Acting · Plattsburgh, New York, USA · Born October 17, 1900
Jean Arthur (born Gladys Georgianna Greene; October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991) was an American actress celebrated as one of the defining screen personalities of Hollywood’s Golden Age. Known for her quick wit, expressive voice, and understated charm, she became one of the era’s most beloved comedic leading ladies, especially in the screwball comedy genre. Film historian James Harvey noted that “no one was more closely identified with the screwball comedy than Jean Arthur,” and her work remains central to the style’s legacy. Arthur rose to prominence in the mid‑1930s and became best known for her collaborations with director Frank Capra, starring in Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), You Can’t Take It with You (1938), and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939). These films cemented her image as the relatable, spirited heroine of Depression‑era American cinema. She earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for her performance in The More the Merrier (1943). Although she famously disliked the pressures of Hollywood and often retreated from public life, Arthur continued to work selectively after the 1940s. She delivered a memorable dramatic turn as Marian Starrett in George Stevens’ classic Western Shane (1953). She later returned to acting on television, appearing in a 1965 episode of Gunsmoke and starring in the 1966 sitcom The Jean Arthur Show. After leaving acting, Arthur taught drama at Vassar College and the North Carolina School of the Arts, where students remembered her as a passionate and generous instructor. She lived a largely private life in her later years and died in 1991 at the age of 90.
MovieBecoming Cary Grant
2017
as Self (archive footage)
MovieFrank Capra Jr. Remembers... You Can't Take It with You
2008
as Self (archive footage)
Beyond Tara: The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel
2001
as Self (archive footage)
MovieClara Bow: Discovering the "It" Girl
1999
as Self (from The Saturday Night Kid [1929]) (archive footage)
MovieGary Cooper: The Face of a Hero
1998
as Self (archive footage)
MovieThe Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind
1988
as Self (archive footage)
MovieGoing Hollywood: The '30s
1984
as (archive footage)
TVThe Jean Arthur Show
1966
MovieHollywood: The Selznick Years
1961
as Self - Actress 'Gone with the Wind' screen test (archive footage) (uncredited)
TVGunsmoke
1955
as Julie Blane
MovieYesterday and Today
1953
as (archive footage)
MovieShane
1953
as Marian Starrett
MovieA Foreign Affair
1948
as Congresswoman Phoebe Frost
MovieThe Impatient Years
1944
as Janie Anderson
MovieA Lady Takes a Chance
1943
as Molly J. Truesdale
MovieThe More the Merrier
1943
as Constance Milligan
MovieThe Talk of the Town
1942
as Nora Shelley
MovieThe Devil and Miss Jones
1941
as Mary Jones
MovieArizona
1940
as Phoebe Titus
MovieToo Many Husbands
1940
as Vicky Lowndes
MovieMr. Smith Goes to Washington
1939
as Clarissa Saunders
Screen Snapshots Series 19, No. 1
1939
as Self
MovieOnly Angels Have Wings
1939
as Bonnie Lee
MovieYou Can't Take It with You
1938
as Alice Sycamore
MovieScreen Snapshots Series 17, No. 12
1938
as Jean Arthur
MovieEasy Living
1937
as Mary Smith
MovieHistory Is Made at Night
1937
as Irene Vail
