Edith Fellows

Born: 1923-05-20

Edith Fellows was born on May 20, 1923, in Boston, Massachusetts. When she was a year old, she and her father and grandmother moved to Charlotte, North Carolina. As a toddler, Edith was pigeon-toed and had trouble walking, and one doctor suggested that dance lessons might cure this condition. At age four, Edith entered Henderson's School of Dance, where she was spotted by a man claiming to be a talent scout, who told her grandmother that he could get Edith into show business for a fifty-dollar fee. The dance school raised the money, but when Edith and her grandmother arrived in Hollywood, they discovered that the address the man had given them did not exist, and they realized he was a fraud. Stranded in Hollywood with no means to return to North Carolina, Edith's grandmother began doing housework to earn a living. While she worked, she left Edith with a neighbor and her young son. One day Edith was taken along when the neighbor's son had an audition for the film Movie Night (1929), and she ended up getting the part. Although she never become a child star, Edith appeared in many popular films of the 1930s, most notably Pennies from Heaven (1936). She also proved herself to be a very versatile actress, playing roles ranging from a spoiled rich girl, as in Heart of the Rio Grande (1942), to a poor orphan girl, as in Pennies from Heaven. Edith was even given her own series, The Five Little Peppers, while under contract to Columbia, and she made four of the Pepper films (the first was Five Little Peppers and How They Grew (1939)) in two years. Between 1929 and 1954, Edith appeared in some fifty films, mostly in juvenile roles due to her short 4' 10" stature. But her career suddenly slowed down in the mid-1950s. Between 1955 and 1980, she appeared in only one film, Lilith (1964), in which she had a bit part. During this time, Edith chose to focus on her family life; she had married producer Freddie Fields in 1946, and their only child, daughter Kathy, was born in 1947. But Edith and Fields divorced in 1955, and the end of her marriage, coupled with other factors, caused Edith to have a nervous breakdown. She recovered, and in 1981, she returned to acting in numerous supporting roles on television. In 1985, fellow former child actor Jackie Cooper announced plans to make a TV movie based on Edith's life, but this project never happened.


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Cimarron

as (uncredited)
Released: 1931-01-26

When the government opens up the Oklahoma territory for settlement, restless Yancey Cravat...

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The Hills Have Eyes Part 2

as Mrs. Wilson
Released: 1985-08-02

A motocross team on their way to trial a new super-fuel head out across the desert lead by...

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Lilith

as Patient (uncredited)
Released: 1964-10-01

Vincent Bruce, a war veteran, begins working as an occupational therapist at Poplar Lodge, a...

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Music in My Heart

as Mary O'Malley
Released: 1940-01-04

A young woman engaged to a millionaire falls for the understudy in a Broadway musical.

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Grace Kelly

as Edith Head
Released: 1983-02-21

The fairy tale story of the actress who became a princess is told in this biography that traces...

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In the Mood

as Mrs. Long, Judy's Mother
Released: 1987-09-16

When 15-year-old Sonny Wisecarver has an affair with his older neighbor Francine and then runs...

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Emma

as Gypsy as a Child (uncredited)
Released: 1932-01-02

When Fred Smith's wife dies in childbirth, Emma Thatcher, who has been nanny to the couple's...

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The Private Navy of Sgt. O'Farrell

as Self (clip from "Pennies from Heaven")
Released: 1968-05-08

Sgt. O'Farrell an Army soldier on an island in the South Pacific during World War II is trying...

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Penguin Pool Murder

as Little Girl at Aquarium (uncredited)
Released: 1932-12-09

New York schoolmarm Hildegarde Withers assists a detective when a body of unscrupulous...

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Huckleberry Finn

as Schoolgirl (uncredited)
Released: 1931-08-07

A year after their former exploits, Tom Sawyer's puppy love of Becky Thatcher keeps him home...

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And So They Were Married

as Brenda Farnham
Released: 1936-05-10

A bitter widow and a grumpy widower find themselves stuck in a hotel that is cut off from the...

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Kid Millions

as Little Girl in Ice Cream Number (uncredited)
Released: 1934-11-10

A musical comedy about a Brooklyn boy who inherits a fortune from his archaeologist father, but...

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Alan Ladd: The True Quiet Man

as Self
Released: 1999-03-04

In the 1942 film "This Gun For Hire," he was only a supporting actor. But his portrayal of a...

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Hollywood’s Children

as Self
Released: 1982-02-24

A documentary about child actors, since the beginning of motion pictures (narrated by Roddy...

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She Married Her Boss

as Annabel Barclay
Released: 1935-09-19

A super-efficient secretary at a department store falls for and marries her boss, but finds out...

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Out West with the Peppers

as Polly Pepper
Released: 1940-06-30

When her doctor advises her to move West because of her health, Mrs. Pepper takes her five kids...

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The Keeper of the Bees

as Jean Marie Meredith / Little Scout
Released: 1935-07-14

A severely traumatized World War I veteran, believing that he's living on borrowed time, comes...

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Daddy Long Legs

as Orphan (uncredited)
Released: 1931-06-05

Wealthy Jervis Pendleton acts as benefactor for orphan Judy Abbott, anonymously sponsoring her...

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Mush and Milk

as Edith
Released: 1933-05-27

When Cap's back pension finally comes in, he treats the gang to a day at an amusement park.

