Primarily a theater actress, Booth began her career onBroadway in 1915. Her most significant success was as Lola Delaney, in the dramaCome Back, Little Sheba, for which she received her secondTony Award in 1950 (she would go on to win three). She made her film debut, reprising her role in the1952 film version, for which she won theAcademy Award for Best Actress and theGolden Globe Award for Best Actress for her performance. Despite her successful entry into films, she preferred acting on the stage, and made only four more films.
Booth was bornMarjory Ford in New York City, according to her birth certificate[2][3][1] to Albert James and Virginia M. (née Wright) Ford. In the 1900 New York state census, she was listed asThelma Booth Ford. She had one sibling, a younger sister, Jean. Her early childhood was spent inFlatbush, Brooklyn, where she attended Public School 152.[4][5][6]
When she was age 7, Booth's family moved to Philadelphia, where she first became interested in acting after seeing a stage performance. When Booth was a teenager, her family moved to Hartford, Connecticut, where she became involved insummer stock. She made her stage debut in a production ofMother Carey's Chickens. Against her father's protests, she dropped out of school and traveled to New York City to pursue a career. She initially used the name Thelma Booth when her father forbade her to use the family name professionally. She eventually changed her name to Shirley Booth.[5]
Humphrey Bogart and Booth in the original Broadway production ofHell's Bells (1925)Playbill for the original production ofThree Men on a Horse, starring Booth, William Lynn andSam Levene (1935)
Booth began her stage career as a teenager, acting instock company productions. She was a prominent actress inPittsburgh theatre for a time, performing with the Sharp Company.[7] Her debut on Broadway was in the playHell's Bells, withHumphrey Bogart, on January 26, 1925.[5][8] Booth first attracted major notice as the female lead in the comedy hitThree Men on a Horse, which ran from 1935 to 1937.[9] During the 1930s and 1940s, she achieved popularity in dramas, comedies and later musicals. She acted withKatharine Hepburn inThe Philadelphia Story (1939), originated the role of Ruth Sherwood in the 1940 Broadway production ofMy Sister Eileen, and performed withRalph Bellamy inTomorrow the World (1943).[10]Booth also starred on the popular radio seriesDuffy's Tavern, playing the lighthearted, wisecracking, man-crazy daughter of the unseen tavern owner on CBS radio from 1941 to 1942 and onNBC Blue from 1942 to 1943. Her then-husband,Ed Gardner, created and wrote the show as well as played its lead character Archie, the manager of the tavern; Booth left the show after the couple divorced.[6] She auditioned unsuccessfully for the title role ofOur Miss Brooks in 1948; she had been recommended byHarry Ackerman, who was to produce the show, but Ackerman told radio historianGerald Nachman that he felt Booth was too conscious of a high school teacher's struggles to have full fun with the character's comic possibilities.Our Miss Brooks became a radio and television hit when the title role went toEve Arden.[11] In the summer of 1949, Booth portrayed Phyllis Hogan in the situation comedyHogan's Daughter on NBC radio.[12]
Booth received her firstTony Award, for Best Supporting or Featured Actress (Dramatic), for her performance as Grace Woods inGoodbye, My Fancy (1948).[13] Her second Tony was for Best Actress in a Play, which she received for her widely acclaimed performance as the tortured wife Lola Delaney in the poignant dramaCome Back, Little Sheba (1950).Sidney Blackmer received the Tony for Best Actor in a Play for his performance as her husband Doc.[14]
Her success inCome Back, Little Sheba was followed by the musicalA Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1951), based on the popular novel, in which she played the feisty, but lovable Aunt Sissy, which proved to be another major hit. Her popularity was such that, at the time, the story was skewed from the original so that Aunt Sissy was the leading role (rather than Francie). Booth then went to Hollywood and reprised her stage role inthe 1952 film version ofCome Back, Little Sheba withBurt Lancaster playing Doc.[15] After that movie was completed — her first of only five films in her career[16] — she returned to New York and played Leona Samish inArthur Laurents' playThe Time of the Cuckoo (1952) on Broadway.[17]
Booth was age 54 when she made her first movie, but she had successfully shaved almost a decade off her real age, with her publicity stating 1907 as the year of her birth. Her correct year of birth was known by only her closest associates, until her correct year of birth, 1898, was announced at the time of her death.[20] Her second starring film,About Mrs. Leslie, a romantic drama oppositeRobert Ryan, was released in 1954 to good reviews, but was poorly received by audiences.[21] In 1953, Booth had made a cameo appearance as herself in the all-star comedy/drama movieMain Street to Broadway. She spent the next few years commuting between New York and California. On Broadway, she scored personal successes in the musicalBy the Beautiful Sea (1954) and the comedyDesk Set (1955). Although Booth had become well known to moviegoers during this period, the movie roles forThe Time of the Cuckoo (re-titled asSummertime for the film in 1955),[22] andDesk Set (1957), both went toKatharine Hepburn.[23]
