Rita Johnson
Born: 1913-08-13 in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
Died: 1965-10-31
Known For: Acting
Biography
Rita Ann Johnson (August 13, 1913 – October 31, 1965) was an American actress. Early in her career, Johnson was busy in radio. Johnson began acting on Broadway in 1935 and started her film career two years later. She played a murderer in Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941) and a doomed wife in the RKO film noir They Won't Believe Me (1947). In an incident that was never fully explained, Johnson suffered a head trauma on September 6, 1948 that required brain surgery. Unsubstantiated rumors promulgated by gossip columnists such as Walter Winchell suggested she might have been abused by a boyfriend, but the only explanation she offered was that a large, industrial-grade hair dryer at her apartment had fallen on her. She was in a coma for two weeks and it was reported it took her a year to recover. Her left side was paralyzed temporarily and for a while she couldn't walk. The injury put a virtual halt to her film career. Her screen time in movies after that was limited due to her reduced mobility and powers of concentration. Johnson suffered from alcoholism from the time of her injuries until her death of a brain hemorrhage at age 52. From Wikipedia.
Filmography
1957
- All Mine to Give as Katie Tyler
1956
- Emergency Hospital as Head Nurse Norma Mullen
1954
- Susan Slept Here as Dr. Rawley
1952
1950
- The Second Face as Claire Elwood
1949
- The Art Director as Self - from 'The Big Clock' (archive footage) (uncredited)
1948
- Sleep, My Love as Barby
- Family Honeymoon as Minna Fenster
- The Big Clock as Pauline York
- An Innocent Affair as Eve Lawrence
1947
- Michigan Kid as Sue Dawson
- They Won't Believe Me as Greta Ballentine
- The Perfect Marriage as Mabel Manning
1945
- The Affairs of Susan as Mona Kent
- Thunderhead: Son of Flicka as Nelle McLaughlin
- The Naughty Nineties as Bonita Farrow
- Pardon My Past as Mary Pemberton
1943
- My Friend Flicka as Nell McLaughlin
1942
- The Major and the Minor as Pamela Hill
1941
- Appointment for Love as Nancy Benson
- Here Comes Mr. Jordan as Julia Farnsworth
1940
- Edison, the Man as Mary Stilwell
- Congo Maisie as Kay McWade
- Forty Little Mothers as Marian Edwards
- The Golden Fleecing as Mary Blake
1939
- Honolulu as Cecelia Grayson
- Broadway Serenade as Judith 'Judy' Tyrrell
- Nick Carter, Master Detective as Lou Farnsby
- Stronger Than Desire as Barbara Winter
- They All Come Out as Kitty
- 6,000 Enemies as Anne Barry
- Within the Law as Agnes Lynch
1938
- Man-Proof as Florence (dialogue scenes deleted)
- Letter of Introduction as Honey
- Rich Man, Poor Girl as Sally Harrison
- The Girl Downstairs as Rosalind Brown
- Smashing the Rackets as Leticia "Letty" Lane
1937
- My Dear Miss Aldrich as Ellen Warfield
- London by Night as Patricia Herrick