Margaret O'Brien
Known for Acting · 90 credits
- Born
- 1937-01-15 (age 89)
- Place of birth
- San Diego, California, USA
- Also known as
- Angela Maxine O'Brien · Maxine O'Brien
Biography
Margaret O'Brien (born January 15, 1937) is an American film and stage actress. Although her film career as a leading character was brief, she was one of the most popular child actors in cinema history. In her later career, she appeared on stage and in supporting film roles.
She was born Angela Maxine O'Brien; (she later changed her name to Margaret following the success of the film Journey for Margaret, in which she played the title role). Her father Lawrence O'Brien, a circus performer, died before she was born.[1]; Margaret's mother, Gladys Flores, was a well-known flamenco dancer who often performed with her sister Marissa, also a dancer. Margaret is of half-Irish and half-Spanish ancestry.
She made her first film appearance in Babes on Broadway (1941) at the age of four, but it was the following year that her first major role brought her widespread attention. As a five-year-old in Journey for Margaret (1942), O'Brien won wide praise for her convincing acting style. By 1943, she was considered a big enough star to have a cameo appearance in the all-star military show finale of Thousands Cheer.
She played a young French girl, and spoke and sang all her dialogue with a French accent, in Jane Eyre (1944). Arguably her most memorable role was as "Tootie" in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944), opposite Judy Garland. O'Brien had by this time added singing and dancing to her achievements and was rewarded with an Academy Juvenile Award the following year as the "outstanding child actress of 1944." Her other successes included The Canterville Ghost (1944), Our Vines Have Tender Grapes (1945), and the first sound version of The Secret Garden (1949), but she was unable to make the transition to adult roles.
A 1946 Looney Tunes short, Book Revue, placed a caricature of O'Brien in the role of Little Red Riding Hood.
Known For
TV Shows (35)
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
1962
as Self
Perry Mason
1957
as Virginia Trent
The Mike Douglas Show
1961
as Self
Murder, She Wrote
1984
as Jane
Ironside
1967
as Louise Prescott
Love, American Style
1969
Adam-12
1968
as Mrs. Pendleton
Wagon Train
1957
as Julie Revere
What's My Line?
1950
as Self
Robert Montgomery Presents
1950
as Ginny
Climax!
1954
as Kathy Fathian / Chip / Angie Hawley
Dr. Kildare
1961
as Nurse Lori Palmer
Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre
1963
as Anne Lipscott
Hotel
1982
as Martha Connelly
Studio One
1948
as Julie Denton / Jenny Walker
Combat!
1962
as Marianne Fraisnet
Rawhide
1959
as Betsy Stauffer
Matinee Theater
1955
Tales from the Darkside
1984
as Mildred Webster
The Ed Sullivan Show
1948
as Self
Marcus Welby, M.D.
1969
as Neva Phillips
The Oscars
1953
as Self
Adventures in Paradise
1959
as Phyllis Willoughby
The Steve Allen Show
1956
as Self - Singer
Kraft Television Theatre
1947
Lux Video Theatre
1950
as Margaret / Laura / Elaine / Self - Intermission Guest
The DuPont Show with June Allyson
1959
as Jean
MGM Parade
1955
as Self
The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour
1967
as Self
The Aquanauts
1960
as Ellen Marstand
The New Lassie
1989
General Electric Theater
1953
as Sarah Trask
E! True Hollywood Story
1996
Hollywood Preview
1955
as Self
Testimony of Two Men
1977
as Flora Bumpstead Eaton
Movies (55)
Little Women
1949
as Beth
Jane Eyre
1943
as Adele Varens
Meet Me in St. Louis
1944
as 'Tootie' Smith
The Secret Garden
1949
as Mary Lennox
AFI's 100 Years... 100 Songs: America's Greatest Music in the Movies
2004
as Self
Madame Curie
1943
as Irene Curie - Age 5
That's Entertainment!
