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Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Birthday
May 17, 1911
Died
June 23, 1998
Place of Birth
Boyle, County Roscommon, Ireland
Also Known As
- Maureen Paula O'Sullivan
- Морин О’Салливан
- Maureen O’Sullivan
Maureen O'Sullivan
0.9 Popularity
Biography
Maureen Paula O'Sullivan was born in County Roscommon, Ireland, on May 17, 1911. The future mother of Mia Farrow was a schooldays classmate of Vivien Leigh at the Convent of the Sacred Heart at Roehampton in London. Even as a schoolgirl, Maureen desired an acting career; she studied hard and read widely. When the opportunity to be an actress came along, it almost dropped in her lap. The director Frank Borzage was in Dublin filming “Song o’ My Heart” (1930) when Maureen, then 18, met him. Borzage suggested a screen test, which she took. The results were more than favorable, as she won the part of Eileen O’Brien. The part was a substantial one, so much so that Maureen went on to Hollywood to complete the filming. Once in sunny California, Maureen wasted no time landing roles in other films such as “Just Imagine” (1930), “Princess and the Plumber” (1930), and “So This Is London” (1930). Maureen was on a roll that her contemporaries could only have wished for when they were coming up through the ranks. In 1932, Maureen was teamed up with Olympic medal winner Johnny Weissmuller for the first time in “Tarzan the Ape Man” (1932). Five other Tarzan films followed, the last being “Tarzan’s New York Adventure” (1942). The Tarzan epics rank as one of the most memorable series ever made. Most people agree that those movies would not have been successful had it not been for the fine acting talents, not to mention beauty, of Maureen O’Sullivan. But she was more than Jane Parker in the Tarzan films; she had great roles and played beautifully in films such as “The Flame Within” (1935), “David Copperfield” (1935), and “Anna Karenina” (1935). She turned in yet another fine performance in “Pride and Prejudice” (1940). After the 1940s, Maureen made far fewer films, not because she lost popularity but by choice. It isn’t always easy to walk away from a lucrative career, but she did because she wanted to devote more time to her husband, John Farrow, an Australian writer, and their seven children. The couple were married from 1936 until his death in 1963. She did not, however, retire completely; Maureen still found time to make an occasional appearance in films or TV or on the stage. Later movie-goers remember her as Elizabeth Alvorg in the hit film “Peggy Sue Got Married” (1986). Her final silver screen appearance was in “The River Pirates” (1988). Some TV movies followed, but only until 1996. She maintained homes in New Hampshire and Arizona, and it was in Scottsdale that Maureen died on June 23, 1998, of a heart attack. She was 87 years old.
Known For
8.3
Jane Porter (archive footage) (uncredited)
Famous T&A 2
2022
6.5
Self (archive footage)
Tarzan Revisited
2017
🎬
0.0
Where Danger Lives: White Rose for Julie
2007
🎬
7.0
Self (archive footage)
Checking Out: Grand Hotel
2004
6.7
Self (archive footage)
Complicated Women
2003
0.0
Self
In Search of Tarzan with Jonathan Ross
1998
0.0
Self
Jean Harlow: Platinum Bombshell
1996
6.5
Eleanor Biddlecomb
Hart to Hart: Home Is Where the Hart Is
1994
6.0
Helen Taylor
The Habitation of Dragons
1992
6.0
Aunt Mildred
With Murder in Mind
1992
Credits
Famous T&A 2
as Jane Porter (archive footage) (uncredited)
2022
8.3
Tarzan Revisited
as Self (archive footage)
2017
6.5
🎬
Where Danger Lives: White Rose for Julie
2007
0.0
🎬
Checking Out: Grand Hotel
as Self (archive footage)
2004
7.0
Complicated Women
as Self (archive footage)
2003
6.7
In Search of Tarzan with Jonathan Ross
as Self
1998
0.0
Jean Harlow: Platinum Bombshell
as Self
1996
0.0
Hart to Hart: Home Is Where the Hart Is
as Eleanor Biddlecomb
1994
6.5
The Habitation of Dragons
as Helen Taylor
1992
6.0
With Murder in Mind
as Aunt Mildred
1992
6.0
Good Old Boy
as Aunt Sue
1988
6.0
Stranded
as Grace Clark
1987
5.2
Leg Work
as Dorothy Richardson
1987
5.0
Happy 100th Birthday, Hollywood
as Self
1987
5.7
Peggy Sue Got Married
as Elizabeth Alvorg
1986
6.1
Hannah and Her Sisters
as Norma
1986
7.5
Too Scared to Scream
as Marian Hardwick
1984
5.1
Morning's at Seven
as Esther "Esty" Crampton
1982
0.0
Mandy's Grandmother
as Grandmother
1978
4.0
The Great Houdinis
as Lady Conan Doyle
1976
5.9
That's Entertainment, Part II
as (archive footage)
1976
6.9
It's Showtime
as Self (archive footage)
1976
7.0
The Crooked Hearts
as Lillian Stanton
1972
7.8
Hollywood: The Dream Factory
as Self (archive footage)
1972
6.0
The Phynx
as Maureen O'Sullivan
1970
3.2
Never Too Late
as Edith Lambert
1965
5.0
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
as Self
1962
7.5
The Merv Griffin Show
as Self
1962
6.2
The Mike Douglas Show
as Self
1961
5.4
Ben Casey
1961
5.6
Wild Heritage
as Emma Breslin
1958
4.5
The Edge of Innocence
as Julia Williams
1957
0.0
The Tall T
as Doretta Mims
1957
7.0
The Blessed Midnight
as Sister Mary Benedict
1956
5.0
Matinee Theater
1955
5.0
The Little Lamb: A Christmas Story
as Mother
1955
2.0
The Steel Cage
as Gladys Duffy
1954
0.0
Climax!
