ZaSu Pitts
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Zazu Pitts (1894-1963) sporting her famous bob hairstyle |
ZaSu Pitts (
January 3,
1894–
June 7,
1963) was a
United States movie actress. In many of her film credits and contemporary articles, her name is rendered as
Zazu Pitts or
Zasu Pitts. [Note: some on-line biographies claim Zasu was born January 3, 1894 but her California death record reflects that she was born January 3, 1901. To make matters more confusing, the Social Security Death Record reflects a birthdate of January 3, 1900.]
ZaSu Pitts was born in
Parsons, Kansas and grew up in
Santa Cruz, California. Her unusual first name was coined from parts of the names "Eliza" and "Susan", female relatives who both wanted ZaSu's mother to name the child after them.
Pitts was discovered by screenwriter
Frances Marion and made her debut in Marion's in
silent film The Little Princess, starring
Mary Pickford in 1917. With the tenderness of her acting and the melancholy of her eyes, she was a wonderful leading lady in
Erich von Stroheim's masterpiece
Greed (
1924), for which performance, von Stroheim labelled Pitts "the greatest dramatic actress". Von Stroheim also featured her in his films
The Wedding March (1928)(with
Fay Wray) and
Walking Down Broadway (1933) (also known as
Hello Sister).
Pitts enjoyed her greatest fame, however, in the 1930's, often starring in
b movies and
comedy shorts, often teamed with
Thelma Todd. She also played secondary parts in many films. Her stock persona of a hand-wringing, flustered, worrisome spinster made her instantly recognizable and was often imitated in cartoons and other films. She starred in a number of
Hal Roach shorts and features that were popular but her brief stint in the
Hildegarde Withers mystery series was not well received. Pitts films include
Nurse Edith Cavell (1939) and two film adaptations of
No, No, Nanette - one in 1930 and another in 1940. Pitts achieved renewed fame in
television in the 1950's, notably costarring in
Gale Storm's sitcom,
Oh, Susanna. Her last role, shortly before her death was as a voice actress (switchboard operator) in the 1963
Stanley Kramer directed comedy,
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.
Pitts was married to actor Tom Gallery from 1920 to 1932. They had two children: a daughter, Ann Gallery, and a son, Don Gallery (né Marvin Carville La Marr), whom they adopted after the 1926 death of his mother, silent film actress
Barbara La Marr.
ZaSu Pitts died of
cancer in
Hollywood, California at age 69. She was interred at
Holy Cross Cemetery although she was not known to be a
Roman Catholic.
*She has a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame and in 1994, she was honored with her image on a
United States postage stamp designed by caricaturist
Al Hirschfeld.
*When
Hollywood switched to
talkies Pitts, who had a distinctive nasal voice with a wavering vibrato, switched to
comedy character actor roles.
*When
Mae Questel was called on to create the screen voice of the character "
Olive Oyl" for the
Fleischer Studios animated cartoon version of the
comic strip "
Popeye", Questel created a caricature of ZaSu Pitts' voice.
*From the 1940s through the early 1960s, ZaSu Pitts also made numerous
television appearances, including her role in
Oh! Susanna (1956-1960), with
Gale Storm as her niece.
*She was on radio, appearing several times on the earliest
Fibber McGee and Molly show. Her character was a somewhat dipsy dame who was constantly looking for a husband.
*Referred to sadistic gossip columnist
Hedda Hopper as a "ferret".
*Conservative in politics and with her money; she left her lucrative job with
Thelma Todd over a money dispute with
Hal Roach, and often complained about taxes.
*
ZaSu Pitts Memorial Orchestra*
