Betty Garrett
Biography
Betty Garrett (May 23, 1919 - February 12, 2011) was an American actress, comedian, singer and dancer, who starred in several Hollywood musicals and stage roles. She was at the top of her game when the Communist scare in the 1950s brought her career to a screeching, ugly halt. She and her husband Larry Parks, an Oscar-nominated actor, were summoned by the House UnAmerican Activities Committee and questioned about their involvement. As the drama played out, a very pregnant Garrett was never called to testify, but her husband was. With his admission of Communist Party membership from 1941-1945 and refusal to name names, he made it to the Hollywood Blacklist. After the incident, Garrett and Parks worked up nightclub singing/comedy acts along with appearing in legit plays. Although Parks never quite shook off the blacklist incident, he did win a role in John Huston's film, Freud (1962). Garrett went on to appear in roles in many television series.
Known For
Brunhilde Esterhazy
On the Town
Shirley Delwyn
Take Me Out to the Ball Game
Ruth Sherwood
My Sister Eileen
Betty Barrett
Neptune's Daughter
Linda Atlas
The Shadow on the Window
Mrs. Cuttle
Trail of the Screaming Forehead
Self (archive footage)
Hollywood: The Dream Factory
Shoo Shoo Grady
Big City
Peggy Lorgan McNeil
Words and Music
Troupers
Self
Carol Channing: Larger Than Life
(archive footage) (uncredited)
That's Entertainment!
Veronica
The Long Way Home
Catherine
All the Way Home
Self
Gene Kelly: Anatomy of a Dancer
(archive footage)
That's Entertainment! III
Self
Frank Sinatra Memorial
Self (archive footage)
The Costume Designer
Ruth Sherwood (archive footage)
That's Dancing!
Self
Jack Lemmon: America's Everyman
Mrs. Hausenstout
Dark and Stormy Night
Self
Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There
Self
Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1920s: The Dawn of the Hollywood Musical
(archive footage)
Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1940s: Stars, Stripes and Singing
Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Known Credits
24
Gender
Female
Birthday
1919-05-23
Place of Birth
Saint Joseph, Missouri, USA
Also Known As