as Lady Dominey
1954
3.3
Climax!
as Miriam
1954
3.3
🎬
The Whistler
1954
0.0
Duffy of San Quentin
as Gladys Duffy
1954
6.0
Mission Over Korea
as Nancy Slocum
1953
3.0
All I Desire
as Sara Harper
1953
6.8
Cavalcade of America
as Sister Mary Benedict
1952
3.5
🎬
Four Star Playhouse
as Minna Baxter
1952
6.7
Bonzo Goes to College
as Marion Gateson Drew
1952
5.0
Ellis in Freedomland
as The Dishwasher (voice)
1952
0.0
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
1951
7.2
No Resting Place
as Nan Kyle
1951
5.0
Where Danger Lives
as Julie
1950
6.4
🎬
Lux Video Theatre
as Agnes Fisher
1950
6.3
🎬
Lux Video Theatre
as Self - Intermission Guest
1950
6.3
🎬
Lux Video Theatre
as Intermission Guest
1950
6.3
🎬
Lux Video Theatre
as Mary
1950
6.3
🎬
Lux Video Theatre
as Stella
1950
6.3
🎬
Screen Actors
as Self (uncredited)
1950
6.0
What's My Line?
as Self - Mystery Guest
1950
6.9
The Big Clock
as Georgette Stroud
1948
7.3
Tarzan's New York Adventure
as Jane
1942
6.3
Tarzan's Secret Treasure
as Jane
1941
5.8
Maisie Was a Lady
as Abby Rawlston
1941
6.8
Pride and Prejudice
as Jane Bennet
1940
6.9
Sporting Blood
as Linda Lockwood
1940
3.5
Hollywood: Style Center of the World
as Self
1940
5.5
Tarzan Finds a Son!
as Jane Parker
1939
6.1
Let Us Live
as Mary Roberts
1939
6.8
Spring Madness
as Alexandra Benson
1938
3.9
The Crowd Roars
as Sheila 'Shelia' Carson
1938
6.5
Port of Seven Seas
as Madelon
1938
0.0
Hold That Kiss
as June Evans
1938
6.5
A Yank at Oxford
as Molly Beaumont
1938
6.7
My Dear Miss Aldrich
as Martha Aldrich
1937
6.1
The Romance of Celluloid
as Self
1937
7.0
Between Two Women
as Claire Donahue
1937
5.5
The Emperor's Candlesticks
as Maria Orlich
1937
4.7
A Day at the Races
as Judy Standish
1937
7.1
Tarzan Escapes
as Jane
1936
6.3
The Devil-Doll
as Lorraine Lavond
1936
6.8
Hollywood - The Second Step
as Herself
1936
8.0
The Voice of Bugle Ann
as Camden Terry
1936
5.0
The Bishop Misbehaves
as Hester Grantham
1935
4.0
Anna Karenina
as Kitty
1935
6.5
Woman Wanted
as Ann
1935
6.3
The Flame Within
as Linda Belton
1935
4.5
Cardinal Richelieu
as Lenore
1935
7.4
West Point of the Air
as 'Skip' Carter
1935
6.0
David Copperfield
as Dora Spenlow
1935
6.6
The Barretts of Wimpole Street
as Henrietta Barrett
1934
6.0
Hide-Out
as Pauline Miller
1934
6.9
The Thin Man
as Dorothy Wynant
1934
7.5
Tarzan and His Mate
as Jane Parker
1934
6.5
Screen Snapshots No. 11
as Herself
1934
0.0
Stage Mother
as Shirley Lorraine
1933
5.0
Tugboat Annie
as Patricia 'Pat' Severn
1933
7.0
The Cohens and Kellys in Trouble
as Molly Kelly
1933
0.0
Strange Interlude
as Madeline Arnold
1932
5.3
Robbers' Roost
as Helen Herrick
1932
5.5
Payment Deferred
as Winnie Marble
1932
5.6
Okay, America!
as Sheila Barton
1932
5.3
Skyscraper Souls
as Lynn Harding
1932
5.3
Fast Companions
as Sally
1932
6.0
The Silver Lining
as Joyce Moore
1932
0.0
Tarzan the Ape Man
as Jane Parker
1932
6.6
The Big Shot
as Doris Thompson
1931
0.0
Skyline
as Katherine Kearny
1931
0.0
A Connecticut Yankee
as Alisande / Woman in Mansion
1931
6.0
The Princess and the Plumber
as Princess Louise
1930
0.0
Just Imagine
as LN-18
1930
5.8
So This Is London
as Elinor Worthing
1930
7.0
Song o' My Heart
as Eileen
1930
4.1