Theresa Harris
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- December 31, 1906
- Died
- October 8, 1985 (aged 78)
- Birthplace
- Houston, Texas, USA
Biography
Theresa Harris (December 31, 1906 [some sources indicate 1909] – October 8, 1985) was an American film and television actress, singer and dancer. In 1929 Harris traveled to Hollywood, where she embarked on an acting career. She made her film debut in Thunderbolt, singing the song "Daddy Won't You Please Come Home". As she entered the 1930s she found herself playing maids to fictitious Southern belles, socialites and female molls. These parts were sometimes uncredited. She also floated around studios doing bit parts, usually at Warner Bros. or MGM. Aside from maids, she specialized in playing blues singers, waitresses, tribal women, prostitutes, and hatcheck girls. Harris had a featured role as a friend of Jean Harlow in MGM's Hold Your Man (1932). In 1933 she appeared as Chico in the Warner Bros. pre-Code production of Baby Face, starring Barbara Stanwyck. That same year Harris starred in a substantial role opposite Ginger Rogers in Professional Sweetheart. As Rogers' character's maid, Harris' character subs for Rogers' character as a singer on the radio. Despite the fact that Harris' character was a major point for the story's plot development, she was uncredited for the role. Throughout the 1930s, Harris played many uncredited parts in films such as Horse Feathers (1932), Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933), Mary Stevens, M.D. (1933) and Morning Glory (1933). She also played Bette Davis's maid Zette in the film Jezebel (1938). In 1937 she appeared in the race film Bargain With Bullets opposite Ralph Cooper for Million Dollar Productions. While doing promotion for the film, Harris spoke about her frustration over the difficulty African American actors faced in the film industry, stating, "I never had the chance to rise about the role of maid in Hollywood movies. My color was against me anyway you looked at it. The fact that I was not "hot" stamped me either as uppity or relegated me to the eternal role of stooge or servant....My ambition is to be an actress. Hollywood had no parts for me." Harris continued to lobby for better parts but found few opportunities within Hollywood. In the 1939 movie Tell No Tales she was credited for her part as Ruby, the wife of a murdered man. Harris played an emotional scene with Melvin Douglas at the funeral. She appears in a small but vivid role as Kathie Moffat's ex-maid Eunice Leonard in Jacques Tourneur 1947 Out of the Past. In addition to films, Harris performed in many radio programs. She was often paired with Eddie Rochester Anderson, who portrayed her on-screen boyfriend. She also appeared in several prominent roles for RKO Pictures as she was a favorite of RKO producer Val Lewton who routinely cast African American actors in non-stereotypical roles. In 1942 Lewton cast Harris as a sarcastic waitress in Cat People, followed by roles in I Walked with a Zombie (1943), Phantom Lady (1944), and Strange Illusion (1945). During the 1950s Harris appeared several times on television shows. She made her last film appearance in an uncredited role in The Gift of Love in 1958. Harris later married a doctor and retired from acting, living comfortably after having carefully invested the money she made during her career in the movies. On October 8, 1985, Harris (then known as Theresa Robinson) died in Inglewood, California. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Known For
Filmography
The Gift of Love
Movie · as Dora - Sam's Wife (uncredited)
Spoilers of the Forest
Movie · as Nancy the Maid
How to Marry a Millionaire
TV · as Irene · 1 ep
Back from Eternity
