# Betty Grable filmography

This is a complete filmography of Betty Grable, an American actress, dancer, and singer. As a major contract star for 20th Century-Fox during the 1940s and 1950s, she starred in a succession of musicals and romantic comedies.
Grable began her career in 1929 at age twelve, after which she was fired from a contract when it was learned she signed up under false identification. She made her film debut in Happy Days (1929) as an unbilled extra appearing in blackface. Grable had contracts with RKO Radio Pictures and Paramount Pictures during the 1930s, and she starred in roles as college students in a string of B-movies. In the campus musical Pigskin Parade (1936), she received positive reviews, but her performance was overshadowed by newcomer Judy Garland.
She eventually came to prominence in the Broadway musical Du Barry Was a Lady (1939) and signed an exclusive long-term contract with 20th Century-Fox. After replacing Alice Faye in Down Argentine Way (1940), she became the studio's biggest asset throughout the following decade, starring in a series of commercially successful musicals and comedies, often co-starring with renowned leading men, including Victor Mature, Don Ameche, John Payne, Tyrone Power, and Dan Dailey. Between 1941 and 1951, she was consistently listed in the "Top Ten Moneymaking Stars Poll", sometimes as the only female on the list. In 1943 and 1944, she was the number one box office draw in the United States. Her famous 1943 pin-up became one of the most-identified photographs of World War II.
The majority of Grable's films followed the traditional backstage musical genre point-by-point. Plot point one: boy meets girl; plot point two: boy teams up with girl; plot point three: girl dumps boy; and plot point four: boy and girl reunite in time for the finale. Despite the often similar storylines, her films remained immensely popularity for over a decade, some of them becoming the year's highest-grossing films, including Springtime in the Rockies (1942), Coney Island (1943), The Dolly Sisters (1945), and When My Baby Smiles at Me (1948). Two of her greatest successes were Pin Up Girl (1944) (which showcased her famous pin-up) and Mother Wore Tights (1947). The 1949 western comedy The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend was Grable's first film in nine years to lose money financially.
The changing tastes of the public and the waning popularity of the musical genre in the early 1950s contributed to Grable's career decline. Although Wabash Avenue and My Blue Avenue (both 1950) were successes, some of her films thereafter failed to live up to their hype. How to Marry a Millionaire (1953), a comedy about three models scheming to marry wealthy husbands, was one of her last big successes for Fox. She co-starred with newcomer Marilyn Monroe and Lauren Bacall, and while tabloids publicized a rivalry between the three women, they nevertheless became close friends. In 1953, she declined to renew her contract with Fox, hoping to revitalize her stage career. This move was not successful and, after falling into bankruptcy, Grable returned to the studio for what would be her final film: the satirical comedy How to Be Very, Very Popular (1955), which parodied her earlier films in some aspects.

