Thelma Todd
Personal Info
Known for
Acting
Gender
Female
Birthday
1906-07-29
Day of Death
1935-12-16 (29 years old)
Place of Birth
Lawrence, Massachusetts, USA
Thelma Todd
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Thelma Alice Todd (July 29, 1906 – December 16, 1935) was an American actress. Appearing in about 120 pictures between 1926 and 1935, she is best remembered for her comedic roles in films such as Marx Brothers' Monkey Business and Horse Feathers, a number of Charley Chase's short comedies, and co-starring with Buster Keaton and Jimmy Durante in Speak Easily. She also had roles in Wheeler and Woolsey farces, several Laurel and Hardy films, the last of which (The Bohemian Girl) featured her in a part that was truncated by her suspicious death at the age of 29.
During the silent film era, Todd appeared in numerous supporting roles that made full use of her beauty but gave her little chance to act. With the advent of the talkies, Todd was given opportunity to expand her roles when producer Hal Roach signed her to appear with such comedy stars as Harry Langdon, Charley Chase, and Laurel and Hardy.
In 1931, Roach cast Todd in her own series of slapstick comedy shorts, running 17 to 27 minutes each. In an attempt to create a female version of Laurel and Hardy, Roach teamed Todd with ZaSu Pitts for 17 shorts, from "Let's do Things" (June 1931) through "One Track Minds" (May 1933). When Pitts left in 1933, she was replaced by Patsy Kelly, appearing with Todd in 21 shorts, from "Beauty and the Bus" (September 1933) through "An All American Toothache" (January 1936). These Roach shorts often cast Todd as a working girl having all sorts of problems, and trying her best to remain poised and charming despite the embarrassing antics of her sidekick.
Todd also appeared successfully in such dramas as the original 1931 film version of The Maltese Falcon starring Ricardo Cortez as Sam Spade, in which she played Miles Archer's treacherous widow. During her career she appeared in 119 films although many of these were short films, and was sometimes publicized as "The Ice Cream Blonde."
Todd continued her short-subject series through 1935, and was featured in the full-length Laurel and Hardy comedy The Bohemian Girl. This was her last film; she died after completing all of her scenes, but most of them were re-shot. Producer Roach deleted all of Todd's dialogue and limited her appearance to one musical number.
Known For
Acting
(2003)
(1989)
(1988)
(1953)
Yesterday and Today
as (archive footage)
(1942)
Screen Snapshots (Series 22, No. 10)
as Self (archive footage)
(1936)
An All American Toothache
as Thelma Alice Todd
(1936)
The Bohemian Girl
as Gypsy Queen's Daughter
(1935)
Top Flat
as Thelma Todd
(1935)
Slightly Static
as Thelma
(1935)
Sing Sister Sing
as Thelma
(1935)
The Misses Stooge
as Thelma Todd
(1935)
The Tin Man
as Thelma Todd
(1935)
After the Dance
as Mabel Kane
(1935)
Two for Tonight
as Lilly
(1935)
Hot Money
as Miss Thelma Todd
(1935)
Twin Triplets
as Thelma
(1935)
Treasure Blues
as Thelma
(1934)
Lightning Strikes Twice
as Judy Nelson
(1934)
Hips, Hips, Hooray!
as Miss Amelia Frisby
(1934)
Three Chumps Ahead
as Thelma Todd
(1934)
Done in Oil
as Thelma Todd aka Mlle. La Todd
(1934)
Soup and Fish
as Miss Thelma Todd
(1934)
Palooka
as Trixie
(1934)
Bottoms Up
as Judith Marlowe
(1934)
I'll Be Suing You
as Miss Todd
(1934)
One-Horse Farmers
as Thelma
(1934)
Take the Stand
as Miss Sally Oxford
(1934)
Opened by Mistake
as Thelma
(1934)
Maid in Hollywood
as Thelma
(1934)
Cockeyed Cavaliers
as Lady Genevieve
(1934)
Babes in the Goods
as Thelma Todd
(1934)
The Poor Rich
as Gwendolyn Fetherstone
(1934)
Bum Voyage
as Thelma
(1933)
The Bargain of the Century
as Thelma
(1933)
Son of a Sailor
as The Baroness
(1933)
Backs to Nature
as Thelma
(1933)
You Made Me Love You
as Pamela Berne
(1933)
Mary Stevens, M.D.
