Madeleine Carroll facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Madeleine Carroll
Carroll in 1938
Born	Edith Madeleine Carroll (1906-02-26)26 February 1906 West Bromwich, Staffordshire, England
Died	2 October 1987(1987-10-02) (aged 81) Marbella, Spain
Resting place	Sant Antoni de Calonge
Alma mater	University of Birmingham
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1928–1955
Spouse(s)	Captain Phillip Astley ​ ​ (m. 1931; div. 1939)​ Sterling Hayden ​ ​ (m. 1942; div. 1946)​ Henri Lavorel ​ ​ (m. 1946; div. 1949)​ Andrew Heiskell ​ ​ (m. 1950; div. 1965)​
Children	1

Edith Madeleine Carroll (born February 26, 1906 – died October 2, 1987) was a famous English actress. She was very popular in both Britain and America during the 1930s and 1940s. At one point in 1938, she was the highest-paid actress in the world!

Madeleine Carroll is best known for her role in Alfred Hitchcock's movie The 39 Steps (1935). She is also remembered for stopping her acting career almost entirely after her sister died during the London Blitz in World War II. She chose instead to help wounded soldiers and children who were hurt or lost because of the war. For her amazing work with the Red Cross, she received important awards like the Legion d'Honneur and the Medal of Freedom.

Early Life and Education

Madeleine Carroll was born in West Bromwich, England. Her father, John Carroll, was an Irish language professor, and her mother, Helene, was French.

Madeleine loved learning languages too. She went to the University of Birmingham and earned a degree in languages. While at university, she acted in plays for the drama club. After graduating, she worked as a French teacher at a girls' school for a year.

Becoming a Film Star

Starting Her Acting Journey

Madeleine's father didn't want her to become an actress, but her mother supported her dream. So, Madeleine left teaching and went to London to find acting jobs. She had won a beauty contest, which helped her get a role in a touring play in 1927. This was her first time acting on stage.

In 1928, she made her first movie, The Guns of Loos. Soon after, she starred in The First Born, a movie written by Alma Reville. Through this, she met Alma's husband, the famous director Alfred Hitchcock.

Rising to Stardom

Madeleine quickly became a lead actress in films. She starred in What Money Can Buy (1928) and then The First Born (1928), which made her well-known in movies. She even went to France to make a film called Not So Stupid (1928).

Back in Britain, she acted in both silent and sound versions of movies like The Crooked Billet (1929) and The American Prisoner (1929). In 1930, she starred in Atlantic and The W Plan. She also performed in several plays on stage.

Madeleine had a big success with I Was a Spy (1933), a movie that earned her an award for best actress.

Working with Alfred Hitchcock

Madeleine Carroll caught the eye of director Alfred Hitchcock. In 1935, she starred in his thrilling movie The 39 Steps. In the film, she played one of Hitchcock's classic "cool, smart blondes."

The 39 Steps became a huge hit, and so did Madeleine Carroll. Critics praised her performance, calling it "charming and skillful." This made her a very popular actress. Hitchcock wanted her to star in another spy thriller, Secret Agent (1936), where she acted alongside John Gielgud.

Becoming a Hollywood Star

Ronald Colman and Madeleine Carroll in The Prisoner of Zenda, 1937

Madeleine was the first British actress to get a big movie contract in America. She signed a deal with Paramount Pictures. She starred in many successful Hollywood films, often alongside famous actors. Some of her movies include The General Died at Dawn (1936), Lloyd's of London (1936) with Tyrone Power, and the musical On the Avenue (1937).

In 1937, she played the love interest of Ronald Colman in the very popular movie The Prisoner of Zenda. She also made comedies with Fred MacMurray, such as Cafe Society (1939) and Honeymoon in Bali (1939). She starred with Gary Cooper in North West Mounted Police (1940) and with Bob Hope in My Favorite Blonde (1942).

Radio and Stage Work

Madeleine Carroll also worked in radio. She was part of a show called The Circle in 1939, where she discussed current events and literature. Later, she hosted This Is the Story, a show that turned famous novels into radio plays. She even starred in a radio soap opera called The Affairs of Dr. Gentry from 1957 to 1959.

In 1948, she made her debut on Broadway in the play Goodbye, My Fancy.

Later Films

After World War II, Madeleine returned to Britain for a film called White Cradle Inn (1947). She then went back to the US for An Innocent Affair (1948). Her last movie was The Fan in 1949. After this, she mostly stopped acting, though she did appear on TV and radio sometimes until the mid-1960s.

Awards and Recognition

In 1946, France gave Madeleine Carroll the Legion of Honour. This was for her important work during World War II, where she helped connect the United States Army with the French Resistance. She also worked to build friendship between France and the United States after the war.

For her contributions to movies, Madeleine Carroll received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960. Her star is located at 6707 Hollywood Boulevard.

A special monument and plaques were put up in her hometown of West Bromwich to celebrate 100 years since her birth. Her story is inspiring because she gave up her successful acting career during World War II. She worked on troop trains for the Red Cross in Italy after her sister was killed in a German air raid. For this brave work, she was given the American Medal of Freedom.

Personal Life and War Efforts

Red Cross workers at Camp Patrick Henry. Madeleine Carroll is in the middle, front row.

Madeleine Carroll was married four times. Her first marriage was to Colonel Philip Reginald Astley in 1931. They divorced in 1939. In 1941, she starred with Sterling Hayden in a movie, and they married the next year, divorcing in 1946.

A very sad event changed Madeleine's life: her only sister, Marguerite, was killed during the London Blitz in World War II. After this, Madeleine decided to stop acting and become a Red Cross nurse. She became a US citizen in 1943 and served in a hospital in Italy in 1944, helping wounded airmen. She earned the rank of captain and received the Medal of Freedom for her nursing service.

Madeleine also owned a large house near Paris, France. During the war, she gave this house to shelter over 150 orphans. She even arranged for young people in California to knit clothes for them. For her efforts, France awarded her the Légion d'Honneur. Dwight D. Eisenhower, who was a top Allied Commander, was very impressed by her dedication during the war.

After the war, Madeleine stayed in Europe. She hosted a radio show to promote friendship between France and America. She also helped people who had been in concentration camps. During this time, she met her third husband, French producer Henri Lavorel. They even started a company to make short films promoting peace. One film, Children's Republic, showed the terrible impact of war on children and helped raise money for artificial limbs for wounded kids.

Madeleine married Andrew Heiskell, a publisher, in 1950. They had a daughter named Anne Madeleine in 1951. They divorced in 1965. Madeleine later moved to Spain, where she lived with her mother and daughter.

Death

Madeleine Carroll passed away on October 2, 1987, at the age of 81, in Marbella, Spain. She is buried in the cemetery of Sant Antoni de Calonge in Spain.

Filmography

Radio Appearances

Images for kids

• 

  Madeleine Carroll starred in a radio daytime drama, The Affairs of Dr. Gentry, from 1957 to 1959.

• 

  PFC Hiroshi Suyao, a Japanese American soldier, receives cigarettes from Madeleine Carroll during World War II.

See also

In Spanish: Madeleine Carroll para niños