Peggy Shannon

Born: 1907-01-10

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Peggy Shannon (born Winona Sammon, January 10, 1907 – May 11, 1941) was an American actress. She appeared on the stage and screen of the 1920s and 1930s. Shannon began her career as a Ziegfeld girl in 1923 before moving on to Broadway productions. She was signed to Paramount Pictures and groomed to replace Clara Bow as the newest "It girl", whom she replaced in the 1931 film, The Secret Call. Her growing dependency on alcohol eventually derailed her career. She appeared in her final film, Triple Justice, in 1940. In May 1941, Shannon died at the age of 34 from a heart attack, brought on by alcoholism. Her husband, Albert G. Roberts, shot himself three weeks after her death. Shannon was born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas in 1907[ (some sources erroneously cite 1909 or 1910) to Edward and Nannie Sammon. She had a younger sister, Carol. She attended Annunciation Academy Catholic School and Pine Bluff High School before being hired as a chorus girl by Florenz Ziegfeld while visiting her aunt in New York in 1923. The following year she was cast in the Ziegfeld Follies followed by a role in Earl Carroll's Vanities. While on Broadway in 1927, she was spotted by B. P. Schulberg, production head of Paramount Pictures, and was offered a contract. When she arrived in Hollywood, she was hailed as the next "It girl", replacing the former, Clara Bow. Prior to the shooting of The Secret Call, Bow had suffered a nervous breakdown and Shannon was hired to replace her only two days after her arrival in Hollywood. Shannon would sometimes work sixteen-hour days (from 10 a.m. to 4 a.m. the next day) while shooting a film, and when shooting wrapped, would rush to begin another film. She would occasionally work on two separate films in one day. Through films and publicity, Shannon became known as a fashion plate, wearing styles three months before they became popular. In 1932, she signed a new contract at Fox and became known as difficult and temperamental on the set and was rumored to have had a drinking problem. In 1934, Shannon returned to New York City to do the Broadway show, Page Miss Glory. In 1935, she continued on Broadway with The Light Behind the Shadow, but was soon replaced, with a press release claiming a tooth infection, though rumors claimed it was her drinking. In 1936, she returned to Hollywood with Youth on Parole. She found it harder to conceal her drinking. Fewer movie roles were offered, while her drinking worsened. She made her last film appearance in the 1940 film, Triple Justice, opposite George O'Brien.


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The Women

as Mrs. Jones (uncredited)
Released: 1939-09-01

A happily married woman lets her catty friends talk her into divorce when her husband strays.

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Cafe Hostess

as Nellie
Released: 1940-01-11

A dancehall girl meets a sailor and they fall in love, but the club’s owner doesn’t want the...

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The Amazing Mr. Williams

as Kitty (uncredited)
Released: 1939-11-22

Kenny Williams, a lieutenant on the homicide squad, is engaged to Maxine Carroll, the Mayor's...

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Blackwell's Island

as Pearl Murray
Released: 1939-01-24

A reporter gets himself sent to prison to expose a mobster.

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The Case of the Lucky Legs

as Thelma Bell
Released: 1935-10-05

A con man who stages phony "lucky legs" beauty contests and leaves town with the money is found...

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Deluge

as Claire Arlington
Released: 1933-08-17

A massive earthquake strikes the United States, which destroys the West Coast and unleashes a...

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Fixer Dugan

as Aggie Moreno
Released: 1939-04-21

Charlie Dugan is a quick-thinking boss of a traveling circus playing small towns in Missouri and...

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This Reckless Age

as Mary Burke
Released: 1932-01-09

Donald Ingals and his wife Eunice are conventional and loving parents who are shocked when their...

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The Painted Woman

as Kiddo
Released: 1932-08-20

After becoming involved in a killing, Kiddo gets on board Boyton's ship. When he learns what...

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The Devil's Mate

as Nancy Weaver
Released: 1933-08-20

A convicted murderer has been sentenced to death in the electric chair. He decides to spill the...

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The House Across the Bay

as Alice
Released: 1940-03-01

Nightclub owner Steve Larwitt sees his empire of investments collapse as he faces tax evasion...

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Back Page

as Jerry Hampton
Released: 1933-11-07

A former New York reporter (Peggy Shannon) is hired as editor of a failing, small town newspaper...

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Turn Back the Clock

as Elvina Evans Wright / Elvina Evans Gimlet
Released: 1933-08-25

While recuperating in a hospital after he's hit by an automobile, a struggling shopowner dreams...

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The Adventures of Jane Arden

as Lola Martin
Released: 1939-03-18

Reporter Jane Arden goes undercover to try to expose a gang of jewel thieves and smugglers. Her...

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Dad for a Day

as Mary Baker, Mickey's mother
Released: 1939-10-20

The "Our Gang" kids encourage a shy man to take a widow and her son to a picnic.

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Girls on Probation

as Inmate Ruth
Released: 1938-10-22

A dizzy young girl falls into crime but wins her lawyer's heart.

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Girl Missing

as Daisy Bradford
Released: 1933-03-04

Kay and June, two showgirls, are hurt when they seek financial help from Daisy. On Daisy's...

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Triple Justice

as Susan
Released: 1940-09-22

Brad Henderson arrives in Star City just in time to witness three men rob a bank of $30,000 and...

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Hotel Continental

as Ruth Carleton
Released: 1932-02-21

Scheduled for demolition, Hotel Continental has seen 50 years of romance, intrigue, and tragedy....

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All About Hash

as Edith Henry
Released: 1940-03-30

Mickey's parents are constantly quarreling because his mother serves hash every Monday night....

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Silence

as Norma Davis / Norma Powers
Released: 1931-08-29

A gray-haired convict, within the shadows of the gallows, tells his story to the prison chaplain...

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Youth on Parole

as Peggy
Released: 1937-10-04

Two strangers, a man and a woman, are framed for a jewel robbery and thrown in jail. After they...

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Society Girl

as Judy Gelett
Released: 1932-05-29

Johnny is training for a championship fight. Judy distracts him, so his manager Briscoe walks...

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Fury of the Jungle

as Joan Leesom
Released: 1933-10-23

Joan Leesom is stranded in a remote South American jungle village. She is pursued by the...

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The Road to Reno

as Lee Millet
Released: 1931-09-25

Jackie is the perpetually adolescent mother of two grown children - daughter Lee and son Jeff -...

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The Secret Call

as Wanda Kelly
Released: 1931-07-24

The Secret Call is adapted from The Woman, a play by William C. DeMille (brother of Cecil B.)...

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Touchdown!

as Mary Gehring
Released: 1931-11-15

Football coach Dan Curtis is eager for his small college team to win at all costs.

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False Faces

as Elsie Fryer
Released: 1932-10-12

The philandering Dr. Silas Brenton is fired from his position at a large hospital and given 24...

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