Eve Arden facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Eve Arden
Arden in 1972, by Allan Warren
Born	Eunice Mary Quedens (1908-04-30)April 30, 1908 Mill Valley, California, U.S.
Died	November 12, 1990(1990-11-12) (aged 82) Beverly Hills, California, U.S.
Resting place	Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery
Occupation	Actress comedian
Years active	1929–1987
Spouse(s)	Edward Grinnell Bergen ​ ​ (m. 1939; div. 1947)​ Brooks West ​ ​ (m. 1952; died 1984)​
Children	4

Anthony George and Arden in "Death by Design", Checkmate (1961)

Arden in Comrade X (1940)

Eve Arden (born Eunice Mary Quedens) was a famous American actress. She was born on April 30, 1908, and passed away on November 12, 1990. She acted in movies, on radio, on stage, and on TV for almost 60 years!

Eve started acting in movies in 1929 and on Broadway (a famous theater area in New York City) in the early 1930s. Her first big movie role was in Stage Door (1937) with Katharine Hepburn. She also appeared in comedies like Having Wonderful Time (1938) and At the Circus (1939) with the Marx Brothers. She was even nominated for an Academy Award (like an Oscar) for her role in Mildred Pierce (1945).

Later in her career, Eve Arden became very popular on television. She played a funny and smart high school teacher in the show Our Miss Brooks. For this role, she won the first Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. She also played Principal McGee in the popular movie musicals Grease (1978) and Grease 2 (1982).

Early Life and Start in Acting

Eve Arden was born Eunice Mary Quedens on April 30, 1908. Her hometown was Mill Valley, California. Her mother, Lucille, was a milliner (someone who makes hats). She raised Eve after divorcing Eve's father.

Young Eunice went to a convent school in San Rafael, California. Then she attended Tamalpais High School in Mill Valley until she was 16. After school, she joined a theater group called Henry "Terry" Duffy's stock theater company.

Becoming Eve Arden

Eve made her first movie in 1929. It was a musical called Song of Love. In this film, she played a sassy showgirl. In 1933, she moved to New York City and acted in many Broadway plays.

In 1934, she joined the famous Ziegfeld Follies show. This was when she first used the name Eve Arden. She was told to pick a stage name. She looked at her makeup and decided to use "Eve" from "Evening in Paris" perfume. She took "Arden" from the cosmetics brand Elizabeth Arden.

Acting Career Highlights

Eve Arden's movie career really took off in 1937. She signed a contract with RKO Pictures. She appeared in Oh Doctor and Stage Door. Her role in Stage Door as a quick-witted, funny character became her signature style. Many of her future roles were like this.

In 1938, she was in the comedy Having Wonderful Time. It starred Ginger Rogers and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.. She also appeared in The Forgotten Woman (1939) and the Marx Brothers comedy At the Circus (1939). For At the Circus, she even had to do acrobatics!

In 1940, she acted alongside Clark Gable and Hedy Lamarr in Comrade X. She also supported Marlene Dietrich and Edward G. Robinson in Manpower (1941). She was known for her clever and often sarcastic way of speaking.

Famous Movie Roles

One of Eve's most memorable roles was in Mildred Pierce (1945). She played Joan Crawford's smart and funny friend. This role earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. She also played a witty secretary in Anatomy of a Murder (1959) with James Stewart. Her husband, Brooks West, was also in that movie.

A new generation of fans got to know Eve Arden when she played Principal McGee. She was in the hit movie Grease (1978) and its sequel Grease 2 (1982). She was famous for her "deadpan" comedy. This means she delivered funny lines with a very serious face.

Radio and Television Success

Groucho Marx and Eve Arden in a scene from At the Circus (1939)

Eve Arden's talent for witty lines made her perfect for radio. She was a regular on Danny Kaye's comedy show in 1946. This led to her most famous role: Connie Brooks. Connie was an English teacher at Madison High School in Our Miss Brooks.

Eve played Miss Brooks on radio from 1948 to 1957. She also starred in a TV version of the show from 1952 to 1956. And she was in a movie based on the show in 1956. Her character often argued with the school principal, Osgood Conklin (played by Gale Gordon). She also had a secret crush on fellow teacher Philip Boynton (played by Jeff Chandler and later Robert Rockwell). Most of the radio cast also appeared on the TV show.

With the Armed Forces Radio Service, 1940s

Eve's portrayal of Miss Brooks was so popular that she became an honorary member of the National Education Association. She even received job offers to teach! Her clever, deadpan character became her public image as a comedian.

She won a poll by Radio Mirror magazine as the top comedienne of 1948–1949. She joked, "I understand that if I win this (award) two years in a row, I get to keep Mr. Boynton!" Critics also loved her. A poll in 1949 named her the year's best radio comedienne.

Arden with her Emmy Award for Our Miss Brooks, February 11, 1954

Eve Arden made a short guest appearance in a 1955 I Love Lucy episode. She played herself in "L.A. at Last." Lucille Ball (Lucy Ricardo) and Vivian Vance (Ethel Mertz) were arguing about a painting. Eve Arden, sitting nearby, turned and said, "Neither. That's Eve Arden." Lucy and Ethel were amazed!

Lucille Ball and Eve Arden had worked together before in the 1937 film Stage Door. Ball actually suggested Arden for the role of Miss Brooks.

Eve tried another TV series in 1957 called The Eve Arden Show. It ran for 26 episodes. In 1967, she co-starred with Kaye Ballard in The Mothers-in-Law. Later in her career, Eve appeared on many TV shows. These included Bewitched, Alice, Maude, Hart to Hart, and Falcon Crest. In 1985, she played the wicked stepmother in the Faerie Tale Theatre version of Cinderella.

Personal Life

Eve Arden was married to Edward Grinnell "Ned" Bergen from 1939 to 1947. She later married actor Brooks West in 1952. They were married until his death in 1984.

Eve had four children. She adopted her first child with Ned Bergen. She adopted a second child as a single mother after her divorce. She adopted her third child with Brooks West. She gave birth to her youngest child with West in 1954 when she was 46 years old. All four of her children outlived their parents.

Death and Legacy

Eve Arden passed away at home on November 12, 1990, at the age of 82. Her death was due to heart problems. She was cremated, and her ashes are buried in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California.

In 1985, Eve Arden wrote a book about her life called The Three Phases of Eve. She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her work in radio and television. In 1995, she was honored by being inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame.

Filmography

Movies

Television Shows

Stage Performances

See also

In Spanish: Eve Arden para niños