1974
as (archive footage) (uncredited)
Amy
1981
as Hazel Johnson
Off the Menu: The Last Days of Chasen's
1998
as Self
Heller in Pink Tights
1960
as Della Southby
Showbiz Goes to War
1982
as Self (archive footage)
Hollywood’s Children
1982
as Self (archive footage)
Dr. Gillespie's Criminal Case
1943
as Margaret
A Night at the Movies: Merry Christmas!
2011
as Self - Interviewee
Twenty Years After
1944
as (archive footage)
Halloween Pussy Trap Kill! Kill!
2017
as Bridgette's Grandmother
Journey for Margaret
1942
as Margaret
Thousands Cheer
1943
as Customer in Red Skelton Skit
The Eyes of Two People
1952
as Catherine McDermott
The Canterville Ghost
1944
as Lady Jessica de Canterville
Lost Angel
1943
as Alpha
Marsha Hunt's Sweet Adversity
2015
as Self
Tenth Avenue Angel
1948
as Flavia Mills
Joan Crawford: The Ultimate Movie Star
2002
as Self - Actress
Big City
1948
as Midge
Split Second to an Epitaph
1968
as Louise Prescott
The Unfinished Dance
1947
as 'Meg' Merlin
Our Vines Have Tender Grapes
1945
as Selma Jacobson
Her First Romance
1951
as Betty Foster
Babes on Broadway
1941
as Maxine (uncredited)
This Is Our Christmas
2018
as Mrs. Foxworth
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
2017
as Ms. Stevenson
Glory
1956
as Clarabel Tilbee
Frankenstein Rising
2010
Elf Sparkle Meets Christmas the Horse
2009
as Miss Coyote (voice)
Near Myth: The Oskar Knight Story
2018
as Self
Three Wise Fools
1946
as Sheila O'Monahan
Impact Event
2018
as Amanda
Prepper's Grove
2018
as Gigi
Creaturealm: From the Dead
1998
as Herself
The Men Who Made the Movies: Vincente Minnelli
1973
as Self (archive footage)
When We Were Young: Growing Up on the Silver Screen
1989
as Self
The Story of Lassie
1994
as Self
Bad Bascomb
1946
as Emmy
Music for Millions
1944
as Mike
Death in Space
1974
as Pam Rhodes
You, John Jones!
1943
as Daughter
Love Is in Bel Air
as Vivienne
Sunset After Dark
1996
as Betty Corman
Anabelle Lee
1971
Hollywood Mortuary
1998
as Herself
The Mystery of Thirteen
1957
as Annie Brookes
Meet Me in St. Louis: The Making of an American Classic
1994
as Self
The Craven Cove Murders
2002
as Fan
The Pledge of Allegiance
1971
as Narrator
About Margaret O'Brien
Margaret O'Brien (born January 15, 1937) is an American film and stage actress. Although her film career as a leading character was brief, she was one of the most popular child actors in cinema history. In her later career, she appeared on stage and in supporting film roles. She was born Angela Maxine O'Brien; (she later changed her name to Margaret following the success of the film Journey for Margaret, in which she played the title role). Her father Lawrence O'Brien, a circus performer, died before she was born.[1]; Margaret's mother, Gladys… With 90 credits spanning from 1941 to 2018, Margaret O'Brien has appeared in 55 films and 35 TV shows.
Fans searching for Margaret O'Brien movies, Margaret O'Brien filmography, or the latest projects starring Margaret O'Brien can stream many of these titles on Bowood.TV, free and in HD, with no subscription required.
Most Popular Margaret O'Brien Movies
- Little Women (1949) — as Beth
- Jane Eyre (1943) — as Adele Varens
- Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) — as 'Tootie' Smith
- The Secret Garden (1949) — as Mary Lennox
- AFI's 100 Years... 100 Songs: America's Greatest Music in the Movies (2004) — as Self
Where to Watch Margaret O'Brien Films
Most Margaret O'Brien 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 Margaret O'Brien, check our movies catalogue and browse page.