![Ona Munson](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w185/cnsCfYGtTGjTYh50ZbBo7rql61c.jpg)
Ona Munson
Ona Munson (June 16, 1903 – February 11, 1955) was an American actress perhaps best known for her portrayal of prostitute Belle Watling in Gone with the Wind (1939).
She first came to fame on Broadway as the singing and dancing ingenue in the original production of No, No, Nanette. From this, Munson had a very successful stage and radio career in 1930s in New York. She introduced the song "You're the Cream in My Coffee" in the 1927 Broadway musical Hold Everything.
Her first starring role was in a Warner Brothers talkie called Going Wild (1930). Originally this film was intended as musical but all the numbers were removed prior to release due to the public's distaste for musicals which had virtually saturated the cinema in 1929-1930. Munson appeared the next year in a musical comedy called Hot Heiress in which she sings several songs along with her co-star Ben Lyon. She also starred in Broadminded (1931) and Five Star Final (1931). She briefly retired from the screen, only to return in 1938.
When David O. Selznick was casting his production Gone with the Wind, he first announced that Mae West was to play Belle, but this was a publicity stunt. Tallulah Bankhead refused the role as too small. Munson herself was the antithesis of the voluptuous Belle: freckled and of slight build. But her skills as an actress electrified her screen test: it was all in the voice. She spoke deep and throaty in her test, and her voice conveyed sexiness and worldliness. The rest could be remedied by the wardrobe and makeup departments.
Munson’s career was stalemated by the acclaim of Gone with the Wind; for the remainder of her career, she was typecast in similar roles. Two years later, she played a huge role as another madam, albeit a Chinese one, in Josef von Sternberg's film noir The Shanghai Gesture.
For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Ona Munson has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6211 Hollywood Boulevard.
Munson was married three times, to actor and director Edward Buzzell in 1927, to Stewart McDonald in 1941, and designer Eugene Berman in 1949.
In 1955, plagued by ill health, she committed suicide at the age of 51 with an overdose of barbiturates in her apartment in New York. A note found next to her deathbed read, "This is the only way I know to be free again...Please don't follow me."
Known For | Acting |
---|---|
Most Rating | 3.816 |
Birthday | 1903-06-16 |
Place of Birth | Portland, Oregon, USA |
Also Known As | オナ・マンソン, Owena Elizabeth Wolcott, |
![Gone with the Wind](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/lNz2Ow0wGCAvzckW7EOjE03KcYv.jpg)
1939
![Gone with the Wind](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/lNz2Ow0wGCAvzckW7EOjE03KcYv.jpg)
Gone with the Wind
7.956/3930
The spoiled daughter of a Georgia plantation owner conducts a tumultuous romance with a cynical profiteer during the American Civil War and Reconstruc...
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Gone with the Wind
![The Red House](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/aM6BjwhPEhJH09SgaxY2xNIn8gx.jpg)
1947
![The Red House](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/aM6BjwhPEhJH09SgaxY2xNIn8gx.jpg)
The Red House
6.197/66
An old man and his sister are concealing a terrible secret from their adopted teen daughter, concerning a hidden abandoned farmhouse, located deep in...
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The Red House
![Five Star Final](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/1DZF4buRoDNsnAtkQZd8fIYVCCV.jpg)
1931
![Five Star Final](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/1DZF4buRoDNsnAtkQZd8fIYVCCV.jpg)
Five Star Final
6.5/33
Searching for headlines at any cost, an unscrupulous newspaper owner forces his editor to print a serial based on a past murder, tormenting a woman in...
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Five Star Final
![The Shanghai Gesture](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/aHDmFi7Q9M6mpMxRm7VpiXwmTYC.jpg)
1941
![The Shanghai Gesture](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/aHDmFi7Q9M6mpMxRm7VpiXwmTYC.jpg)
The Shanghai Gesture
6.183/63
A gambling queen uses blackmail to stop a British financier from closing her Chinese clip joint.
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The Shanghai Gesture
![Dakota](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/gqnyYhIgDuJWaaE8gS8AA0MBP1C.jpg)
1945
![Dakota](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/gqnyYhIgDuJWaaE8gS8AA0MBP1C.jpg)
Dakota
5.2/29
In 1871, professional gambler John Devlin elopes with Sandra "Sandy" Poli, daughter of Marko Poli, an immigrant who has risen to railroad tycoon. Sand...
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Dakota
![Going Wild](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/w2PO2tuZWVGDNcOYPBOv6OgE62r.jpg)
1930
![Going Wild](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/w2PO2tuZWVGDNcOYPBOv6OgE62r.jpg)
Going Wild
6/2
Rollo and Lane just happen to be tossed off the train at White Beach where Robert Story -Air ace and writer- is supposed to stop. It is a case of mist...
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Going Wild
![Scandal Sheet](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/rCjlN4qZ9VTniloDd016OelGMFE.jpg)
1939
![Scandal Sheet](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/rCjlN4qZ9VTniloDd016OelGMFE.jpg)
Scandal Sheet
0/0
The crimes of a tabloid publisher are exposed by a reporter, his secret illegitimate son.
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Scandal Sheet
![Drums of the Congo](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/jbWYHFtIpcEBPJHrS3f3lhpQY9C.jpg)
1942
![Drums of the Congo](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/jbWYHFtIpcEBPJHrS3f3lhpQY9C.jpg)
Drums of the Congo
0/0
A safari sets out to find a meteorite that fell in the African jungle.
