Beulah Bondi

Beulah Bondi
The Unholy Wife (1957)
Born	Beulah Bondy May 3, 1888(1888-05-03) Chicago, Illinois United States
Died	January 11, 1981 (aged 92) Los Angeles, California United States

Beulah Bondi (May 3, 1888 – January 11, 1981)^[1] was an American actress.

Bondi began her acting career as a young child in theatre, and after establishing herself as a stage actress, reprised her role in Street Scene for the 1931 film version. She played supporting roles in several films during the 1930s, and was twice nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She played the mother of James Stewart in four films, including Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) and It's a Wonderful Life (1946).

She continued acting into her old age, and won an Emmy Award for an appearance in the television series The Waltons in 1976. She died from complications from a fall in her home, at the age of 92.

Life and career

Bondi was born as Beulah Bondy in Valparaiso, Indiana, the daughter of Eva (née Marble) and Adolphe Bondy.^[2] Bondi began her acting career on the stage at age 7, playing the title role in the play Little Lord Fauntleroy in a production at the Memorial Opera House in Valparaiso, Indiana. She gained her Bachelors and Masters degrees in oratory at Valparaiso University in 1916 and 1918, and moved to film in the 1930s. Her debut movie role was as "Emma Jones" in Elmer Rice's Street Scene (1931), which starred Sylvia Sidney, and in which Bondi reprised her stage role, followed by "Mrs. Davidson" in Rain (1932), which starred Joan Crawford and Walter Huston.

She was one of the first five women to be nominated for an Academy Award in the newly-created category of "Best Supporting Actress" for her work in The Gorgeous Hussy, although she lost the award to Gale Sondergaard. Two years later, she was nominated again for Of Human Hearts, and lost again, but her reputation as a character actress kept her employed.

She would most often be seen in the role of the mother of the star of the film for the rest of her career, with the exception of Make Way for Tomorrow (1937) as the abandoned Depression-era 'Ma' Cooper.

She often played mature roles in her early film career even though she was only in her early 40s. Bondi played James Stewart’s mother in four films: It's a Wonderful Life, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Of Human Hearts, and Vivacious Lady. She made her final appearances as "Martha Corinne Walton" on the television series The Waltons, in the episodes "The Conflict" (9/74) & "The Pony Cart" (12/76). She received an Emmy award for her performance in the latter episode. When her name was called it appeared at first that she was not present but she walked slowly up to the podium to receive the award and was given a standing ovation. She thanked everyone for honoring her while she was still alive.^{[citation needed]}

Personal life

Despite the fact that she was known for playing mother figures, Bondi never married in real life. She died from pulmonary complications due to broken ribs suffered when she tripped over her cat on January 11, 1981, aged 92.

Partial filmography

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Beulah Bondi

• Beulah Bondi at the Internet Movie Database
• Beulah Bondi at Allmovie
• Beulah Bondi at Find A Grave
• Great Character Actors
• What-A-Character