Katie Johnson | |
|---|---|
 Publicity still for The Ladykillers (1955) | |
| Born | Bessie Kate Johnson 18 November 1878 |
| Died | 4 May 1957 (aged 78) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1894−1957 |
| Spouse | Frank Goodenough Bayly (m. 1908;died 1923) |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | Best British Actress 1955 The Ladykillers |
Bessie Kate Johnson (18 November 1878 – 4 May 1957) was an English actress who appeared on stage from 1894 and on screen from the 1930s to the 1950s. [1] [2]
In 1908 she married the actor Frank Goodenough Bayly (1873 – 28 November 1923, Newcastle upon Tyne). [3] The couple had two children, William Frank Goodenough Bayly (1910-1973) and Johnson Goodenough Bayly (1915-1980).
Katie Johnson’s stage career included memorable performances such as “Little Lord Fauntleroy” at the Prince’s Theatre in Bristol and her role as Lady McClean in “Escape Me Never” at the Apollo in London in 1933, which she later reprised on Broadway in 1935. She also appeared in 'The Rescue Party' at the Comedy Theatre, London in 1926. For much of her career, well into her seventies, she played mostly minor roles. [4] She first appeared in a film at age 53, in 1932, but never received critical acclaim for her performances until 1955, when she starred, aged 76, in the Ealing Studios comedy The Ladykillers as Mrs Louisa Wilberforce. [2] The role earned her a British Film Academy award for best British actress. [5] She subsequently played the intriguing role of Aunt Alice, an eavesdropping amateur detective, in “How to Murder a Rich Uncle” (1957). This remained her final performance as she died at the age of 78. [3]
Other performance include the BBC science fiction serial The Quatermass Experiment (1953) and the role of a spy in I See a Dark Stranger (1946). [6] [7]
The Ladykillers is a 1955 British black comedy crime film directed by Alexander Mackendrick for Ealing Studios. It stars Alec Guinness, Cecil Parker, Herbert Lom, Peter Sellers, Danny Green, Jack Warner, and Katie Johnson as the old lady, Mrs. Wilberforce.
Cecil André Mesritz, known professionally as André Morell, was an English actor. He appeared frequently in theatre, film and on television from the 1930s to the 1970s. His best known screen roles were as Professor Bernard Quatermass in the BBC Television serial Quatermass and the Pit (1958–59), and as Doctor Watson in the Hammer Film Productions version of The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959).
Martita Edith Hunt was an Argentine-born British theatre and film actress. She had a dominant stage presence and played a wide range of powerful characters. She is best remembered for her performance as Miss Havisham in David Lean's Great Expectations (1946).
Bess Flowers was an American actress best known for her work as an extra in hundreds of films. She was known as "The Queen of the Hollywood Extras," appearing in more than 350 feature films and numerous comedy shorts in her 41-year career.
Ruth Roman was an American actress of film, stage, and television.
Christine Cecilia McIntyre was an American actress and singer who appeared in various films in the 1930s and 1940s. She is mainly remembered as the beautiful blonde actress who appeared in many of The Three Stooges shorts produced by Columbia Pictures.
Mona Lee Washbourne was an English actress of stage, film, and television. Her most critically acclaimed role was in the film Stevie (1978), late in her career, for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and a BAFTA Award.
Marjorie Rhodes was a British actress. She was born Millicent Wise in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire.
Torin Herbert Erskine Thatcher was a British actor who was noted for his flashy portrayals of screen villains.
Norma Varden Shackleton, known professionally as Norma Varden, was an English-American actress with a long film career.
Marianne Stone was an English character actress. She performed in films from the early 1940s to the late 1980s, typically playing working class parts such as barmaids, secretaries and landladies. Stone appeared in nine of the Carry On films, and took part in an episode of the Carry On Laughing television series. She also had supporting roles with comedian Norman Wisdom.
Hessy Doris Lloyd was a British actress. She appeared in The Time Machine (1960) and The Sound of Music (1965).
Maudie Prickett was an American character actress who performed in over 300 stage, film, and television productions during a career that spanned nearly four decades.
Danny Green was an English character actor. He was best known for his role as the slow-witted ex-boxer "One-Round" Lawson in The Ladykillers.
Mary Field was an American film actress who primarily appeared in supporting roles.
Edith Evanson was an American character actress of film, stage and television during the Golden Age of Hollywood.
Angela Katherine Greene was an Irish-American actress.
Mary Treen was an American film and television actress. A minor actress for much of her career, she managed to secure a plain, unassuming niche for herself in dozens of movies and television shows in a Hollywood career spanning five decades, from 1930 to 1981.
Edith Emma "Edie" Martin was a British actress. She was a ubiquitous performer, on stage from 1886, playing generally small parts but in high demand, appearing in scores of British films. She frequently appeared in memorable Ealing comedies as their resident "little old lady".
Anita Sharp-Bolster was an Irish actress who appeared in 88 films and 12 TV series from 1928 to 1978. She was sometimes billed as Anita Bolster.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
