Hermione Baddeley
(1908 - 1986)Two very talented actresses shared the unusual name of Hermione and other similarities but were quite unique and distinguishable unto themselves. Hermione Baddeley was a small, frumpy lady with a pudgy, lovable face and an amiable, jovial aura about her. She could play an aristocrat or the servant of one, along with many other diverse types. Best known for her role as a maid on the popular television series "Maude", she had a quite remarkable career on stage and films also. She was born on November 13, 1908 in Broseley, England, a descendent of Sir Henry Clinton, who captured New York during the Revolutionary War. She began acting as a child at the age of 6 and by 12 years old she had made her stage debut in London. She studied at the Margaret Morris School of Dance and Drama and traveled with her parents in a Theatrical Company. In her late teens she retired from acting to marry and raise a family. She later returned to the stage where she gained a reputation playing bawdy, animated and comic characters. She made her film debut in 1927 in "A Daughter in Revolt" as Calamity Kate. Her other films included: "Caste" (1930) as Polly Eccles; "Royal Cavalcade" (1937) as Barmaid; "Kipps" (1941) as Miss Meryle; "No Room at the Inn" (1948) as Mrs. Waters; "Passport to Pimlico" (1949) as Edie Randall; "Tom Brown's School Days" (1951) as Harrowell, Sally; "Scrooge" (1951) with Alistair Sim, considered by many as the best version of Dickens' A Christmas Carol, as Mrs. Cratchit; "Time Gentlemen, Please" (1952) as Emma Stebbins; "The Pickwick Papers" (1952) as Mrs. Bardell; "The Bells of St. Trinian's" (1954) as Miss Drownder; "Women Without Men" (1956) as Grace; "Room at the Top" (1959) with Laurence Harvey, as Elspeth, for which she received an Oscar nomination as Best Supporting Actress; "Expresso Bongo" (1960) as Penelope; "Midnight Lace" (1960) as Dora Hammer; "The Unsinkable Molly Brown" (1964) with Debbie Reynolds, as Buttercup Grogan; "Mary Poppins" (1964) as Ellen; "Harlow" (1965) as Marie Dressler; "Marriage on the Rocks" (1965) as Jeannie MacPherson; "Do Not Disturb" (1965) as Vanessa Cartwright; "The Adventures of Bullwhip Griffin" (1967) as Irene Chesney; the animated "The Aristocats" (1970) as Voice of Madame Adelaide Bonfamille; "Up the Front" (1972) as Monique; "C.H.O.M.P.S." (1979) as Mrs. Flower and the animated "The Secret of NIMH" (1982) as Voice of Auntie Shrew, her last film appearance. On TV she was a regular on the series: "Camp Runamuck" (1965-66) as Eulalia Divine; "The Good Life" (1971-72) as Grace Dutton; "Maude" (1974-77) as Mrs. Naugatuck; "South Riding" (1974) as Mrs. Beddows and "Shadow Chasers" (1985) as Melody Lacey. She also appeared in such TV movies as: "I Take These Men" (1983); "This Girl for Hire" (1983) and "Shadow Chasers" (1985). She guest starred on such TV series as: "Danger Man"; "Bewitched"; "Batman"; "Night Gallery"; "Little House on the Prairie"; Charlie's Angels" and "Wonder Woman." She was married twice to the Hon. David Tennant in 1928 with whom she had 2 children and later divorced and J.H. Willis. Her sister was the actress Angela Baddeley who starred on the TV series "Upstairs, Downstairs." She died on August 19, 1986 of complications of a series of strokes in Los Angeles, California at age 77.
From Great Character Actors, Page 7.
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