Spoiler : A great and very versatile actress.

Spoiler : In the annals of Hollywood's Golden Era there was one actress who proved to be very versatile and who later became a gracious screen luminary her name was Irene Dunne. Irene Dunne on camera was the epitome of regal beauty, her trim figure topped by a classic, delicately dimpled face, with a patrician nose, cool dark eyes, a flow of dark brown hair and with her well-modulated voice, which could imply so much with just the slightest inflection. If you were going to use the title, "First Lady of Hollywood" no one more rightly deserved it than Irene Dunne. Dunne could play almost every genre of film: Drama - Cimarron (1931, RKO), Soap Opera - Backstreet (1932, Universal), Romantic Drama - Love Affair (1939, RKO), Mad Cap Comedy - The Awful Truth (1937, Columbia), or Tear-Jerker - The Secret Of Madame Blanche (1935, MGM) or Period Piece - I Remember Mama (1948, RKO). Irene Marie Dunn (Irene added a final "e" to her surname after she entered show business) of German-Irish descent was born December 20, 1898, in Louisville, Kentucky. Dunne's career goal was to sing with the Metropolitan Opera. She had a well-trained voice, but it was lighter than required for grand opera, so she begin appearing in musicals, making her Broadway debut in 1922 in The Clinging Vine. One day early in 1929, Dunne entered a midtown Manhattan office building on the way to see a theatrical agent. She stepped into a crowded elevator. One of the passengers happened to be producer Florenz Ziegfeld. With his sharp eye for beauty he quickly spotted Irene, who was wearing a most attractive blue hat. She exited the elevator on her appointed floor, Ziegfeld on the next, where he promptly ordered an associate to go downstairs and find the pretty girl with the blue hat. As a result of their initial meeting Irene was offered the role of Magnolia in Ziegfeld's road company of Show Boat. One evening a talent scout from RKO happened to be in the audience and liked her performance that he offered Irene a studio contract. For her screen debut the film was Leathernecking, which was released in 1930, but it was her second film that made Dunne a star. Star Richard Dix had been handed the lead role in the studio's upcoming epic production of Edna Ferber's Cimarron (1930), the best selling novel about 1889 Oklahoma Territory land rush and the subsequent statehood of Oklahoma. Dix had a reputation for aiding unknown actors with an almost unheard-of generosity, he had seen Dunne perform on the New York stage and was convinced that she would be ideal for the role. Dix prevailed on his good friend, RKO producer William Le Baron, to persuade director Wesley Ruggles that Irene Dunne should have the key part. It soon became apparent for all to see that Dunne was the right choice to portray Sabra the gentle Kansas girl who is the heart of the film, aging some sixty years. The film Cimarron was a huge hit with receipts of over $2 million dollars, and the film received three Academy Awards for: Art Direction, Outstanding Production, and for Writing Adaptation. Cimarron was Irene Dunne's first Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. Dunne was nominated four more times for Best Actress but never received an award. Theodora Goes Wild (1936, Columbia Pictures), The Awful Truth (1937, Columbia Pictures), Love Affair (1939, RKO), and I Remember Mama (1948, RKO). On film Dunne was a versatile "triple threat" in musicals, comedies, and tragedies. She was a good singer and her comedic timing was perfect, and it was her ability to lighten dramas that would have sagged under their weight ended up being successful. Tear-Jerkers starring Dunne made us feel closer to her characters onscreen so that we felt the real tragedies that they embodied. Dunne never had to "grow-up" to play serious roles and she didn't progress from one kind of film to another - she just maintained quality in whatever film she was assigned. Hollywood at first could not understand her happy marriage to Dr. Frank Griffin who was a dentist. They married in 1928 and he was twelve years her senior. Furthermore, Dunne had her husband at her side to advise her, Dunne's brother also helped out both men were sharp businessmen. By the mid-1930's Dunne accepted a "multi-allegiance" system, first started by Claudette Colbert and later adopted by Carole Lombard in which an actress signed an agreement to do three pictures a year, one each with three studios (Columbia, Paramount and RKO, in her case). Like good friend Loretta Young, Dunne also daringly went freelance status in 1940 now both women were in the same place. Each had become independent and each found a way to define herself without studio interference. In her 1935 musical Sweet Adeline, in which she beautifully sings "Don't Ever Leave Me" (the Helen Morgan hit), she is dressed in yards of white organza, ruffled and tied with stain bows, to play up her "innocence." Dunne portrayed decent women making their way in life as the fates would allow. In the musical High, Wide and Handsome (1937, Paramount Pictures) Dunne sings one of the most successful songs of its day "The Folks Who Live On A Hill) composed by Jerome Kern and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein. Irene Dunne was a masterful comedienne, possibly the very best of her era. She could sail through any messy screwball comedies with the greatest of ease. When she dressed up in cheap and common clothes and pretends to be her ex-husband's sister in The Awful Truth (1937, Columbia) she steals the film from everybody including Cary Grant. When the decade went from the 1930s to the 1940s most of Dunne's contemporaries faced casting problems. Since she was in charge of her own career choices, she opened up the decade by playing a mother with two children in the solid hit and costarring again with Cary Grant in My Favorite Wife (1940, RKO). Her next film again costarring with Cary Grant was the sentimental Penny Serenade (1941, Columbia) directed by George Stevens. Here she gets to "age" from youth to adoptive motherhood in a story about a sensible woman and her family. Both films avoided the age issue, although her next two put her in the "young" romantic lead. Unfinished Business was too good to matter, but Lady In A Jam (1942, Universal) was a throwback to her old screwball days, casting her as a wacky heiress in the madcap tradition. Except for Never A Dull Moment in 1950 (where she's a song writer who falls for a cowboy), Lady In A Jam was the last time Dunne allowed herself to be cast younger than she was. After that, she always put her best foot forward by playing mature women as a novelist and screenwriter in Over 21 (1945, Columbia), a loving wife and mother in Life With Father (1947, Warner Brothers), a devoted mother in the sentimental I Remember Mama (1948, RKO), teacher in Anna And The King Of Siam (1946, 20th Century-Fox), Queen Victoria in The Mudlark (1950, 20th Century-Fox) and in her last film It Grows On Trees (1952, Universal) a comedy where Dunne discovers that money literally grows on the trees in her garden. Dunne never appeared onscreen as an old lady, she was ever radiant and attractive - but she tempered the roles she accepted to fit her age. Although she left films by choice, her career did not end abruptly. Dunne often appeared on television, starring in an episode of her good friend Loretta Young's series. Dunne was offered many roles during the 1950's but she turned down many film roles, among them were: The Swan (1956, MGM) and Gigi (1958, MGM). In her retirement, she devoted herself primarily to civic and philanthropic charities. Dunne remained married to Dr. Francis Griffin until his death on October 14, 1965. They had lived in Holmby Hills, California in a Southern plantation-style mansion they designed. They had one daughter, Mary Frances (née Anna Mary Bush), who was adopted in 1936 (finalized in 1938) from the New York Foundling Hospital, run by the Sisters of Charity of New York. In 1957 President Eisenhower appointed her as an alternate delegate to the Twelfth General Assembly of the United Nations in New York. In the fall of 1970 Irene Dunne agreed to appear at a special tribute program sponsored by the Los Angeles County Museum and the California Palace of the Legion Of Honor. In the course of the film retrospective, Irene graciously answered all questions posed by the public, many of whom had never seen many of her films due to copyright problems. Her last great honor was for her entire life and career: the Kennedy Center Honors in December 1985. Dunne served her country in the United Nations, was active in politics, performed many religious duties, and supported many charities. Irene Dunne died of heart failure on September 4, 1990, in Los Angeles, California she was 91.

