Cathy O'Donnell
Acting

Cathy O'Donnell

Born 6 July 1923 · Siluria, Alabama, USA · Died 11 April 1970

Cathy O'Donnell (July 6, 1923 – April 11, 1970) was an American actress, best known for her many roles in film-noir movies. While under contract with Samuel Goldwyn, O'Donnell made her debut in an uncredited role as a nightclub extra in Wonder Man (1945). Her first major role in The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), playing Wilma Cameron, the high-school sweetheart of double amputatee Homer Parrish, played by real-life World War II veteran/amputee Harold Russell. She was loaned out to RKO for one of her most memorable films, They Live by Night (1949) starring with Farley Granger, widely considered a classic of the noir genre and on the Guardian's list of the top ten noir films. The film was directed by Nicholas Ray. The two actors later re-teamed for another movie, Side Street (1950).

Known for

Ben-Hur
The Best Years of Our Lives
The Man from Laramie
They Live by Night
Detective Story
The Amazing Mr. X
Side Street
The Story of Mankind
Bury Me Dead
The Deerslayer
The Miniver Story
My World Dies Screaming
Ben-Hur
My World Dies Screaming
The Story of Mankind
The Deerslayer
The Man from Laramie
Mad at the World
Eight O'Clock Walk
Loves of Three Queens
The Woman's Angle
Detective Story
Never Trust a Gambler
Side Street
The Miniver Story
They Live by Night
The Amazing Mr. X
Bury Me Dead
The Best Years of Our Lives
Cathy O'Donnell · Midrow