Movie · as Mamie (uncredited)
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
TV · as Maid · 1 ep
The French Line
Movie · as Clare (uncredited)
Angel Face
Movie · as Nurse Theresa (uncredited)
Small Town Girl
Movie · as Backstage Maid
Letter to Loretta
TV · as Lulu · 1 ep
Al Jennings of Oklahoma
Movie · as Terese
Grounds for Marriage
Movie · as Stella, Ina's Maid
The Company She Keeps
Movie · as Lilly Johnson (uncredited)
Lux Video Theatre
TV · as Young Woman · 1 ep
The File on Thelma Jordon
Movie · as Esther
Neptune's Daughter
Movie · as Matilda (uncredited)
And Baby Makes Three
Movie · as Maid
Tension
Movie · as Woman in Drugstore (uncredited)
Alias Nick Beal
Movie · as Opal
The Velvet Touch
Movie · as Nancy
The Big Clock
Movie · as Daisy (uncredited)
Miracle on 34th Street
Movie · as Cleo (uncredited)
The Trespasser
Movie · as Julia, the maid
Out of the Past
Movie · as Eunice Leonard (uncredited)
The Lady from Shanghai
Movie · as Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Smooth as Silk
Movie · as Louise (Maid)
Swingtime Jamboree
Movie · as Herself
Miss Susie Slagle's
Movie · as Maid (uncredited)
Strange Illusion
Movie · as Maid (uncredited)
I Walked with a Zombie
Movie · as Alma
The Outskirts of Town
Movie · as Wife
Tough as They Come
Movie · as Bessie Mae
Cat People
Movie · as Minnie (uncredited)
Sing Your Worries Away
Movie · as Hat Check Girl
The Flame of New Orleans
Movie · as Clémentine
Blossoms in the Dust
Movie · as Cleo
Our Wife
Movie · as Hattie
Here Comes Mr. Jordan
Movie · as Mother Listening to Hurdy-gurdy (uncredited)
Buck Benny Rides Again
Movie · as Josephine
Love Thy Neighbor
Movie · as Josephine
Santa Fe Trail
Movie · as Maid (uncredited)
City of Chance
Movie · as Beulah - Powder Room Attendant
Tell No Tales
Movie · as Ruby
The Women
Movie · as Olive (uncredited)
One Hour to Live
Movie · as High Yaller girl
Jezebel
Movie · as Zette
The Toy Wife
Movie · as 'Pick'
Bargain with Bullets
Movie · as Grace Foster
Charlie Chan at the Olympics
Movie · as Athlete
The Lady Escapes
Movie · as Maid (uncredited)
Big Town Girl
Movie · as Maid
The Green Pastures
Movie · as Angel (uncredited)
Banjo on My Knee
Movie · as Black Blues Singer (uncredited)
Go Into Your Dance
Movie · as Dressing Room Maid, Luana's Maid
Success at Any Price
Movie · as Marie
Desirable
Movie · as Ladies Room Maid at Party
Black Moon
Movie · as Sacrificed Girl (uncredited)
Finishing School
Movie · as Evelyn (uncredited)
Baby Face
Movie · as Chico
Mary Stevens, M.D.
Movie · as Andrews' Maid Alice (uncredited)
Blood Money
Movie · as Jessica (uncredited)
Broadway Thru a Keyhole
Movie · as Joan's Maid
Grand Slam
Movie · as Ladies' Room Attendant (uncredited)
Gold Diggers of 1933
Movie · as Black Woman in "Pettin' in the Park" Number (uncredited)
Professional Sweetheart
Movie · as Vera (uncredited)
Hold Your Man
Movie · as Lily Mae Crippen (uncredited)
The Worst Woman in Paris?
Movie · as Lily - the Maid
Penthouse
Movie · as Lili (uncredited)
Private Detective 62
Movie · as Janet's Maid (Uncredited)
42nd Street
Movie · as Chorus Girl (uncredited)
Night After Night
Movie · as Ladies' Room Attendant (uncredited)
Horse Feathers
Movie · as Laura (uncredited)
The Half-Naked Truth
Movie · as Emily (uncredited)
Faithless
Movie · as Amanda
Union Depot
Movie · as Black Woman (uncredited)
Merrily We Go to Hell
Movie · as Powder Room Attendant (uncredited)
Week Ends Only
Movie · as Chloe (uncredited)
Free Wheeling
Movie · as Maid (uncredited)
The Sport Parade
Movie · as Nightclub Dancer (uncredited)
Arrowsmith
Movie · as Native Mother (uncredited)
The Road to Reno
Movie · as Maid at Dude Ranch
Morocco
Movie · as Camp Follower (uncredited)
Someday Sweetheart
Movie · as Tessie Maize (Self)
Thunderbolt
Movie · as Singer