Zasu Pitts

Zasu Pitts was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas and comedies, transitioning successfully to mostly comedy films with the advent of sound films. She may be best known for her performance in Erich von Stroheim's epic silent film Greed. Based on her performance, von Stroheim labeled Pitts "the greatest dramatic actress". He also featured her in his films The Honeymoon (1928), The Wedding March (1928), War Nurse (1930) and Walking Down Broadway, released as Hello, Sister! (1933). However, for the most part, with the advent of sound Pitts was mostly relegated to comedy parts. A bitter disappointment was when she was replaced in the classic war drama All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) by Beryl Mercer after her initial appearance in previews drew unintentional laughs, despite her intense performance. She had viewers rolling in the aisles in Finn and Hattie (1931), The Guardsman (1931), Blondie of the Follies (1932), Sing and Like It (1934) and Ruggles of Red Gap (1935). In 1936 and 1937 she portrayed Hildegarde Withers in two movies, succeeding Edna May Oliver as the spinster sleuth, but they were not well received. In the 1950s she started focusing on television. This culminated in her best known series role, playing second banana to Gale Storm on CBS's The Gale Storm Show (1956) (also known as Oh, Susannah) in the role of Elvira Nugent ("Nugie"), the shipboard beautician. In 1961, Pitts was cast opposite Earle Hodgins in the episode "Lonesome's Gal" on the ABC sitcom, Guestward, Ho!, set on a dude ranch in New Mexico. In 1962, Pitts appeared in an episode of CBS's Perry Mason, "The Case of the Absent Artist". Her final role was as Gertie, the switchboard operator in the Stanley Kramer comedy epic It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963).

Known For	Acting
Most Rating	4.081
Birthday	1894-01-02
Place of Birth	Parsons, Kansas, USA
Also Known As	Zazu Pitts, Eliza Susan Pitts, ZaSu Pitts, Za Su Pitts,

Greed

Blondie of the Follies

The Thrill of It All

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

Thunder Mountain

13 Washington Square

The Squealer

Ruggles of Red Gap

Life with Father

The Talk of the Town

Francis

The Big Gamble

52nd Street

Dames

The Honeymoon

The Dummy

Patsy

Wife Savers

It All Came True

The Locked Door

Dear Miss Gloria

On the Loose

Oh, Yeah!

Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch

Changing Husbands

Eternally Yours

The Guardsman

What Happened to Jones

This Could Be the Night

The Plot Thickens

Once in a Lifetime

Shopworn

Hollywood

Monte Carlo

The Bad Sister

The Crooked Circle

Strangers of the Evening

Forty Naughty Girls

Mad Holiday

A Little Princess

Meet the Baron

So's Your Aunt Emma!

Make Me a Star

Going Highbrow

Denver and Rio Grande

The Bashful Bachelor

Niagara Falls

Broadway Limited

The Lottery Bride

Sin Takes a Holiday

Westward Passage

Pretty Ladies

The Squall

Passion Flower

Sing and Like it

Let's Face It

Spring Tonic

Mexican Spitfire at Sea

The Gay Bride

Professional Sweetheart

Seed

Uncle Joe

Teenage Millionaire

Destry Rides Again

Aggie Appleby, Maker of Men

Weekend for Three

The Mexican Spitfire's Baby

Mr. Skitch

13 Hours by Air

The Meanest Gal in Town

Nurse Edith Cavell

Two Alone

River's End

The Devil's Holiday

Finn and Hattie

The Trial of Vivienne Ware

Hello, Sister!

Is My Face Red?

Her First Mate

Roar of the Dragon