Paulette Goddard
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Notes
At the time of her death, various newspapers reported that the year of Goddard's birth was quite possibly earlier than 1911, in fact possibly as far back as 1904.
In her later years Goddard endowed a scholarship fund for students in film production and cinema studies at New York University, and upon her death it was announced that she had left the university upwards of $30 million. A staircase in NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and one of the university's dormitories were named in her honor, although for a number of years her name was misspelled "Godard" on the staircase.
Biography
Amiable, effervescent leading lady, in Hollywood from 1929 but virtually unknown until she very touchingly played a waif opposite second husband Charles Chaplin in "Modern Times" (1936). Goddard was one of the final contenders for the much sought-after role of Scarlett O'Hara in "Gone with the Wind" (1939) but ultimately lost out to Vivien Leigh. (One story has it that a possible scandal surrounding her marital status with Chaplin may have kept her from getting the role.) Goddard, an extremely pretty and vivacious brunette, nevertheless became a popular favorite in comedy and period melodrama, remaining a top star at Paramount throughout the 1940s. She is best known as part of George Cukor's all-star distaff ensemble in the riotous "The Women" (1939) and as Bob Hope's co-star in the enjoyable horror comedies "The Cat and the Canary" (1939) and "The Ghost Breakers" (1940).
Besides the Chaplin and Cukor films, probably Goddard's finest performance is to be found in Mitchell Leisen's nicely judged and handsomely designed reworking of the "Pygmalion" myth, "Kitty" (1945). She also appeared in several films opposite her third husband, actor Burgess Meredith, including Jean Renoir's striking and offbeat "The Diary of a Chambermaid" (1946). After making several poor films in the later 40s, Goddard found that her star status had slipped; she and Paramount parted company in 1949 and she continued on for another five years in low-budget fare including "Babes in Bagdad" (1952) and "Vice Squad" (1953). A sharp-witted and alert woman reportedly much admired by H.G. Wells and other intellectuals, Goddard wed her last spouse, novelist Erich Maria Remarque, in the 50s, a union that would last until his death. She made her final screen appearance, following a ten-year absence, in the Italian production "A Time of Indifference" (1964).
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Producer (Feature Film)
Cast (Short)
Life Events
1926
Stage debut as chorine with Ziegfeld revue; billed for a time as "Peaches"
1927
Stage acting debut in "The Unconquerable Male"
1929
Signed contract with Roach Studios
1936
Appeared as Chaplin's leading lady in "Modern Times"
1939
Signed contract with Paramount
1940
First of three films with director Cecil B. DeMille, "Northwest Mounted Police"
1949
Formed Monterey Pictures (with John Steinbeck)
1949
Stardom faded in the late 1940s; left Paramount after "Bride of Vengeance", in which she played Lucretia Borgia
1954
Played last starring roles in "The Charge of the Lancers" and "The Stranger Came Home"
1964
One-shot return to films, in a supporting role in the Italian production, "Time of Indifference", based on the Alberto Moravia novel
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Notes
At the time of her death, various newspapers reported that the year of Goddard's birth was quite possibly earlier than 1911, in fact possibly as far back as 1904.
In her later years Goddard endowed a scholarship fund for students in film production and cinema studies at New York University, and upon her death it was announced that she had left the university upwards of $30 million. A staircase in NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and one of the university's dormitories were named in her honor, although for a number of years her name was misspelled "Godard" on the staircase.
During the infamous days of the blacklist in Hollywood in the late 40s, Goddard maintained her famous sharp wit. Asked if she feared the paranoid gossip which was ruining so many careers, she reportedly replied, "If anyone calls me a Communist, I'll hit them over the head with my diamond bracelets." (Story related in the "New York Times" obituary, 1990)