Spoiler : She was known as one of the "best dressed" women in Hollywood.

Spoiler : I love her films especially when co-starred with Cary Grant....

Spoiler : I loved all her films, but Penny Serenade is the one that still makes me cry!

Spoiler : I first discovered Irene Dunne when American Movie Classics (AMC) was first on cable television. My father and I were watching "The Awful Truth" and laughed until we almost cried during Miss Dunne's scene as "Lola", Cary Grant's party-crashing "sister". It was then that my Dad hipped me to just how famous Miss Dunne had been back in the day and that she hailed from Louisville, KY, our hometown. I have loved her ever since and try to watch anything and everything relating to her career.

Spoiler : A great actress, comedienne and singer.

Spoiler : Great actress,singer and comedienne, My favorite actress.

Spoiler : I love Irene Dunn! What an excellent actress!!

Spoiler : Happy birthday to Irene Dunne, born on December 20, 1898.

Spoiler : IRENE DUNNE (1898 ~ 1990) Dunne was adept at both comedy and drama and was Oscar nominated as Best Actress five times - for "Cimarron" (1931), "Theodora Goes Wild" (36), "The Awful Truth" (37), "Love Affair" (39) and "I Remember Mama" (48). She was popular during the 1930s and 1940s in films like: "Back Street" (32), "Roberta" (35), "Show Boat" (36), "My Favorite Wife" (40), "Penny Serenade" (41), "A Guy Named Joe" (43), "The White Cliffs Of Dover" (44), "Anna And The King Of Siam" (46) and "Life With Father" (47).

Spoiler : Cheers! A great actress and. Leading. Lady in the grand tradition ! Luv, diana

Spoiler : One of the greatest actresses. She should have had an Oscar.

Spoiler : The Greatest Actresses Of Classic Cinema

Spoiler : Dunne, Irene (Irene Marie Dunn) Born in Louisville, Kentucky 12/20/1898; died 9/4/1990 of heart failure in Los Angeles, California. Married to Doctor Frances Griffin (1928-1965 his death). Singer that quit the Chicago Musical College to go to New York and become a Metropolitan Opera Star; offered a job in the Ziegfeld Follies when Flo Zieg- feld spotted her in an elevator. Screen debut in Leatherstocking (1930). Last movie was It Grows On Trees (1952). Guest star on many radio programs including The Family Theatre and Lux Radio Theatre. Susan on the syndicated radio program, Bright Star (1952-1953). Host of The Schlitz Playhouse of Stars on CBS-TV (1952). At the time of her death had been retired from acting many years; involved in volunteer and political work.

