# Marjorie Lord

Marjorie Lord (née Wollenberg; July 26, 1918 – November 28, 2015) was an American television and film actress. She played Kathy "Clancy" O'Hara Williams, opposite Danny Thomas's character on The Danny Thomas Show (Make Room for Daddy).

## Early years

Lord was born in San Francisco, California, the daughter of Lillian Rosalie (née Edgar) and George Charles Wollenberg. During her early childhood, she was a ballet dancer. Her father was a cosmetics executive. Her paternal grandparents were German, as were two of her maternal great-grandparents. Her family moved to New York City when she was 15.

## Career
### Stage

In 1935, at the age of 16, Lord made her Broadway debut in The Old Maid with Judith Anderson. Her other Broadway appearances came in Signature (1945), Little Brown Jug (1946), and The Girl in the Freudian Slip (1967).
Although most of Lord's success came in television, she said in 1963: "I am primarily a stage actress. That's what I was trained to do and that's my first love."
In the 1970s, Lord was active in dinner theater productions, spending 34 weeks in such presentations in 1973 alone.

### Film

One film reference book summarized Lord's movie career by saying, "For two decades, she played leading roles in mostly routine films ..."
Lord was signed by RKO Radio Pictures in 1935. While appearing in Springtime for Henry with Edward Everett Horton, director Henry Koster approached her and signed her to a contract with Universal Studios. She appeared in six feature films and a film serial The Adventures of Smilin' Jack for Universal. Her film work includes a number of wartime pictures, including the 1943 mystery Sherlock Holmes in Washington, starring Basil Rathbone in the title role. She also appeared in the Western films Masked Raiders, Mexican Manhunt, and Down Laredo Way. In 1966, she played Mrs. Martha Meade, the wife of Bob Hope's character, in the screwball comedy Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number!.

### Television

Lord appeared in a 1950 episode of The Lone Ranger titled "Bullets for Ballots", also featuring Craig Stevens, and a 1955 episode entitled "The Law Lady". She appeared on the 1951 episode "The Return of Trigger Dawson" of Bill Williams's syndicated western television series The Adventures of Kit Carson and the 1954 production of "Shadow of Truth" on Ford Theatre.
In 1956, while she was appearing in Anniversary Waltz, Lord caught the attention of Danny Thomas, who asked her to replace Jean Hagen as his television wife on Make Room for Daddy. Hagen had played Thomas' wife since the series' inception, but she was written out of the script in 1956 at the end of her contract. Lord accepted the role and joined the cast of the show, now called The Danny Thomas Show. She played the role until the show was cancelled in 1964. In 1970, Lord and Thomas, along with several other original supporting actors, returned to television with Make Room for Granddaddy. The show lasted just one season.

### Later years

Lord remained active beyond her 90th birthday. On May 8, 2008, she participated in a "Salute to Television Moms" panel discussion organized by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

## Recognition

Lord has a star in the television section of the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 6317 Hollywood Boulevard. The star was dedicated on February 8, 1960.

## Personal life

Lord was married three times. She wed actor John Archer on December 30, 1941, and they had two children, including actress Anne Archer. They were married from 1941 until their divorce in 1955. Her second husband was producer Randolph Hale, to whom she was married from 1958 until his death in 1974. Her third husband was Harry Volk, the former CEO of Union Bank and a Los Angeles philanthropist, to whom she was married from 1976 until his death in 2000. Her memoir is entitled A Dance and a Hug. Lord is grandmother of Tommy Davis, son of her daughter Anne, both of whom are noted members of the Church of Scientology.

