Zasu Pitts was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas and comedies, transitioning successfully to mostly comedy films with the advent of sound films. She may be best known for her performance in Erich von Stroheim's epic silent film Greed.
Zasu Pitts was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas and comedies, transitioning successfully to mostly comedy films with the advent of sound films. She may be best known for her performance in Erich von Stroheim's epic silent film Greed.
Based on her performance, von Stroheim labeled Pitts "the greatest dramatic actress". He also featured her in his films The Honeymoon (1928), The Wedding March (1928), War Nurse (1930) and Walking Down Broadway, released as Hello, Sister! (1933). However, for the most part, with the advent of sound Pitts was mostly relegated to comedy parts. A bitter disappointment was when she was replaced in the classic war drama All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) by Beryl Mercer after her initial appearance in previews drew unintentional laughs, despite her intense performance. She had viewers rolling in the aisles in Finn and Hattie (1931), The Guardsman (1931), Blondie of the Follies (1932), Sing and Like It (1934) and Ruggles of Red Gap (1935). In 1936 and 1937 she portrayed Hildegarde Withers in two movies, succeeding Edna May Oliver as the spinster sleuth, but they were not well received.
In the 1950s she started focusing on television. This culminated in her best known series role, playing second banana to Gale Storm on CBS's The Gale Storm Show (1956) (also known as Oh, Susannah) in the role of Elvira Nugent ("Nugie"), the shipboard beautician. In 1961, Pitts was cast opposite Earle Hodgins in the episode "Lonesome's Gal" on the ABC sitcom, Guestward, Ho!, set on a dude ranch in New Mexico. In 1962, Pitts appeared in an episode of CBS's Perry Mason, "The Case of the Absent Artist". Her final role was as Gertie, the switchboard operator in the Stanley Kramer comedy epic It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963).
External links
IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/nm0686032
Wikipedia: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q136646
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Filmography (Movies)
The Big Parade of Comedy
Character:Mirabelle in 'The Gay Bride' (archive footage)
Release Date:02/09/1964
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
Character:Gertie - Switchboard Operator
Release Date:07/11/1963
The Thrill of It All
Character:Olivia
Release Date:17/07/1963
Teenage Millionaire
Character:Aunt Theodora
Release Date:01/08/1961
Disneyland '59
Character:Self
Release Date:15/06/1959
This Could Be the Night
Character:Mrs. Shea
Release Date:14/05/1957
Francis Joins the WACS
Character:Valerie Humpert
Release Date:30/07/1954
Denver and Rio Grande
Character:Jane Dwyer
Release Date:16/05/1952
Francis
Character:Valerie Humpert
Release Date:08/02/1950
Lum and Abner
Character:
Release Date:18/07/1949
Life with Father
Character:Cousin Cora Cartwright
Release Date:13/09/1947
The Perfect Marriage
Character:Rosa
Release Date:24/01/1947
Breakfast in Hollywood
Character:Elvira Spriggens
Release Date:26/02/1946
Dear Miss Gloria
Character:Guest star
Release Date:01/01/1946
Let's Face It
Character:Cornelia Pigeon
Release Date:04/08/1943
Tish
Character:Aggie Pilkington (as ZaSu Pitts)
Release Date:17/09/1942
So's Your Aunt Emma!
Character:Aunt Emma Bates
Release Date:17/04/1942
The Bashful Bachelor
Character:Geraldine
Release Date:19/03/1942
Mexican Spitfire at Sea
Character:Miss Pepper
Release Date:13/03/1942
Weekend for Three
Character:Anna, Craig's Maid
Release Date:12/12/1941
The Mexican Spitfire's Baby
Character:Emily Pepper
Release Date:28/11/1941
Miss Polly
Character:Pandora Polly
Release Date:14/11/1941
Uncle Joe
Character:Julia Jordan
Release Date:18/10/1941
Niagara Falls
Character:Emmy Sawyer
Release Date:17/10/1941
Broadway Limited
Character:Myra Pottle
Release Date:13/06/1941
No, No, Nanette
Character:Pauline Hastings
Release Date:19/12/1940
It All Came True
Character:Miss Flint
Release Date:06/04/1940
Eternally Yours
Character:Cary Bingham
Release Date:07/10/1939
Nurse Edith Cavell
Character:Mme. Moulin
Release Date:31/08/1939
Mickey the Kid
Character:Lilly Handy
Release Date:03/07/1939
Naughty But Nice
Character:Aunt Penelope Hardwick
Release Date:23/06/1939
The Lady's from Kentucky
Character:Dulcey Lee
Release Date:27/04/1939
52nd Street
Character:Letitia Rondell
Release Date:19/11/1937
Forty Naughty Girls
Character:Hildegarde Withers
Release Date:24/09/1937
Wanted!
