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Olivia Joyce Compton (January 27, 1907 – October 13, 1997) was an American actress. Compton was born in Lexington, Kentucky. (Despite frequent reports to the contrary, her name was not originally "Eleanor Hunt"; she had appeared in the film Good Sport (1931) with Hunt and this confusion in an early press article followed Compton throughout her career.) After graduating high school she spent two years studying at the University of Tulsa, studying dramatics, art, music and dancing. She won a personality and beauty contest and spent two months in a film studio as an extra.
Compton first made a name for herself when she was named one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars in 1926, alongside Mary Brian, Dolores Costello, Joan Crawford, Dolores del Río, Janet Gaynor and Fay Wray. Compton appeared in a long string of mostly B-movies from the 1920s through the 1950s. She was a comedy actress and protested at being stereotyped as a "dumb blonde".
Among her over two hundred films were Imitation of Life, Magnificent Obsession, The Awful Truth, Mildred Pierce, and The Best Years of Our Lives.
A devout Christian, on her gravestone, just beneath her dates of birth and death, is written "Christian Actress". She died from natural causes, aged 90, and was buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the Hollywood Hills.
Movies
The Persuader
Julie
Manpower
Scarlett
King Kelly of the U.S.A.
Maxine LaTour
City for Conquest
Lilly
Scared to Death
Jane Cornell
Hitchhike to Happiness
Joan Randall
Christmas in Connecticut
Nurse Mary Lee
Danger Signal
Kate
The Awful Truth
Dixie Belle Lee
Rose of Washington Square
Peggy
Dark Alibi
Emily Evans
Sky Murder
Christine Cross / Her Twin Sister
Incident
Joan
Mighty Joe Young
Alice (uncredited)
The Wild Party
Eva 'Evie' Tutt
Bedtime Story
Beulah
The Wrestler's Bride
Mrs. Scissors Jackson
The Villain Still Pursued Her
Hazel Dalton
The Three Sisters
Carlotta
The Plumber and the Lady
Louise
The White Parade
Una Mellon
Under Eighteen
Sybil
If I Had a Million
Marie - Waitress (uncredited)
Exposed
Emmy
The Toast of New York
Mary Lou (uncredited)
Under Your Spell
Secretary (uncredited)
Pick a Star
Newlywed
Turnabout
Irene Clare
Kid Galahad
(uncredited)
Balalaika
Masha
Trapped by Television
Mae Collins
Salute
Marian Wilson
Behind the Mask
Lulu
You and Me
Curly Blonde
Lena Rivers
Caroline Nichols
Sing, Sinner, Sing
Gwen
Rhythm in the Clouds
Receptionist
Caliente Love
Betty
Soft Living
Billie Wilson
Let's Make Music
Betty
Suicide Squad
Mary O'Connor
Dream Stuff
Betty
The Best Years of Our Lives
Hat Check Girl (uncredited)
Trade Winds
Mrs. Johnson
Murder with Pictures
Hester Boone
Hotel for Women
Emeline Thomas
A Parisian Romance
Marcelle
Ellis Island
Adele
The Sky Hawk
Peggy
Country Gentlemen
Gertie
Who Killed Aunt Maggie?
Cynthia Lou
I Take This Oath
Betty Casey
The Harvester
Thelma Biddle
Unholy Love
Sheilla Bailey Gregory
Roadhouse Queen
Dorothy
Sea Racketeers
Blondie
Small Town Boy
Molly Summers
Love on a Budget
Millie Brown
Artists and Models Abroad
Chickie
College Scandal
Toby Carpenter
We Have Our Moments
Carrie
Reno
Bonnie Newcomb
Women Are Like That
Miss Hall
The Flying Irishman
Sally
Hollywood Hobbies
Tourist
Ankles Preferred
Virginia
Moon Over Her Shoulder
Cecilia
Silver Spurs
Millie Love
The Spider
Butch's Girl Friend (uncredited)
Let 'em Have It
Barbara
Beauty Parlor
Joan Perry
Good Sport
Fay
False Faces
Dottie Nation
Madison Square Garden
Joyce
Too Many Women
Barbara Cartwright
Westward Passage
Lillie, the Model (uncredited)
Three Rogues
Ace's girl
Girl in the Woods
Aunt Martha
Silver Skates
Lucille
Going Places
Joan
High Society Blues
Pearl Granger
Ziegfeld Girl
Miss Sawyer, Auditioning Showgirl (uncredited)
Thunder Birds
Saleswoman
Wild Company
Anita Grayson
Annabelle's Affairs
Mabel
Up Pops the Devil
Luella May Carroll
Affairs of a Gentleman
Foxey Dennison
Spring Madness
Sally
Luxury Liner
Girl Overboard (uncredited)
Caravan
Party Girl at Beer Garden (Uncredited)
Escape to Paradise
Penelope Carter
Three Smart Girls
Evans' Secretary
Lady and Gent
Betty
Valley of the Lawless
Joan Jenkins
Wings Over Honolulu
Caroline
Rendezvous with Annie
Louise Grapa (uncredited)
I Was a Burlesque Queen
Mrs. Nunnally LaVitte
Linda, Be Good
Mrs. LaVitte
Mildred Pierce
Waitress (uncredited)
Swing Out the Blues
Kitty Grogan
Sitting on the Moon
Blossom
The Last Warning
Dawn Day aka Minnie Schultz
Lightnin'
Betty - Larry's Wife
Scattergood Meets Broadway
Diana Deane
A Southern Yankee
Hortense Dobson
Women of All Nations
Kiki
Everything's Ducky
Jennie Taylor, Eddie's Wife
They Drive by Night
Sue Carter (uncredited)
Let's Face It
Wiggin's Girl (uncredited)
Afraid to Talk
Alice - Party Girl
Jet Pilot
Mary Lou Simpson
Top of the Town
Beulah
Born Reckless
Dora
Rustlers of Red Dog
Mary Lee
Blues in the Night
Blonde
Pillow to Post
Gertrude Wilson (uncredited)
Star for a Night
Ellen Romaine
How to Watch Football
Benchley's girlfriend
China Passage
Elaine Gentry
Love Before Breakfast
Mary Lee
Sorry, Wrong Number
Cotterell's Blonde Girlfriend (uncredited)
Honeymoon Deferred
Kitty Kerry
Dangerous Curves
Jennie Silver
Syncopating Sue
Marge Adams
A Broadway Lady
Phyllis Westbrook
Million Dollar Ransom
Millie, Hat Check Girl (Uncredited)
Public Ghost # 1
Miss Compton
Only Yesterday
Margot (Uncredited)
Thunder Riders
Madge Lawton
The Border Cavalier
Madge Lawton
Imitation of Life
Young Woman at Party (uncredited)
What Fools Men
Dorothy
Go Into Your Dance
Café Showgirl
Fighting for Justice
Amy Tracy
Three Girls Lost
Edna Best
Grand Canyon
Mabel
Life Hesitates at 40
Joyce
Manhattan Monkey Business
Joyce
Shows
Richard Diamond, Private Detective
Waitress
Pete and Gladys
The Adventures of Jim Bowie