# Joan Marsh

Joan Marsh (July 10, 1914 – August 10, 2000) was an American child actress in silent films between 1915 and 1921. Later, during the sound era, she resumed her acting career and performed in a variety of films during the 1930s and 1940s.

## Early years

Marsh, born Dorothy D. Rosher, was the daughter of Lolita and Charles Rosher. Her parents later divorced.

## Career

In 1915, Marsh made her first film appearance, an uncredited one, in the short The Mad Maid of the Forest, which her father was filming. Later that same year she was also cast in Hearts Aflame and then billed as Dorothy Rosher. In 1917 she appeared too in A Little Princess and in no less than five other productions in 1918, including the comedy-drama Women's Weapons for Paramount Pictures. After these minor roles as a baby and toddler, Marsh finally became a star in Mary Pickford films such as Daddy-Long-Legs (1919) and Pollyanna (1920).
Marsh made her last film appearance as a child in 1921 but returned to films nine years later with a role in King of Jazz, in which she sang with Bing Crosby. She subsequently worked in a series of shorts and other feature films before she played W. C. Fields's daughter in You're Telling Me! in 1934. She continued performing on-screen in small roles for the next decade. In 1936, she sang on the CBS radio program Flying Red Horse Tavern.
In 1931, Marsh was one of 13 actresses named as WAMPAS baby stars.
She made her final film appearance in 1944 in Follow the Leader.

## Personal life

During the filming of Charlie Chan on Broadway, Marsh met writer Charles Belden, who had co-written the film's screenplay. They married on December 2, 1938, in Beverly Hills, California. Their marriage ended in divorce in 1943—first in Los Angeles, California, on August 26, 1943, followed by a second divorce October 23, 1943, "so she won't have to wait a year before remarrying."
In 1943, Marsh married Army Captain John D. W. Morrill in Santa Monica, California.

## Later years and death

Marsh later managed a stationery shop. She died at age 86 in Ojai, California on August 10, 2000.

## Partial filmography

* Hearts Aflame (1915) - Child
* A Little Princess (1917) - Child (uncredited)
* How Could You Jean? (1918) - Morley Child
* Johanna Enlists (1918) - (uncredited)
* The Bond (1918, Short) - Cupid (uncredited)
* Women's Weapons (1918) - Nicholas Jr.'s Sister
* Captain Kidd, Jr. (1919) - Child (uncredited)
* Daddy-Long-Legs (1919) - (uncredited)
* Pollyanna (1920) - Dorothy Rosher
* Suds (1920) - Minor Role (uncredited)
* Young Mrs. Winthrop (1920) - Rosie
* Thou Art the Man (1920) - Ellie Prescott
* Little Lord Fauntleroy (1921) - (uncredited)
* King of Jazz (1930) - Blonde ("A Bench in the Park") (uncredited)
* All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) - Poster Girl (uncredited)
* The Little Accident (1931) - Doris
* Inspiration (1931) - Madeleine Dorety
* Dance, Fools, Dance (1931) - Sylvia
* A Tailor Made Man (1931) - Beanie
* Meet the Wife (1931) - Doris Bellamy
* Three Girls Lost (1931) - Marcia Tallant
* Shipmates (1931) - Mary Lou
* Politics (1931) - Daisy Evans
* Maker of Men (1931) - Dorothy
* The Wet Parade (1932) - Evelyn Fessenden
* Are You Listening? (1932) - Honey O'Neil
* Bachelor's Affairs (1932) - Eva Mills
* That's My Boy (1932) - Co-ed (uncredited)
* Speed Demon (1932) - Jean Torrance
* High Gear (1933) - Anne Merritt
* Daring Daughters (1933) - Betty Cummings
* The Man Who Dared (1933) - Joan Novak
* It's Great to Be Alive (1933) - Toots
* Three-Cornered Moon (1933) - Kitty
* Rainbow Over Broadway (1933) - Judy Chibbins
* You're Telling Me! (1934) - Pauline Bisbee
* Many Happy Returns (1934) - Florence Allen
* We're Rich Again (1934) - Carolyn 'Carrie' Page
* Champagne for Breakfast (1935) - Vivian Morton
* Anna Karenina (1935) - Lili
* Dancing Feet (1936) - Judy Jones
* Brilliant Marriage (1936) - Madge Allison
* What Becomes of the Children? (1936) - Marion Worthington
* Charlie Chan on Broadway (1937) - Joan Wendall
* Hot Water (1937) - Bebe Montaine
* Life Begins in College (1937) - Cuddles
* The Lady Objects (1938) - June Lane
* Idiot's Delight (1939) - one of Harry Van's Les Blondes!
* Fast and Loose (1939) - Bobby Neville
* Blame It on Love (1940) - Terry Arden
* Road to Zanzibar (1941) - Dimples
* The Man in the Trunk (1942) - Yvonne Duvalle
* Police Bullets (1942) - Donna Wells
* Keep 'Em Slugging (1943) - Lola
* Secret Service in Darkest Africa (1943, Serial) - Janet Blake
* Mr. Muggs Steps Out (1943) - Brenda Murray
* Follow the Leader (1944) - Milly McGinnis (final film role)