Character:Winnie Oatfield
Release Date:23/08/1937
Sing Me a Love Song
Character:Gwen Logan
Release Date:25/12/1936
The Plot Thickens
Character:Hildegarde Withers
Release Date:11/12/1936
Mad Holiday
Character:Mrs. Fay Kinney
Release Date:13/11/1936
13 Hours by Air
Character:Miss Harkins
Release Date:30/04/1936
The Affair of Susan
Character:Susan Todd
Release Date:01/09/1935
Hot Tip
Character:Belle McGill
Release Date:20/08/1935
She Gets Her Man
Character:Esmeralda
Release Date:05/08/1935
Going Highbrow
Character:Cora Upshaw
Release Date:06/07/1935
Spring Tonic
Character:Maggie Conklin
Release Date:27/06/1935
Ruggles of Red Gap
Character:Mrs. Judson
Release Date:08/03/1935
The Gay Bride
Character:Mirabelle
Release Date:14/12/1934
Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch
Character:Miss Hazy
Release Date:28/10/1934
Dames
Character:Matilda Hemingway
Release Date:01/09/1934
Their Big Moment
Character:Tillie Whim
Release Date:17/08/1934
Private Scandal
Character:Miss Coates
Release Date:11/05/1934
Love Birds
Character:Araminta Tootle
Release Date:04/05/1934
Sing and Like It
Character:Annie Snodgrass
Release Date:20/04/1934
And She Learned About Dames
Character:Herself
Release Date:27/03/1934
Three on a Honeymoon
Character:Alice Mudge
Release Date:22/03/1934
Two Alone
Character:Esthey Roberts
Release Date:26/01/1934
The Meanest Gal in Town
Character:Tillie Prescott
Release Date:12/01/1934
Mr. Skitch
Character:Maddie Skitch
Release Date:22/12/1933
Meet the Baron
Character:Zasu
Release Date:20/10/1933
Aggie Appleby, Maker of Men
Character:Sybby 'Sib'
Release Date:18/10/1933
Love, Honor and Oh, Baby!
Character:Connie Clark
Release Date:01/10/1933
Her First Mate
Character:Mary Horner
Release Date:03/08/1933
Professional Sweetheart
Character:Elmerada
Release Date:09/06/1933
One Track Minds
Character:Zasu Pitts
Release Date:20/05/1933
Hello, Sister!
Character:Millie
Release Date:14/04/1933
The Bargain of the Century
Character:Zasu
Release Date:08/04/1933
Out All Night
Character:Bonny
Release Date:08/04/1933
The Vanishing Frontier
Character:Aunt Sylvia
Release Date:13/03/1933
Maids a la Mode
Character:Miss Pitts
Release Date:04/03/1933
Asleep in the Feet
Character:Zasu
Release Date:21/01/1933
They Just Had to Get Married
Character:Molly Hull
Release Date:05/01/1933
She Whoops To Conquer
Character:Beula
Release Date:01/01/1933
Mother's Helper
Character:
Release Date:01/01/1933
Sneak Easily
Character:Miss Zasu Pitts - Woman of the Jury
Release Date:10/12/1932
Madison Square Garden
Character:Florrie
Release Date:04/11/1932
The Soilers
Character:Zasu
Release Date:29/10/1932
Once in a Lifetime
Character:Miss Leyton
Release Date:02/10/1932
The Crooked Circle
Character:Nora Rafferty
Release Date:25/09/1932
Alum and Eve
Character:Zasu
Release Date:24/09/1932
Blondie of the Follies
Character:Gertie
Release Date:01/09/1932
Show Business
Character:Zasu
Release Date:20/08/1932
Back Street
Character:Mrs. Dole
Release Date:04/08/1932
Roar of the Dragon
Character:Gabby Woman
Release Date:08/07/1932
Make Me a Star
Character:Mrs. Scudder
Release Date:01/07/1932
Is My Face Red?