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Drums of the Congo
![The Cheaters](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/oCcKonzEtnEJWNPLXv80uxAXiMx.jpg)
1945
![The Cheaters](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/oCcKonzEtnEJWNPLXv80uxAXiMx.jpg)
The Cheaters
6.6/8
An eccentric wealthy family facing bankruptcy schemes to steal an inheritance, but an alcoholic ex-actor they take in for Christmas charity complicate...
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The Cheaters
![Broadminded](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/2cxEY8BScfgPdInZPbXkZ8rX1Tc.jpg)
1931
![Broadminded](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/2cxEY8BScfgPdInZPbXkZ8rX1Tc.jpg)
Broadminded
3.7/6
Jack's father lowers the boom when his irresponsible rich-kid ends up in jail after a night of debauchery. The father appoints Ossie, Jack's cousin, a...
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Broadminded
![The Hot Heiress](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/Ado3FR0hWkqbxWrrvG3OG6EbOAC.jpg)
1931
![The Hot Heiress](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/Ado3FR0hWkqbxWrrvG3OG6EbOAC.jpg)
The Hot Heiress
5/2
Classes clash when a poor riveter and wealthy society woman fall in love with each other, much to the shock of her friends and family.
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![Lady from Louisiana](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/7iK1OgJxdH91Nx8QycJkfNCAuAM.jpg)
1941
![Lady from Louisiana](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/7iK1OgJxdH91Nx8QycJkfNCAuAM.jpg)
Lady from Louisiana
5.2/14
Northern lawyer John Reynolds travels to New Orleans to try and clean up the local crime syndicate based around a lottery. Although he meets Julie Mir...
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Lady from Louisiana
![Wild Geese Calling](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/rl1fovSE3k2hWFQlO02flagUtPs.jpg)
1941
![Wild Geese Calling](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/rl1fovSE3k2hWFQlO02flagUtPs.jpg)
Wild Geese Calling
5.8/2
In the 1890s lumberjack John leaves Seattle for Alaska to look for gold. After he marries dancehall girl Sally, he finds she used to be in love with h...
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Wild Geese Calling
![Wagons Westward](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/hQd2suMyXRJNoY9O77iDTNSmZWX.jpg)
1940
![Wagons Westward](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/hQd2suMyXRJNoY9O77iDTNSmZWX.jpg)
Wagons Westward
6/1
David Cook and twin brother Tom are poles apart in disposition and traits. When their father dies, Tom goes to New Mexico to live with his Uncle Hardt...
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![Legion of Lost Flyers](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/lec8hdjmvyUU4zBVToVkOg6pSLR.jpg)
1939
![Legion of Lost Flyers](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/lec8hdjmvyUU4zBVToVkOg6pSLR.jpg)
Legion of Lost Flyers
4/2
A group of pilots, because of unsavory or unearned reputations, establish an outpost squadron of their own, led by "Loop" Gillian, running charter-fli...
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![His Exciting Night](https://nicosiaefe.gov.cy/video/assets/no-poster.png)
1938
![His Exciting Night](https://nicosiaefe.gov.cy/video/assets/no-poster.png)
His Exciting Night
3/1
A milquetoast clerk is betrothed to the socialite whose aunt holds a big account with his company.
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His Exciting Night
![Idaho](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/8S8eIxcF5clVQhkhR9TfyszMCzw.jpg)
1943
![Idaho](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/8S8eIxcF5clVQhkhR9TfyszMCzw.jpg)
Idaho
5.7/3
A deputy sets out to prove that a respected judge, who had once been a criminal, is being framed for crimes committed by a crooked saloon owner.
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![The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/q9CLy7v5Y9aZgMdJIMYd0imqzBA.jpg)
1988
![The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/q9CLy7v5Y9aZgMdJIMYd0imqzBA.jpg)
The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind
8/3
This documentary revisits the making of Gone with the Wind via archival footage, screen tests, insightful interviews and rare film footage.
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![Hedda Hopper’s Hollywood No. 6](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/o46Ve3Gm60DucvRCMFlCc0Lg6qj.jpg)
1942
![Hedda Hopper’s Hollywood No. 6](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/o46Ve3Gm60DucvRCMFlCc0Lg6qj.jpg)
Hedda Hopper’s Hollywood No. 6
6/1
Narrator Hopper covers two war benefit affairs, a garden party and a USO fashion show, at Pickfair, "The White House of Hollywood."
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Hedda Hopper’s Hollywood No. 6
![The Big Guy](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/nNN4JvNW0ftqTN3LJzeaVdd3Mh.jpg)
1939
![The Big Guy](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/nNN4JvNW0ftqTN3LJzeaVdd3Mh.jpg)
The Big Guy
0/0
A man is given the choice between having fabulous wealth or saving an innocent man from the death penalty.
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The Big Guy
![The Head of the Family](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/z1BcAGAgFvVu9yoXhKR6QdJyIhA.jpg)
1928
![The Head of the Family](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/z1BcAGAgFvVu9yoXhKR6QdJyIhA.jpg)
The Head of the Family
0/0
Silent Comedy film directed by Joseph C. Boyle
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The Head of the Family
![An Intimate Dinner in Celebration of Warner Bros. Silver Jubilee](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/r08d5ZDrvkak3ZTgi8UaSCmksen.jpg)
1930
![An Intimate Dinner in Celebration of Warner Bros. Silver Jubilee](http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w154/r08d5ZDrvkak3ZTgi8UaSCmksen.jpg)
An Intimate Dinner in Celebration of Warner Bros. Silver Jubilee
3.4/4
Mr. and Mrs. Warner Bros. Pictures and their precocious offspring, Little Miss Vitaphone, host a dinner in honor of Warner Bros. Silver Jubilee, atten...
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