Spoiler : Excellent actor & singer but sadly underrated.

Spoiler : Actually shook Irenes' hand at one of her movies at the L.A. museum on Wilshire for I think that movie with Cary Grant where she was stranded on an island with the guy Rosiland Russel was going to marry in His Gal Friday. by the way don't say gal anymore,, fella's. boys' she was soooo nice, what an honor

Spoiler : Happy birthday to the gorgeous, Irene Dunne! She we was nominated five times for the Best Actress Academy Award, but had only one recurring role on radio -- that of newspaper woman Susan Armstrong in Bright Star.

Spoiler : Also love her work on Lux Radio Theatre!

Spoiler : I loved her in My Favorite Wife with Cary Grant.

Spoiler : Happy birthday to Irene Dunne, born on December 20, 1898.

Spoiler : Irene Dunne was one of the greats ,in lots of very good movies ! Not given the the the Acclaim she deserves

Spoiler : Irene Dunne was one of my absolute favorites!

Spoiler : Dunne (1898-1990) was an American motion-picture and stage actress and singer, known for her leading roles as a gracious and well-bred woman and also well known for her comedic roles.

Spoiler : Dunne’s first motion picture, Leathernecking (1930), was not memorable, but with the release of Cimarron in 1931, she became a popular success. After Cimarron, she appeared in some 40 feature-length films. These included both dramatic roles—as in Back Street (1932); Magnificent Obsession (1935), with Robert Taylor; Love Affair (1939), with Charles Boyer; Anna and the King of Siam (1946), with Rex Harrison; and I Remember Mama (1948)—and roles in a number of comedies—such as Roberta (1935), with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers; Show Boat (1936); and The Awful Truth (1937) and My Favorite Wife (1940), both with Cary Grant.

Spoiler : She retired after making It Grows on Trees in 1952. After being nominated five times for the Best Actress Oscar and never winning, it was hoped by many that she would receive an honorary award after her retirement but the Academy (for reasons best known to itself) failed to present one.

Spoiler : *** IRENE DUNNE *** Dunne (1898 ~ 1990) was one of the top leading ladies of the 1930s and was Oscar nominated four times throughout the decade, for "Cimarron" (1931), "Theodora Goes Wild" (36), "The Awful Truth" (37) and "Love Affair" (39). [She received a fifth Oscar nomination in the 1940s]. She was equally adept at comedy and drama and also sang at times within her films.

Spoiler : Irene was a popular screen heroine and her other films of the thirties included: "Back Street" (1932), "Thirteen Women" (32), "The Secret Of Madame Blanche" (33), "The Silver Cord" (33), "The Age Of Innocence" (34), "Roberta" (35), "Magnificent Obsession" (35), "Show Boat" (36), "High, Wide And Handsome" (37), "Joy Of Living" (38), "Invitation To Happiness" (39) and "When Tomorrow Comes" (39). She was nicknamed 'Queen Of The Weepies', but her comedies excelled as well.

Spoiler : Her leading men during this decade included: Cary Grant, Charles Boyer, Fred Astaire, Robert Taylor, Joel McCrea, Randolph Scott, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Fred MacMurray and others. Stay tuned for our continued spotlight on Irene when we focus on the 1940s...

Spoiler : Simply wonderful actress, God is it ever wonderful To see a real Hollywood star instead of these pieces of S...T that are overpaid and bad actors...Who hate the country that made them mega rich..Stars are truly an EXTINCT species..

Spoiler : Dunne (1898 ~ 1990) was one of the top leading ladies of the 1930s and was Oscar nominated four times throughout the decade, for "Cimarron" (1931), "Theodora Goes Wild" (36), "The Awful Truth" (37) and "Love Affair" (39). [She received a fifth Oscar nomination in the 1940s]. She was equally adept at comedy and drama and also sang at times within her films.

Spoiler : Irene was a popular screen heroine and her other films of the thirties included: "Back Street" (1932), "Thirteen Women" (32), "The Secret Of Madame Blanche" (33), "The Silver Cord" (33), "The Age Of Innocence" (34), "Roberta" (35), "Magnificent Obsession" (35), "Show Boat" (36), "High, Wide And Handsome" (37), "Joy Of Living" (38), "Invitation To Happiness" (39) and "When Tomorrow Comes" (39). She was nicknamed 'Queen Of The Weepies', but her comedies excelled as well.

Spoiler : Her leading men during this decade included: Cary Grant, Charles Boyer, Fred Astaire, Robert Taylor, Joel McCrea, Randolph Scott, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Fred MacMurray and others.

Spoiler : Another personal favorite of mine. So cool, so down to earth and a gem of an actress. I especially loved her in her films with Cary Grant, their chemistry was phenomenal. It’s unfortunate that she never received an Oscar for her work.

Spoiler : As a Greek, the least I can say for the great American actress Irene Dunne is that she isn't just the first lady of Hollywood, as she is called, but the only TRUE LADY of Hollywood ! A wonderful human being and an inspiration for everybody and especially women ! God bless her soul!

Spoiler : Like all her films. Brill. Actress