Character:Morning Gazette Telephone Operator
Release Date:17/06/1932
The Old Bull
Character:Zasu
Release Date:04/06/1932
Westward Passage
Character:Mrs. Truesdale
Release Date:27/05/1932
Strangers of the Evening
Character:Sybil Smith
Release Date:14/05/1932
The Trial of Vivienne Ware
Character:Gladys Fairweather
Release Date:01/05/1932
Strictly Unreliable
Character:Pitts
Release Date:30/04/1932
Destry Rides Again
Character:Temperance Worker
Release Date:17/04/1932
Shopworn
Character:Aunt Dot
Release Date:25/03/1932
Red Noses
Character:Miss Pitts
Release Date:18/03/1932
Steady Company
Character:Dot
Release Date:13/03/1932
Sealskins
Character:Zasu Pitts
Release Date:06/02/1932
Broken Lullaby
Character:Anna, Holderlin's Maid
Release Date:24/01/1932
The Unexpected Father
Character:Polly Perkins
Release Date:03/01/1932
On the Loose
Character:Zasu
Release Date:26/12/1931
The Secret Witness
Character:Bella
Release Date:12/12/1931
War Mamas
Character:Zasu
Release Date:14/11/1931
The Guardsman
Character:Liesl
Release Date:20/10/1931
The Pajama Party
Character:Zasu
Release Date:03/10/1931
Penrod and Sam
Character:Mrs. Bassett
Release Date:01/10/1931
The Big Gamble
Character:Nora Dugan
Release Date:04/09/1931
Catch-As Catch-Can
Character:ZaSu
Release Date:22/08/1931
Their Mad Moment
Character:Miss Dibbs
Release Date:12/07/1931
A Woman of Experience
Character:Katie
Release Date:08/07/1931
Let's Do Things
Character:Zasu Pitts
Release Date:06/06/1931
Seed
Character:Jennie
Release Date:14/05/1931
Beyond Victory
Character:Fritzi Mobley
Release Date:03/04/1931
The Bad Sister
Character:Minnie
Release Date:29/03/1931
Finn and Hattie
Character:Mrs. Hattie Haddock
Release Date:04/02/1931
Passion Flower
Character:Mrs. Harney
Release Date:06/12/1930
Free Love
Character:Ada, the Maid
Release Date:01/12/1930
War Nurse
Character:Cushie
Release Date:22/11/1930
Sin Takes a Holiday
Character:Annie
Release Date:10/11/1930
River's End
Character:Louise
Release Date:01/11/1930
The Lottery Bride
Character:Hilda
Release Date:29/09/1930
Monte Carlo
Character:Bertha
Release Date:27/08/1930
The Squealer
Character:Bella
Release Date:20/08/1930
Little Accident
Character:Monica
Release Date:03/08/1930
The Devil's Holiday
Character:Ethel
Release Date:09/05/1930
Honey
Character:Mayme
Release Date:29/03/1930
No, No, Nanette
Character:Pauline Hastings
Release Date:03/01/1930
The Honeymoon
Character:Caecilia
Release Date:31/12/1929
This Thing Called Love
Character:Clara Bertrand
Release Date:13/12/1929
The Locked Door
Character:Telephone Girl
Release Date:16/11/1929
Paris
Character:Harriet
Release Date:07/11/1929
Oh, Yeah!
Character:The Elk
Release Date:19/10/1929
Her Private Life
Character:Timmins
Release Date:25/08/1929
The Argyle Case
Character:Mrs. Wyatt
Release Date:17/08/1929
Twin Beds
Character:Tillie
Release Date:14/07/1929
The Squall
Character:Lena
Release Date:09/05/1929
The Dummy
Character:Rose Gleason
Release Date:09/03/1929
Sins of the Fathers
Character:Mother Spengler
Release Date:28/12/1928
The Wedding March
Character:Cecelia Schweisser
Release Date:06/10/1928
Buck Privates
Character:Hulda
Release Date:29/01/1928
13 Washington Square
Character:The Maid
Release Date:28/01/1928
Wife Savers
Character:Germaine
Release Date:07/01/1928
Casey at the Bat
Character:Camille
Release Date:08/03/1927
Her Big Night
Character:Gladys Smith
Release Date:12/10/1926
Risky Business
Character:Agnes Wheaton
Release Date:04/10/1926
Sunny Side Up
Character:Evelyn
Release Date:02/08/1926
The Great Love
Character:Nancy
Release Date:28/06/1926
Early to Wed
Character:Mrs. Dugan
Release Date:25/04/1926
Monte Carlo
Character:Hope Durant
Release Date:01/03/1926
What Happened to Jones?
