Minna Gombell
Encyclopedia
Minna Gombell was an American film actress of the 1930s and 1940s.
She had a very successful stage career (calling herself Winifred Lee) from 1912 before being signed by Fox
film company in the late twenties. Her first film was Doctor's Wives (1931) in which she played under the name of Nancy Gardner, a name given to her by Fox
. After this she spent a time coaching several young actresses before returning to film under her real name.
She appeared in 50 Hollywood films including; Laurel and Hardy's Block-Heads
, The Merry Widow
, The First Year
, Boom Town
, High Sierra, Hoop-La
, The Thin Man
, and The Best Years of Our Lives
.
Her third husband was the film writer, producer and director Myron Coureval Fagan
.
She had a very successful stage career (calling herself Winifred Lee) from 1912 before being signed by Fox
Fox
Fox is a common name for many species of omnivorous mammals belonging to the Canidae family. Foxes are small to medium-sized canids , characterized by possessing a long narrow snout, and a bushy tail .Members of about 37 species are referred to as foxes, of which only 12 species actually belong to...
film company in the late twenties. Her first film was Doctor's Wives (1931) in which she played under the name of Nancy Gardner, a name given to her by Fox
Fox
Fox is a common name for many species of omnivorous mammals belonging to the Canidae family. Foxes are small to medium-sized canids , characterized by possessing a long narrow snout, and a bushy tail .Members of about 37 species are referred to as foxes, of which only 12 species actually belong to...
. After this she spent a time coaching several young actresses before returning to film under her real name.
She appeared in 50 Hollywood films including; Laurel and Hardy's Block-Heads
Block-Heads
Block-Heads is a 1938 comedy film starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, produced by Hal Roach Studios for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The film, a reworking of elements from the Laurel and Hardy shorts We Faw Down and Unaccustomed As We Are , was Roach's final film for MGM, and is remembered as one of...
, The Merry Widow
The Merry Widow (1934 film)
The Merry Widow is a 1934 film adaptation of the operetta of the same name by Franz Lehár. It was directed by Ernst Lubitsch and starred Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald...
, The First Year
The First Year
The First Year is a film starring Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell. The movie was written by Lynn Starling from Frank Craven's play and directed by William K. Howard.-Cast:* Janet Gaynor as Grace Livingston* Charles Farrell as Tommy Tucker...
, Boom Town
Boom Town (film)
Boom Town is a 1940 adventure drama Hollywood film starring Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Claudette Colbert, Hedy Lamarr, and Frank Morgan. A story written by James Edward Grant in Cosmopolitan magazine titled "A Lady Comes to Burkburnett" provided the inspiration for the film.-Plot:"Big John"...
, High Sierra, Hoop-La
Hoop-La
Hoop-La is a 1933 drama film notable as both a pre-code film and as the final appearance of actress Clara Bow. It was directed by Frank Lloyd and released by Fox Film Corporation, with Preston Foster, Richard Cromwell, and Minna Gombell also in the cast...
, The Thin Man
The Thin Man (film)
The Thin Man is a 1934 American comic detective film starring William Powell and Myrna Loy as Nick and Nora Charles, a flirtatious married couple who banter wittily as they solve crimes with ease. Nick is a hard drinking retired detective and Nora a wealthy heiress...
, and The Best Years of Our Lives
The Best Years of Our Lives
The Best Years of Our Lives is a 1946 American drama film directed by William Wyler, and starring Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews, Teresa Wright, and Harold Russell, a United States paratrooper who lost both hands in a military training accident. The film is about three United States...
.
Her third husband was the film writer, producer and director Myron Coureval Fagan
Myron Coureval Fagan
Myron Coureval Fagan was an American writer, producer and director for film and theatre. He arrived on Broadway in 1907, where he quickly became one of the youngest playwrights in American Theater. Over the years, he worked in the theater with such luminaries as Alla Nazimova, Douglas Fairbanks,...
.
Selected filmography
- Bad Girl (1931)
- The Rainbow TrailThe Rainbow TrailThe Rainbow Trail, also known as The Desert Crucible is the sequel to Riders of the Purple Sage by Western writer Zane Grey. Originally published under the title The Rainbow Trail in 1915, it was re-edited and rereleased in recent years as The Desert Crucible, restoring the original manuscript...
(1932) - Careless Lady (1932)
- Wild Boys of the Road (1933)
- Strictly Dynamite (1934)
- Miss Pacific Fleet (1935)
- Banjo on my KneeBanjo on My Knee (film)Banjo on My Knee is a 1936 American comedy film directed by John Cromwell. The film was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Sound Recording Banjo on My Knee is a 1936 American comedy film directed by John Cromwell. The film was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Sound...
(1936) - Slave ShipSlave Ship (1937 film)Slave Ship is a 1937 film directed by Tay Garnett, starring Warner Baxter and Wallace Beery. The supporting cast includes Mickey Rooney, George Sanders, Jane Darwell, and Joseph Schildkraut...
(1937) - Going Places (1938)
- Second FiddleSecond Fiddle (1939 film)Second Fiddle is a 1939 American musical romance film directed by Sidney Lanfield and starring Sonja Henie, Tyrone Power, Rudy Vallee and Lyle Talbot. The score was composed by Irving Berlin. A Hollywood publicity agent falls in love with a new actress he helped to discover. The film parodies the...
(1939) - Boom TownBoom Town (film)Boom Town is a 1940 adventure drama Hollywood film starring Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Claudette Colbert, Hedy Lamarr, and Frank Morgan. A story written by James Edward Grant in Cosmopolitan magazine titled "A Lady Comes to Burkburnett" provided the inspiration for the film.-Plot:"Big John"...
(1940) - Thieves Fall Out (1941)
- MacbethMacbethThe Tragedy of Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
(1961) (TV movie)