In 1957, Booth won theSarah Siddons Award for her work on the stage in Chicago.[24] She returned to the Broadway stage in 1959, starring as the long-suffering title character inMarc Blitzstein's musicalJuno, an adaptation ofSeán O'Casey's 1924 playJuno and the Paycock.[25][26] In 1961, directorFrank Capra approached Booth about starring inPocketful of Miracles, an updated version of Capra's 1933 comedy-dramaLady for a Day starringMay Robson. Booth informed him that she was unable to match Robson's Oscar-nominated performance in the original film and declined the role. Capra instead castBette Davis, who was unfavorably compared to Robson by most reviewers when the film was released.[27]
In 1961, Booth was cast in the title role on the sitcomHazel, based onTed Key's popular single-panel cartoon from theSaturday Evening Post about the domineering yet endearing housemaid named Hazel Burke who works for the Baxter family. The series also starredDon DeFore as George Baxter,Whitney Blake as Dorothy "Missy" Baxter, andBobby Buntrock as the Baxters' young son Harold. Upon its premiere,Hazel was an immediate hit with audiences and drew high ratings.[31]
In 1963, Booth told the Associated Press at the height ofHazel's popularity,
I liked playing Hazel the first time I read one of the scripts, and I could see all the possibilities of the character—the comedy would take care of itself. My job was to give her heart. Hazel never bores me. Besides, she's my insurance policy.[4]
In 1965, NBC canceled the series.[33] CBS picked up and retooled the series; Don DeFore (George Baxter) and Whitney Blake (Dorothy Baxter) were written out of the series, while Bobby Buntrock (Harold "Sport" Baxter) remained a cast member.Ray Fulmer was cast as Steve Baxter, the brother of DeFore's character George.[34] Booth, who owned the rights to the series,[citation needed] hiredLynn Borden, a formerMiss Arizona, as Steve's wife Barbara.[35][better source needed]Julia Benjamin was cast as Barbara and Steve's daughter Susie. In the retooled version, George and Dorothy Baxter have moved to Baghdad, leaving Harold to live with Steve and Barbara. Hazel remains on as the new Baxters' housekeeper.[34] While ratings for the fifth season were still strong (Hazel ranked number 26 for the season), Booth decided to end the show due to health problems.[36]
Shortly after the end ofHazel, Booth appeared in the television production ofThe Glass Menagerie that aired on the anthology seriesCBS Playhouse. She won critical acclaim for her performance and was nominated for another Primetime Emmy Award.[37]
Booth's final Broadway appearances were in a revival ofNoël Coward's playHay Fever and the musicalLook to the Lilies, both in 1970. In 1971, she returned to Chicago to star withGig Young in a revival ofHarvey at the Blackstone Theater.[38] In 1973, Booth returned to episodic television in theABC seriesA Touch of Grace. The series was based on the British sitcomFor the Love of Ada.[39]A Touch of Grace was canceled after one season.[40]
In 1974, Booth provided the voice for the character ofMrs. Claus in the animated television specialThe Year Without a Santa Claus.[41] It was Booth's final acting role after which she retired to her home in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.[4]
On November 23, 1929, Booth marriedEd Gardner, who later gained fame as the creator and host of the radio seriesDuffy's Tavern, with Booth originating the role of man-hungry Miss Duffy in the series. They divorced in 1942.[6] She married William H. Baker Jr., a corporal in the U.S. Army, the following year. Booth and Baker remained married until his death from heart disease in 1951. She never remarried and had no children from either marriage.[4]
After retiring from acting in 1974, Booth moved to North Chatham, Massachusetts, where she lived with her pet poodle and two cats.[20][32] She maintained contact with her friends via telephone and spent her time painting and doing needlework.[20] In November 1979, she was inducted into theAmerican Theatre Hall of Fame.[43] Booth did not attend the ceremony, and the award was accepted on her behalf byCeleste Holm.[20]
By 1976, Booth's health began to decline. She reportedly suffered a stroke that caused mobility issues and blindness. After her death, Booth's sister said she had broken her hip in 1979, which restricted her mobility.[20] On October 16, 1992, Booth died at the age of 94 at her home in North Chatham.[4][44] After a private memorial service, Booth was interred in the Baker family plot inMount Hebron Cemetery in Montclair, New Jersey.[20]
^abA copy of her birth certificate reflecting the true birth name and date is located in Booth's clippings file on the third floor of theNew York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center.
