Loy, Myrna (1905-1993), an American actress, was one of the most popular movie stars of the 1930’s. She was particularly known for her skill in sophisticated comic roles. Loy became a star in the light-hearted mystery film The Thin Man (1934), co-starring William Powell. The two played a wisecracking married couple who solve a murder. The popularity of the film led to five more Thin Man movies. By 1936, Loy ranked as Hollywood’s number-one female box-office star. Her other major films of the 1930’s included Broadway Bill (1934), Libeled Lady (1936), Double Wedding (1937), and The Rains Came (1939).
After the United States entered World War II in 1941, Loy left the movies to work with the Red Cross. Following the end of the war in 1945, she returned to films and also served as a U.S. representative to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Loy appeared in several notable motion pictures from the mid-1940’s to 1960. Her best postwar films included The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1947), Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948), and Cheaper by the Dozen (1950). Beginning in the 1950’s, she appeared in several television programs, and she made her debut on the Broadway stage in 1973.
Loy was born on Aug. 2, 1905, in Radersburg, Montana. Her real name was Myrna Adele Williams. After her father died in 1918, she moved with her family to Los Angeles. Loy began appearing in bit parts in the movies in 1925 and soon was cast as evil, exotic characters. She remained typecast in such roles, acting in more than 70 films until her performance in The Thin Man made her a star. Loy appeared in more than 120 movies throughout her career but never received an Academy Award nomination. However, she did receive an honorary Academy Award in 1991. She wrote an autobiography, Myrna Loy: Being and Becoming (1987). Loy died on Dec. 14, 1993.