## Credits
### Film appearances

List of acting credits in film, with directors and principal cast members :
| Title | Year | Role | Director | Co-stars | Notes |
| Happy Days | 1929 | Chorus Girl | Benjamin Stoloff | Charles E. EvansMarjorie WhiteRichard Keene | Uncredited |
| Let's Go Places | 1930 | Chorine | Frank R. Strayer | Joseph WagstaffLola Lane | Uncredited |
| New Movietone Follies of 1930 | 1930 | Chorine | Benjamin Stoloff | El BrendelMarjorie White | Uncredited |
| Whoopee! | 1930 | Goldwyn Girl | Thornton Freeland | Eddie CantorEthel ShuttaEleanor Hunt | Uncredited |
| Kiki | 1931 | Goldwyn Girl | Sam Taylor | Mary Pickford | Uncredited |
| Palmy Days | 1931 | Goldwyn Girl | A. Edward Sutherland | Charlotte GreenwoodBarbara WeeksSpencer Charters | Uncredited |
| The Greeks Had a Word for Them | 1932 | Hat Check Girl | Lowell Sherman | Joan BlondellMadge EvansIna Claire | Uncredited |
| Probation | 1932 | Ruth Jarrett | Richard Thorpe | John DarrowSally Blane | Grable's first credited role |
| The Age of Consent | 1932 | Student at Dormitory | Gregory La Cava | Dorothy WilsonArline Judge | Uncredited |
| Hold 'Em Jail | 1932 | Barbara Jones | Norman Taurog | Bert WheelerRobert WoolseyEdna May Oliver | |
| The Kid from Spain | 1932 | Goldwyn Girl | Leo McCarey | Eddie CantorLyda RobertiRobert Young | Uncredited |
| Child of Manhattan | 1933 | Lucy McGonegle | Edward Buzzell | Nancy CarrollJohn Boles | |
| Cavalcade | 1933 | Girl on couch | Frank Lloyd | Diana WynyardClive BrookUna O'Connor | Uncredited |
| Melody Cruise | 1933 | First Stewardess | Mark Sandrich | Charles RugglesPhil Harris | Uncredited |
| What Price Innocence? | 1933 | Beverly Bennett | Willard Mack | Jean ParkerMinna GombellWillard Mack | |
| The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi | 1933 | Band Singer with Ted Fio Rito | Edwin L. Marin | Mary CarlisleBuster Crabbe | |
| The Gay Divorcee | 1934 | Dance Specialty | Mark Sandrich | Fred AstaireGinger Rogers | |
| Student Tour | 1934 | Cayenne | Charles Reisner | Jimmy DuranteCharles ButterworthMaxine Doyle | |
| By Your Leave | 1934 | Frances Gretchell | Lloyd Corrigan | Frank MorganGenevieve Tobin | |
| The Nitwits | 1935 | Mary Roberts | George Stevens | Bert WheelerRobert Woolsey | |
| Old Man Rhythm | 1935 | Sylvia | Edward Ludwig | Charles 'Buddy' RogersGeorge Barbier | |
| Collegiate | 1936 | Dorothy | Ralph Murphy | Joe PennerJack OakieNed Sparks | |
| Follow the Fleet | 1936 | Trio Singer | Mark Sandrich | Fred AstaireGinger Rogers | |
| Don't Turn 'Em Loose | 1936 | Mildred Webster | Benjamin Stoloff | Lewis StoneJames GleasonBruce Cabot | |
| Pigskin Parade | 1936 | Laura Watson | David Butler | Stuart ErwinPatsy KellyJudy GarlandJack Haley | |
| This Way Please | 1937 | Jane Morrow | Robert Florey | Charles 'Buddy' Rogers | |
| Thrill of a Lifetime | 1937 | Gwen | George Archainbaud | The Yacht Club Boys | |
| College Swing | 1938 | Betty | Raoul Walsh | George BurnsGracie AllenMartha RayeBob HopeEdward Everett Horton | |
| Give Me a Sailor | 1938 | Nancy Larkin | Elliott Nugent | Bob HopeJack WhitingMartha Raye | |
| Campus Confessions | 1938 | Joyce Gilmore | George Archainbaud | Eleanore WhitneyWilliam Henry | Grable received top billing for the first time |
| Man About Town | 1939 | Susan Hayes | Mark Sandrich | Jack BennyDorothy Lamour | |
| Million Dollar Legs | 1939 | Carol Parker | Nick Grinde | John HartleyDonald O'ConnorJackie CooganDorothea Kent | |
| The Day the Bookies Wept | 1939 | Ina Firpo | Leslie Goodwins | Joe Penner | |
| Down Argentine Way | 1940 | Glenda CrawfordGlenda Cunningham | Irving Cummings | Don AmecheCarmen MirandaCharlotte Greenwood | |
| Tin Pan Alley | 1940 | Lily Blane | Walter Lang | Alice FayeJohn PayneJack Oakie | |