### Death

Lord died on November 28, 2015, aged 97, at her home in Beverly Hills, California of natural causes. Upon her death, she was cremated and her ashes given to her son, Gregg Archer.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1937 | High Flyers | Arlene Arlington | Musical comedy film directed by Edward F. Cline |
| 1937 | On Again-Off Again | Florence Cole | Musical comedy film directed by Edward F. Cline |
| 1937 | Forty Naughty Girls | June Preston | American comedy directed by Edward F. Cline |
| 1937 | Hideaway | Joan Peterson | Comedy film directed by Richard Rosson |
| 1937 | Border Café | Janet Barry | Western film directed by Lew Landers |
| 1939 | The Middleton Family at the New York World's Fair | Babs | Directed by Robert R. Snody |
| 1942 | Escape from Hong Kong | Valerie Hale and Fraulein K | American comedy film directed by William Nigh |
| 1942 | Moonlight in Havana | Patsy Clark | American romantic comedy film directed by Anthony Mann |
| 1943 | Johnny Come Lately | Jane | Drama film directed by William K. Howard |
| 1943 | Sherlock Holmes in Washington | Nancy Partridge | The fifth film in the Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce series of Sherlock Holmes films. Directed by Roy William Neill |
| 1943 | Shantytown | Virginia Allen | Crime film directed by Joseph Santley |
| 1943 | Hi, Buddy | Mary Parker | |
| 1943 | The Adventures of Smilin' Jack | Janet Thompson | Serial based on comic strip directed by Lewis D. Collins and Ray Taylor |
| 1947 | New Orleans | Grace Volcella | Musical romance film directed by Arthur Lubin |
| 1948 | The Strange Mrs. Crane | Gina Crane, alias of Jennie Hadley | Crime film-noir film directed by Sam Newfield |
| 1948 | The Argyle Secrets | Marta | Mystery romance directed by Cy Endfield |
| 1949 | Masked Raiders | Gale Trevett aka Diablo Kid | Western directed by Lesley Selander |
| 1949 | Air Hostess | Jennifer White | Action drama directed by Lew Landers |
| 1950 | Chain Gang | Rita McKelvey | American drama film directed by Lew Landers and written by Howard J. Green. |
| 1950 | The Lost Volcano | Ruth Gordon | Adventure film directed by Ford Beebe |
| 1950 | Riding High | Mary Winslow | Musical film directed by Frank Capra |
| 1951 | Stop That Cab | Mary Thomas | Comedy, crime film directed by Eugenio de Liguoro |
| 1951 | Venture of Faith | | Drama directed by Frank R. Strayer |
| 1953 | Mexican Manhunt | Sheila Barton | American crime film directed by Rex Bailey |
| 1953 | Down Laredo Way | Valerie | American western film directed by William Witney |
| 1954 | Port of Hell | Kay Walker | Drama directed by Harold D. Schuster |
| 1966 | Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number! | Mrs. Martha Meade | American comedy film directed by George Marshall |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1949 | Your Show Time | | Episode: "The Real Thing" (S 1:Ep 8) |
| 1950 | The Lone Ranger | Kitty McQueen | Episode: "Bullets for Ballots" (S 1:Ep 35) |
| 1951 | Hollywood Opening Night | | Episode: "Hand on My Shoulder" (S 1:Ep 9) |
| 1952 | Fireside Theatre | Sue Brown | Episode: "Brown of Calaveras" (S 4:Ep 33) |
| 1952 | Fireside Theatre | Gwen | Episode: "Mirage" (S 4:Ep 41) |
| 1952 | China Smith | Ruth Cotton | Episode: "Devil-In-The-Godown" (S 1:Ep 6) |
| 1952 | Fireside Theatre | Catherine | Episode: "Visit from a Stranger" (S 5:Ep 5) |
| 1952 | Ford Theatre: All Star Theatre | | Episode: "Edge of the Law" (S 1:Ep 6) |
| 1953 | Fireside Theatre | | Episode: "The Return" (S 5: 19) |
| 1953 | Schlitz Playhouse of Stars | | Episodew: "The Devil's Other Name" (S 2:Ep 25) |
| 1953 | Ford Theatre: All Star Theatre | | Episode: "The Jewel" (S 1:Ep 35) |
