaemic heart disease, stroke), respiratory (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lower respiratory infections) and neonatal conditions - which include birth asphyxia and birth trauma, neonatal sepsis and infections, and preterm birth complications. Buried. [27], Throughout the remainder of the 1930s, Withers appeared in three to five films per year. Port of Escape. Posts Tagged 'Googie Withers' . Withers appeared in dozens of films in the 1930s and 40s. Please logout and login again. Withers's Lady Bracknell in The Importance of Being Earnest (1979) at Chichester managed to step out of the shadow of Edith Evans's high-camp shadow without losing impact. [39] Studio contracts generally included a series of six-month option periods when the studio could terminate the agreement should the actor's films stop making money. I'm not changing my name. . [43] In 1940 she filmed Shooting High with co-star Gene Autry, and starred in the teen films High School, The Girl from Avenue A, and Youth Will Be Served. [113][114], In 1979, Withers was the first recipient of the Young Artist Former Child Star Lifetime Achievement Award at the 1st Youth in Film Awards ceremony. Robert Simonson. [31] In 1939 she appeared in four more comedy roles: The Arizona Wildcat, Boy Friend, Chicken Wagon Family, and Pack Up Your Troubles. [3] However, Ruth was not a typical stage mother. [118] She received a $1million property settlement, including monthly alimony and child support, trust fund and insurance fund for the children, and a half-interest in Texas oil fields owned by Moss, as well as full custody of the children. [2] Biography She began her career as a child, and retired at the age of 21 to spend more time with her family. Age (2022) Update Soon. Actress Googie Withers also appeared in the BBC's Northanger Abbey, 1894 shipwreck confirms tale of treacherous lifeboat. [11][1] At age 3 she had her own radio show called Dixie's Dainty Dewdrop, where she also interviewed celebrities who were visiting Atlanta. Withers was a loss to the British stage and screen when she followed her husband to his native Australia in the late 1950s. After becoming a student at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts at age 12, she began acting. The Magic Box. 1948. end time. Sitter in 3 portraits Born Georgette Lizette Withers in Karachi, India, she made her film debut in The Girl in the Crowd in 1934. . She was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma on the day she buried her mother Enid, who died of cancer in 1993. Death. In 1961 Withers appeared on Broadway in The Complaisant Lover.. [105] She began experiencing vertigo in 2007. She continued to be active in the 1990s, appearing in two highly praised films. [52], While Withers typically played a brat onscreen, off-screen she was said to be "one of Hollywood's most charming and well-behaved juveniles". No need to register, buy now! She was interviewed in numerous documentary retrospectives of the Golden Age of Hollywood. Georgette Lizette (Googie) Withers, actress: born Karachi 12 March 1917; married 1948 John McCallum (died 2010; one son, two daughters); died Sydney 15 July 2011. [31] But she and her fans grew dissatisfied with the juvenile roles being offered her as she matured. 18 February 2023. The assistant director came over and asked her why she was not standing with the others. The couple co-starred in 10 films, and they lived together in Sydney until McCallum died last year at the age of 91. Be the first one to comment on this story. She appeared in a couple of American productions shot in England, including 1940s Haunted Honeymoon, starring Robert Montgomery and Constance Cummings. place of death. his death) Children: Joanna, Nicholas, Amanda . [32], In 19381939, Withers shed her childhood pudginess through healthy eating and stretching exercises, slimming down to 100lb (45kg) and a size-12 dress. Georgette Lizette ('Googie') Withers. [1][100] In 1995, she was asked to record several lines of dialogue in imitation of the vocal patterns of Mary Wickes, who had recorded the voice of Laverne the gargoyle in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) and had died during post-production. She was dancing in the chorus in a West End revue when she was spotted by a Warner Brothers casting director. Withers then tied the knot with Kenneth Errair in 1955 and they had two children. [8], When Jane was two, Ruth enrolled her in a tap dance school,[6] and also taught her to sing. Jeannie. [54], For example, as Withers began to receive gifts of dolls from fans to add to her collection, her parents insisted that for every two dolls she received, she give away one to a needy child. [39] Additionally, the lower rental fees for Withers's B movies allowed her films to be screened in many more small theaters, expanding Withers's popularity. [119], In October 1955, Withers remarried, to singer Kenneth Errair of The Four Freshmen, with whom she had two more children. [2][87] Ruth remarried to Louis D. Boonshaft, a physician. Her stage name, Googie, was a nickname given to her as a child from her Indian nurse. [83] Jane Withers and the Swamp Wizard (1944) by Kathryn Heisenfelt[82] was said to "star some version of the real Jane Withers". Hot! Googie Withers was an actress of great wit and intelligence. At the same age she made her first professional appearance, in the chorus of a children's show at the Victoria Palace, London. [46] Her Republic films were Johnny Doughboy (1942), My Best Gal and Faces in the Fog (both 1944), and Affairs of Geraldine (1946). Googie Withers, 94, a British actress best known for her appearance in Alfred Hitchcock's 1938 film "The Lady Vanishes," died July 15 at her home in Sydney. She was 94, and the cause of death was not disclosed. Withers died on 15 July 2011 at her Sydney home, aged 94. [54] Her earnings from film roles were invested in trust funds and annuities; Withers had to use her allowance money to buy things she wanted for herself, which often meant saving up for weeks. 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