| Moon Over Miami | 1941 | Kathryn 'Kay' Latimer | Walter Lang | Don AmecheRobert CummingsCarole LandisJack Haley | |
| A Yank in the RAF | 1941 | Carol Brown | Henry King | Tyrone Power | |
| I Wake Up Screaming | 1941 | Jill Lynn | H. Bruce Humberstone | Victor MatureCarole Landis | |
| Song of the Islands | 1942 | Eileen O'Brien | Walter Lang | Victor MatureJack Oakie | |
| Footlight Serenade | 1942 | Pat Lambert | Gregory Ratoff | John PayneVictor MatureJane Wyman | |
| Springtime in the Rockies | 1942 | Vicky Lane | Irving Cummings | John PayneCarmen MirandaCesar RomeroHarry James | |
| Coney Island | 1943 | Kate Farley | Walter Lang | George MontgomeryCesar Romero | |
| Sweet Rosie O'Grady | 1943 | Madeline MarloweRosie O'Grady | Irving Cummings | Robert YoungAdolphe Menjou | |
| Four Jills in a Jeep | 1944 | Herself | William A. Seiter | Kay FrancisCarole LandisAlice FayeMartha RayeCarmen Miranda | |
| Pin Up Girl | 1944 | Lorry JonesLaura Lorraine | H. Bruce Humberstone | John HarveyMartha Raye | |
| Billy Rose's Diamond Horseshoe | 1945 | Bonnie Collins | George Seaton | Dick HaymesPhil SilversWilliam Gaxton | |
| The Dolly Sisters | 1945 | Yansci 'Jenny' Dolly | Irving Cummings | John PayneJune Haver | |
| Do You Love Me | 1946 | Girl in Taxi (cameo) | Gregory Ratoff | Maureen O'HaraDick HaymesHarry James | Grable had a cameo as a fan of Harry James's character |
| The Shocking Miss Pilgrim | 1947 | Cynthia Pilgrim | George Seaton | Dick HaymesAnne Revere | |
| Mother Wore Tights | 1947 | Myrtle McKinley Burt | Walter Lang | Dan DaileyMona Freeman | |
| Hollywood Bound | 1947 | Various | Various | Various | Astor Pictures compilation of three 1930s RKO short subjects, Ferry-Go-Round (1934), A Night at the Biltmore Bowl (1935), and The Spirit of 1976 (1935). |
| That Lady in Ermine | 1948 | FrancescaAngelina | Ernst LubitschOtto Preminger (uncredited) | Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.Cesar Romero | Lubitsch died early into production.Preminger finished the film but insisted on Lubitsch receiving full credit. |
| When My Baby Smiles at Me | 1948 | Bonny Kaye | Walter Lang | Dan DaileyJack OakieJune Havoc | |
| The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend | 1949 | Winifred Jones | Preston Sturges | Cesar RomeroRudy Vallee | |
| Wabash Avenue | 1950 | Ruby Summers | Henry Koster | Victor MaturePhil Harris | Remake of Grable's earlier hit Coney Island |
| My Blue Heaven | 1950 | Kitty Moran | Henry Koster | Dan DaileyDavid WayneJane WyattMitzi Gaynor | |
| Call Me Mister | 1951 | Kay Hudson | Lloyd Bacon | Dan DaileyDanny Thomas | Remake of Grable's earlier hit A Yank in the RAF |
| Meet Me After the Show | 1951 | Delilah Lee | Richard Sale | Macdonald CareyRory CalhounEddie Albert | |
| The Farmer Takes a Wife | 1953 | Molly Larkins | Henry Levin | Dale RobertsonThelma Ritter | |
| How to Marry a Millionaire | 1953 | Loco Dempsey | Jean Negulesco | Marilyn MonroeLauren Bacall | |
| Three for the Show | 1955 | Julie Lowndes | H.C. Potter | Jack LemmonMarge ChampionGower Champion | |
| How to Be Very, Very Popular | 1955 | Stormy Tornado | Nunnally Johnson | Sheree NorthRobert CummingsCharles CoburnTommy Noonan | |

### Box Office ranking

For a number of years exhibitors voted Grable among the most popular stars in the country in the Quigley Moving Picture Poll.
* 1941 – 16th (US)
* 1942 – 8th (US)
* 1943 – 1st (US), 5th (UK international stars)
* 1944 – 4th (US), 2nd (UK international stars)
* 1945 – 4th (US), 6th (UK international stars)
* 1946 – 9th (US)
* 1947 – 2nd (US)
* 1948 – 2nd (US)
* 1949 – 7th (US), 10th (UK international stars)
* 1950 – 4th (US)
* 1951 – 3rd (US)
* 1952 – 20th (US)

### Stage work

* Du Barry Was a Lady (1939)
* Guys and Dolls (1962; 1968)
* Hello, Dolly! (1965–1967)
* Born Yesterday (1968–1970; 1973)
* Belle Starr (1969)