as Lois Cavanaugh
(1933)
Air Fright
as Thelma
(1933)
Beauty and the Bus
as Thelma
(1933)
Asleep in the Feet
as Thelma
(1933)
One Track Minds
as Thelma Todd
(1933)
The Devil's Brother
as Lady Pamela Rocburg
(1933)
Sitting Pretty
as Gloria Duval
(1933)
Maids a la Mode
as Miss Todd
(1933)
Air Hostess
as Mrs. Sylvia C. Carleton
(1933)
Counsellor at Law
as Lillian La Rue
(1933)
Cheating Blondes
as Anne Merrick / Elaine Manners
(1932)
Alum and Eve
as Thelma
(1932)
Red Noses
as Miss Todd
(1932)
Deception
as Lola Del Mont
(1932)
The Big Timer
as Kay Mitchell
(1932)
Sealskins
as Thelma Todd
(1932)
Strictly Unreliable
as Miss Thelma Todd
(1932)
The Old Bull
as Thelma
(1932)
Speak Easily
as Eleanor Espere
(1932)
Klondike
as Klondike
(1932)
Horse Feathers
as Connie Bailey
(1932)
Sneak Easily
as Miss Thelma Todd - Attorney for the Defense
(1932)
Show Business
as Thelma
(1932)
Call Her Savage
as Sunny De Lane
(1932)
This Is the Night
as Claire Mathewson
(1932)
The Nickel Nurser
as Thelma Todd
(1932)
The Soilers
as Thelma
(1931)
The Maltese Falcon
as Iva Archer
(1931)
Rough Seas
as Antoinette
(1931)
Catch-As Catch-Can
as Thelma
(1931)
Chickens Come Home
as Mrs. Hardy
(1931)
The Pajama Party
as Thelma
(1931)
Broadminded
as Gertie Gardner
(1931)
Aloha
as Winifred Bradford
(1931)
Swanee River
as Caroline
(1931)
War Mamas
as Thelma
(1931)
Love Fever
as Thelma Todd
(1931)
Monkey Business
as Lucille Briggs
(1931)
The Pip from Pittsburg
as Thelma
(1931)
The Hot Heiress
as Lola
(1931)
On the Loose
as Thelma
(1931)
Let's Do Things
as Thelma Todd
(1931)
Corsair
as Alison Corning
(1931)
Command Performance
as Lydia
(1931)
No Limit
as Betty Royce
(1930)
High C's
as Antoinette
(1930)
The Real McCoy
as Thelma
(1930)
The Shrimp
as Jim's Girlfriend
(1930)
Dollar Dizzy
as Thelma Todd
(1930)
Looser Than Loose
as Thelma, Charley's Fiancee
(1930)
Whispering Whoopee
as Miss Todd
(1930)
Follow Thru
as Ruth Van Horn
(1930)
Another Fine Mess
as Lady Plumtree (uncredited)
(1930)
The King
as The Queen
(1930)
The Fighting Parson
as The Blonde Dance Hall Girl
(1930)
The Head Guy
as The Star
(1930)
Her Man
as Nelly
(1930)
All Teed Up
as Thelma
(1929)
Stepping Out
as Charley's Wife
(1929)
(1929)
Unaccustomed as We Are
as Mrs. Kennedy
(1929)
Crazy Feet
as Dancer
(1929)
Trial Marriage
as Grace Logan
(1929)
(1929)
Look out Below
as Thelma
(1929)
Hurdy Gurdy
as Blondie
(1929)
Careers
as Hortense
(1929)
(1929)
The Bachelor Girl
as Gladys
(1929)
Her Private Life
as Mrs. Leslie
(1929)
House of Horror
as Thelma
(1929)
Snappy Sneezer
as Mary White
(1929)
Hal Roach Presents Harry Langdon
as The Woman
(1928)
Heart to Heart
as Ruby Boyd
(1928)
Vamping Venus
as Madame Vanezlos the Dancer / Venus
(1928)
The Crash
as Daisy McQueen
(1928)
The Noose
as Phyllis
(1928)
The Haunted House
as The Nurse
(1928)
Naughty Baby
as Bonnie Le Vonne
(1927)
The Shield of Honor
as Rose aka Flora Fisher
(1927)
Nevada
as Hettie Ide
(1927)
Fireman, Save My Child
as (uncredited)
(1927)
Rubber Heels
as Princess Aline
(1927)
The Gay Defender
as Ruth Ainsworth
(1926)
God Gave Me Twenty Cents
as Dance-Hall Girl (uncredited)
(1926)
Fascinating Youth
as Lorraine Lane