MovieMore Than a Secretary
1936
as Carol Baldwin
MovieThe Plainsman
1936
as Calamity Jane
MovieAdventure in Manhattan
1936
as Claire Peyton
MovieScreen Snapshots (Series 16, No. 1)
1936
as Self
MovieThe Ex-Mrs. Bradford
1936
as Paula Bradford
MovieMr. Deeds Goes to Town
1936
as Babe Bennett
MovieIf You Could Only Cook
1935
as Joan Hawthorne
MovieThe Public Menace
1935
as Cassie Nicholls
MovieDiamond Jim
1935
as Jane Matthews / Emma
MoviePublic Hero Number 1
1935
as Maria Theresa 'Terry' O'Reilly
MovieParty Wire
1935
as Marge Oliver
MovieThe Whole Town's Talking
1935
as Wilhelmina 'Bill' Clark
MovieThe Defense Rests
1934
as Joan Hayes
MovieMost Precious Thing in Life
1934
as Ellen Holmes, aka Biddy, Babe
MovieWhirlpool
1934
as Sandy
MovieGet That Venus
1933
as Margaret Rendleby
MovieThe Past of Mary Holmes
1933
as Joan Hoyt
MovieEx-Bad Boy
1931
as Ethel Simmons
MovieThe Lawyer's Secret
1931
as Beatrice Stevens
MovieVirtuous Husband
1931
as Barbara Olwell
MovieThe Gang Buster
1931
as Sylvia Martine
MovieDanger Lights
1931
as Mary Ryan
MovieThe Silver Horde
1930
as Mildred Wayland
MovieThe Return of Dr. Fu Manchu
1930
as Lia Eltham
MovieParamount on Parade
1930
as Dream Girl
MovieYoung Eagles
1930
as Mary Gordon
MovieStreet of Chance
1930
as Judith Marsden
MovieHalf Way to Heaven
1929
as Greta Nelson
MovieThe Saturday Night Kid
1929
as Janie Barry
MovieThe Greene Murder Case
1929
as Ada Greene
MovieThe Mysterious Dr. Fu Manchu
1929
as Lia Eltham
MovieStairs of Sand
1929
as Ruth Hutt
MovieThe Canary Murder Case
1929
as Alice LaFosse
MovieSins of the Fathers
1928
as Mary Spengler
MovieBrotherly Love
1928
as Mary
MovieWarming Up
1928
as Mary Post
MovieWallflowers
1928
as Sandra
MovieFlying Luck
1927
as The Girl
MovieThe Masked Menace
1927
as Faith Newton
The Poor Nut
1927
as Margie Blake
MovieBigger and Better Blondes
1927
as Ramona
MovieHorse Shoes
1927
as Miss Baker
MovieThe Broken Gate
1927
as Ruth Hale
MovieHello Lafayette
1927
MovieWinners Of The Wilderness
1927
as Bit Role (uncredited)
MovieHusband Hunters
1927
as Lettie Crane
MovieThe Block Signal
1926
as Grace Ryan
MovieThe College Boob
1926
as Angela Boothby
Twisted Triggers
1926
as Ruth Regan
MovieThe Cowboy Cop
1926
as Virginia Selby
Lightning Bill
1926
as Marie Denton
MovieDouble Daring
1926
as Marie Wells
Ridin' Rivals
1926
as Ruth Burroghs
The Mad Racer
1926
Eight-Cylinder Bull
1926
The Fighting Cheat
1926
as Ruth Wells
MovieBorn to Battle
1926
as Eunice Morgan
The Roaring Rider
1926
as Mary Watkins
Under Fire
1926
as Margaret Cranston
Thundering Through
1925
as Ruth Burroughs
The Hurricane Horseman
1925
as June Mathews
MovieThe Iron Horse
1925
as Reporter (uncredited)
MovieA Man of Nerve
1925
as Loria Gatlin
MovieTearin' Loose
1925
as Sally Harris
MovieThe Fighting Smile
1925
as Rose Craddock
MovieThe Drug Store Cowboy
1925
as Jean
MovieSeven Chances
1925
as Miss Smith the Country Club Receptionist (uncredited)
Travelin' Fast
1924
as Betty Conway
MovieThundering Romance
1924
as Mary Watkins
MovieBringin' Home the Bacon
1924
as Nancy Norton
MovieWine of Youth
1924
as Flapper
MovieFast and Fearless
1924
as Mary Brown
MovieBiff Bang Buddy
1924
as Bonnie Norton
The Powerful Eye
1924
as Dud's Sweetheart
Case Dismissed
1924
as Jean
MovieSpring Fever
1923
Monks a la mode
1923
as Madame Maxine
Somebody Lied
1923
MovieCameo Kirby
1923
as Ann Playdell