| 1953 | Hallmark Hall of Fame | Sarah McCoy | Episode: "McCoy of Abilene" (S 3:Ep 4) |
| 1953 | Ramar of the Jungle | Lylia Webley | Episode: "Call to Danger" (S 2:Ep 6) |
| 1954 | Ramar of the Jungle | Lylia Webley | Episode: "Blind Peril" (S 2:Ep 12) |
| 1954 | Four Star Playhouse | Bessie | Episode: "Operation In Money" (S 2:Ep 25) |
| 1954 | General Electric Theater | Millie | Episode: "That Other Sunlight" (S 2:Ep 17) |
| 1954 | Schlitz Playhouse of Stars | | Episode: "Her Kind of Honor" (S 3:Ep 29) |
| 1954 | Hopalong Cassidy | Adele Keller | Episode: "Tricky Fingers" (S 2:Ep 26) |
| 1954 | Fireside Theatre | | Episode: "Trial Period" (S 6:Ep 35) |
| 1954 | Cavalcade of America | Mrs. Field | Episode: "The Great Gamble" (S 3:Ep 2) |
| 1954 | The Lone Wolf | Lori Race | Episode: "The Malibu Story (a.k.a. Malibu-Laguna)" (S 1:Ep 9) |
| 1954 | Ford Theatre: All Star Theatre | Liz | Episode: "Shadow of Truth" (S 3:Ep 3) |
| 1954 | Climax! | | Episode: "Epitaph For a Spy" (S 1:Ep 8) |
| 1955 | Cavalcade of America | Lee Powell Coleman | Episode: "Take Off Zero" (S 3:Ep 14) |
| 1955 | Cavalcade of America | | Episode: "Decision For Justice" (S 3:Ep 15) |
| 1955 | The Lone Ranger | Clare Lee | Episode: "The Law Lady" (S 4:Ep 25) |
| 1955 | Henry Fonda Presents the Star and the Story | Joan | Episode: "Newspaper Man" (S 1:Ep 19) |
| 1955 | Loretta Young Show | Miss Cook | Episode: "A Shadow Between" (S 3:Ep 16) |
| 1956 | TV Reader's Digest | | Epispde: "Lost, Strayed, and Lonely" (S 2:Ep 21) |
| 1956 | Wire Service | Phyllis Holley | Episode: "Hideout" (S 1:Ep 3) |
| 1957 | Zane Grey Theater | Amy Marr | Episode: "Decision At Wilson's Creek" (S 1:Ep 28) Rerun as Frontier Justice (S 1:Ep 6) in 1958 with the same episode title |
| 1957 | Wagon Train | Mary Palmer | Episode: "The Willy Moran Story (Pilot)" (S 1:Ep 1) |
| 1957–64 | The Danny Thomas Show | Kathy 'Clancey' O'Hara Williams | Main cast |
| 1958 | The Ed Sullivan Show | Kathy Williams | Episode: "September 21, 1958: CBS's Stars of the 1958–59 TV season" (S 11:Ep 2) |
| 1958 | Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse | Kathy Williams | Episode: "Lucy Makes Room for Danny" (S 1:Ep 9) Also listed under The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour with the same episode title (S 2:Ep 2) |
| 1961 | The Joey Bishop Show | Kathy Williams | Episode: "This Is Your Life" (S 1:Ep 4) A spin-off of The Danny Thomas Show |
| 1967 | The Danny Thomas Hour | Kathy Williams | Episode: "Make More Room for Daddy" (S 1:Ep 9) |
| 1969 | Love, American Style | | Episode: "Love and the Single Couple" (S 1:Ep 13) |
| 1970–71 | Make Room for Granddaddy | Kathy Williams | Main cast Sequel to Make Room for Daddy (1953–1956) Make Room for Daddy changed its name to The Danny Thomas Show (1956–1964) |
| 1975 | The Missing Are Deadly | Mrs. Robertson | Television movie directed by Don McDougall |
| 1978 | Fantasy Island | Beth Shane | Episode: "Family Reunion / Voodoo" (S 1:Ep 4) |
| 1978 | The Pirate | Mrs. Mason | Made-for-television film directed by Ken Annakin Based on the novel with the same name written by Harold Robbins |
| 1980 | The Love Boat | Martha Rogers | Episode: "April's Love/Happy Ending/We Three" (S 3:Ep 17) |
| 1987 | Sweet Surrender | Joyce Holden | Main cast Short-lived American sitcom |
| 1988 | Side by Side | Mrs. Hammerstein | Television movie directed by Jack Bender |

### Stage

| Year | Title | Role | Theatre | Notes |
| 1935 | The Old Maid | Tina | Broadway | Replacement performer |
| 1945 | Signature | Nora Davisson | Broadway | Original performer |
| 1946 | Little Brown Jug | Carol Barlow | Broadway | Original performer |
| 1967 | The Girl in the Freudian Slip | Paula Maugham | Broadway | Original performer |