
Gertrude Michael
Known for Acting · 62 credits
- Born
- 1911-06-01
- Died
- 1964-12-31
- Place of birth
- Talladega, Alabama, USA
- Also known as
- Lillian Gertrude Michael · Beck Michael
Biography
Gertrude Michael (June 1, 1911, Talladega, Alabama – December 31, 1964, Beverly Hills, California) was an American film, stage and television actress.
Born as Lillian Gertrude Michael in Talladega, Alabama, she reportedly graduated from high school at the age of 14. She became a radio singer on the radio. She attended the University of Alabama and Converse College, Cincinnati. Her childhood home in Talladega, Alabama was destroyed by fire in 2007.
In 1929 in Cincinnati she made her stage debut in a stock company. She subsequently appeared on Broadway in Rachel Crothers' Caught Wet (1931). She entered the movies playing Richard Arlen's finaceé in Wayward (1932), but her best-remembered role is probably as Rita Ross in Murder at the Vanities (1934), one of the last pre-Code films, in which she sang an ode to marijuana (Sweet Marijuana).
She had an affair with writer Paul Cain (aka Peter Ruric).After they broke up, Cain wrote the role of the alcoholic lover (based on Michael) in his only novel published during his lifetime, Fast One.
Gertrude Michael died, aged 53, from undisclosed causes, in Beverly Hills, California.
Known For
TV Shows (8)
Movies (54)

Woman Trap
1936
as Barbara 'Buff' Andrews

Caged
1950
as Georgia Harrison

I'm No Angel
1933
as Alicia Hatton

Wayward
1932
as Mary Morton

Cleopatra
1934
as Calpurnia

Flamingo Road
1949
as Millie

Women's Prison
1955
as Chief Matron Sturgess
Three's a Crowd
1945
as Sophie Whipple

Club Havana
1945
as Hetty - Powder Room Attendant
Star of the Circus
1938
as Yester

Bugles in the Afternoon
1952
as May

Darling, How Could You!
1951
as Mrs. Rossiter

The Last Outpost
1935
as Rosemary Haydon

Murder at the Vanities
1934
as Rita Ross
Just like a Woman
1939
as Ann Heston

Night of Terror
1933
as Sarah Rinehart

Prisoner of Japan
1942
as Toni Chase

The Witching Hour
1934
as Margaret Price

I Can't Give You Anything But Love, Baby
1940
as Magda Delys

Search for Beauty
1934
as Jean Strange

Murder on the Blackboard
1934
as Jane Davis

Mr. Dodd Takes the Air
1937
as Jessica Stafford

Menace
1934
as Helen Chalmers

George White's Scandals
1934
as Miss Lee

A Bedtime Story
1933
as Louise

Hold That Girl
1934
as Dorothy Lamont

Father Brown, Detective
1934
as Evelyn Fischer

Cradle Song
1933
as Marcella

Where Are Your Children?
1943
as Nell Wilson

Faces in the Fog
1944
as Nora Brooks

Bolero
1934
as Lady D'Argon

Allotment Wives
1945
as Gladys Smith

The Farmer's Daughter
1940
as Clarice Sheldon

No Escape
1953
as Olga Valerie Lewis

Ann Vickers
1933
as Mona Dolphin

Women in Bondage
1943
as District Director Schneider

The Continental Twist
1961
as Letitia Clunker

Four Hours to Kill!
1935
as Mrs. Sylvia Temple

Hidden Power
1939
as Virginia Garfield

Forgotten Faces
1936
as Cleo / Harry's wife

Parole Fixer
1940
as Collette Menthe

It Happened in New York
1935
as Vania Nardi

I Believed in You
1934
as Pamela Banks

Second Wife
1936
as Virginia Howard

Make Way for a Lady
1936
as Miss Eleanor Emerson

Pound Foolish
1940
as Mrs. Irene Reynolds

The Notorious Sophie Lang
1934
as Sophie Lang

Unashamed
1932
as Marjorie

Till We Meet Again
1936
as Elsa Duranyi

The Return of Sophie Lang
1936
as Sophie Lang

Slightly Tempted
1940
as Duchess
Behind Prison Walls
1943
as Elinor Cantwell

Sophie Lang Goes West
1937
as Sophie Lang

Sailor Be Good
1933
as Kay Whitney
About Gertrude Michael
Gertrude Michael (June 1, 1911, Talladega, Alabama – December 31, 1964, Beverly Hills, California) was an American film, stage and television actress. Born as Lillian Gertrude Michael in Talladega, Alabama, she reportedly graduated from high school at the age of 14. She became a radio singer on the radio. She attended the University of Alabama and Converse College, Cincinnati. Her childhood home in Talladega, Alabama was destroyed by fire in 2007. In 1929 in Cincinnati she made her stage debut in a stock company. She subsequently appeared on B… With 62 credits spanning from 1932 to 1961, Gertrude Michael has appeared in 54 films and 8 TV shows.
Fans searching for Gertrude Michael movies, Gertrude Michael filmography, or the latest projects starring Gertrude Michael can stream many of these titles on Bowood.TV, free and in HD, with no subscription required.
Most Popular Gertrude Michael Movies
- Woman Trap (1936) — as Barbara 'Buff' Andrews
- Caged (1950) — as Georgia Harrison
- I'm No Angel (1933) — as Alicia Hatton
- Wayward (1932) — as Mary Morton
- Cleopatra (1934) — as Calpurnia
Where to Watch Gertrude Michael Films
Most Gertrude Michael movies and series are available to stream on Bowood.TV in full HD, completely free and without signup. Browse the complete filmography above to jump directly to any title. For more films and the latest web series featuring Gertrude Michael, check our movies catalogue and browse page.