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Shivering Shakespeare

as Girls Scared of Elephant
Released: 1930-01-25

The gang is participating in a program sponsored by the Golden Age Dramatic League. They present...

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Heart of the Rio Grande

as Connie Lane
Released: 1942-03-11

As foreman of a dude ranch, Gene has two problems. One is a guest, the spoiled daughter of a...

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Jane Eyre

as Adele Rochester
Released: 1934-08-15

Jane Eyre is an orphan who was raised by her aunt until she came to Thornfield Hall as governess...

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Stardust on the Sage

as Judy Drew
Released: 1942-05-25

A singing cowboy (Gene Autry) and his partner (Bill Henry) thwart a foreman who wants their mine.

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Five Little Peppers at Home

as Polly Pepper
Released: 1940-02-08

The second entry in the four "Five Little Peppers" films finds the family struggling to keep...

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The Rider of Death Valley

as Betty Joyce
Released: 1932-04-23

Rigby, Larribee, and Grant each have one third of Bill Joyce's map locating his gold mine. The...

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Two Alone

as Rogers' Daughter (uncredited)
Released: 1934-01-26

Mazie, a poor orphan girl, is mistreated by cruel farmer Slag and his wife for whom she works....

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Between Two Brothers

as Victim's Wife
Released: 1982-03-09

Bob Frazer is a prominent attorney who compulsively tries to make amends with his younger, less...

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Divorce In The Family

as Little Girl with Kite
Released: 1932-08-27

A child struggles to come to terms with his parents' divorce. Director Charles Reisner's 1932...

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Little Miss Roughneck

as Foxine LaRue
Released: 1938-01-23

Sad-eyed, uniquely talented child actress Edith Fellows was Columbia's "answer" to Shirley...

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Pride of the Blue Grass

as Midge Griner
Released: 1939-10-06

A young man is determined to turn his beloved racehorse, which is blind, into a champion.

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City Streets

as Winnie Brady
Released: 1938-07-01

When her mother dies, wheel-chair bound Winnie Brady is taken in by shopkeeper and neighbor...

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Life Begins with Love

as Dodie Martin
Released: 1937-10-06

A spoiled playboy is forced to leave town to avoid the press, which latches on to his statement,...

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Five Little Peppers in Trouble

as Polly Pepper
Released: 1940-09-01

The last of the four "Five Little Peppers" films finds the children having a hard time adjusting...

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Pennies from Heaven

as Patsy Smith
Released: 1936-11-25

Larry Poole, in prison on a false charge, promises an inmate that when he gets out he will look...

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Madame X

as Child at Puppet Show (uncredited)
Released: 1929-08-17

A young, unfaithful wife and mother is thrown out by her cold, unforgiving husband, the Attorney...

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Birthday Blues

as Girl with String in Mouth
Released: 1932-11-12

Dickie throws a birthday party to try to raise money to buy his mother a birthday present.

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This Side of Heaven

as Felicia - Minister's Daughter (uncredited)
Released: 1934-02-02

A family man becomes innocently involved in an embezzlement.

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His Greatest Gamble

as Alice (as a child)
Released: 1934-08-10

A man escapes from jail in France to free his daughter from her mother's hold.

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Movie Night

as Daughter
Released: 1929-05-11

A family goes on its weekly outing to the movies. Complications ensue...

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Dinky

as Sally
Released: 1935-05-11

A mother sends her young son to military school so he won't find out she's been sentenced to a...

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Law and Lawless

as Betty Kelley
Released: 1932-11-29

Montana and sidekick Pancho hire on at the Lopez rancho to fight Daggett and his outlaw gang....

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Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch

as Australia Wiggs
Released: 1934-10-28

The Wiggs family plan to celebrate Thanksgiving in their rundown shack with leftover stew,...

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Tugboat Princess

as 'Princess' Judy
Released: 1936-10-15

When her parents are drowned at sea, "Princess" Judy is adopted by a soft-hearted old sea...

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Her First Beau

as Milly Lou
Released: 1941-05-08

15-year-old Penelope (Penny) Wood has two great interests - Chuck Harris and the hope that some...

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Five Little Peppers And How They Grew

as Polly Pepper
Released: 1939-08-22

The first of four films in the "Five Little Peppers" series, based on Margaret Sinclair's...

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Criminal Investigator

as Ellen
Released: 1942-10-23

A reporter investigates the murder of a showgirl, who was the widow of a millionaire. While...

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Nobody's Children

as Pat
Released: 1940-12-12

A radio host broadcasts a show about children living in an orphanage.

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Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 4

as Self
Released: 1942-01-01

Fourth film in the Hedda Hopper series.

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One Way Ticket

as Ellen
Released: 1935-11-25

A convict marries the warder's daughter after his escape and she eventually persuades him to...

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Her First Romance

as Linda Strong
Released: 1940-12-25

A bookish co-ed is pranked into attending a formal dance, but her stepsister refuses to help her...

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Cross Streets

as Little Sister
Released: 1934-07-05

A man falls in love with a young woman, only to discover that she's the daughter of an...

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ER

as Sadie Hubbell
First aired: 1994-09-19

ER explores the inner workings of an urban teaching hospital and the critical issues faced by...

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The Brady Brides

as uncredited
First aired: 1981-02-06

Marcia and Jan Brady marry their sweethearts -- total opposites -- and both couples move in...

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