Character:Hilda (as Zazu Pitts)
Release Date:08/02/1926
Mannequin
Character:Annie Pogani
Release Date:11/01/1926
Wages for Wives
Character:Luella Logan
Release Date:15/12/1925
Lazybones
Character:Ruth Fanning
Release Date:06/11/1925
Thunder Mountain
Character:Mandy Coulter
Release Date:11/10/1925
Pretty Ladies
Character:Maggie Keenan
Release Date:06/09/1925
A Woman's Faith
Character:Blanche Odile
Release Date:09/08/1925
1925 Studio Tour
Character:Self
Release Date:09/04/1925
Old Shoes
Character:
Release Date:08/04/1925
The Great Divide
Character:Polly Jordan
Release Date:15/02/1925
The Re-Creation of Brian Kent
Character:Judy
Release Date:15/02/1925
Greed
Character:Trina
Release Date:04/12/1924
Secrets of the Night
Character:Celia Stebbins
Release Date:12/11/1924
The Fast Set
Character:Mona
Release Date:20/10/1924
Changing Husbands
Character:Delia
Release Date:22/06/1924
The Goldfish
Character:Amelia Pugsley
Release Date:30/03/1924
Daughters of Today
Character:Lorena
Release Date:02/02/1924
West of the Water Tower
Character:Dessie Arnhalt
Release Date:06/01/1924
Tea- With a Kick!
Character:'Brainy' Jones
Release Date:26/08/1923
Hollywood
Character:Zasu Pitts
Release Date:19/08/1923
Three Wise Fools
Character:Mickey
Release Date:19/08/1923
Mary of the Movies
Character:Zasu Pitts (uncredited)
Release Date:27/05/1923
Souls for Sale
Character:Self - Celebrity Actress in Commissary
Release Date:22/04/1923
The Girl Who Came Back
Character:Anastasia Muldoon
Release Date:14/04/1923
Poor Men's Wives
Character:Apple Annie
Release Date:28/01/1923
Youth to Youth
Character:Emily
Release Date:16/10/1922
For the Defense
Character:Jennie Dunn
Release Date:04/06/1922
Is Matrimony a Failure?
Character:Mrs. Wilbur
Release Date:16/04/1922
A Daughter of Luxury
Character:Mary Cosgrove
Release Date:01/01/1922
Patsy
Character:Patsy
Release Date:01/02/1921
Heart of Twenty
Character:Katie Abbott
Release Date:20/06/1920
Seeing It Through
Character:Betty Lawrence
Release Date:01/01/1920
Poor Relations
Character:Daisy Perkins
Release Date:01/11/1919
The Other Half
Character:Jennie Jones, The Jazz Kid
Release Date:18/08/1919
Better Times
Character:Nancy Scroggs
Release Date:13/07/1919
Men, Women, and Money
Character:Katie Jones
Release Date:15/06/1919
As the Sun Went Down
Character:Sal Sue
Release Date:10/02/1919
A Lady's Name
Character:Emily
Release Date:10/12/1918
The Talk of the Town
Character:
Release Date:28/09/1918
A Society Sensation
Character:Mary
Release Date:22/09/1918
How Could You, Jean?
Character:Oscar's Sweetheart
Release Date:29/06/1918
A Modern Musketeer
Character:A Kansas Belle (uncredited)
Release Date:30/12/1917
A Little Princess
Character:Becky
Release Date:05/11/1917
'49–'17
Character:Party Guest (uncredited)
Release Date:15/10/1917
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm
Character:Undetermined Role (uncredited)
Release Date:22/09/1917
His Fatal Beauty
Character:Perscilla
Release Date:25/06/1917
A Desert Dilemma
Character:
Release Date:23/06/1917
Tillie of the Nine Lives
Character:
Release Date:19/06/1917
Uneasy Money
Character:Suza - the Editor's Assistant
Release Date:02/06/1917
Why They Left Home
Character:
Release Date:01/01/1917
Television Appearances
Burke's Law
Character:Mrs. Bowie
Guestward, Ho!
Character:
The Dennis O'Keefe Show
Character:
Perry Mason
Character:Daphne Whilom
The Gale Storm Show
Character:
The 20th Century Fox Hour
Character:
Screen Director's Playhouse
Character:Selma
General Electric Theater
Character:Aunt Laura
Private Secretary
Character:
What's My Line?
Character:Self
The Philco Television Playhouse
Character:Belinda Pryde
Images
