Mary Gordon (born Mary Gilmour; 16 May 1882 – 23 August 1963) was a Scottish actress who mainly played housekeepers and mothers, most notably the landlady
Mrs. Hudson in the
Sherlock Holmes series of movies of the 1940s starring
Basil Rathbone and
Nigel Bruce. Her body of work included nearly 300 films between 1925 and 1950.
Early life
Gordon was born on 16 May 1882 in
Glasgow, Scotland, the fifth of seven children of Mary and Robert Gilmour, a wire weaver.[1] She worked as a dressmaker before finding work on the stage.[citation needed] She became a concert singer when she was 17 years old, but she left that career behind when she married. After her husband died during World War I she opened a boarding house to support her mother, her baby daughter, and herself.[2] Joining a company bound for an American tour, she came to the U.S. in her twenties, apparently making a few appearances on Broadway in small roles, but primarily touring in
stock companies.[citation needed] Gordon came to the United States with her mother and daughter soon after World War I ended. After working three months as a waitress in the
Robertson-Cole Studios, she became the cook there. She had bit parts in films and coached
Katharine Hepburn on using a Scottish dialect for the film The Little Minister.[3]
Career
With her mother and daughter, she arrived in
Los Angeles in the mid-1920s and began playing variations on the roles she would spend her career on. She became friends with
John Ford while making Hangman's House in 1928 and made seven more films with him. In 1939, she took on her best-remembered role as Sherlock Holmes' landlady, Mrs. Hudson, and played the role in ten films and numerous radio plays. She was a charter member of the
Hollywood Canteen, entertaining servicemen throughout the
Second World War. On the radio show Those We Love, she played the regular role of Mrs. Emmett.
She entered retirement just as television reshaped the entertainment industry, making only a single appearance in that medium.
She lived out her final years in
Pasadena, California with her daughter and grandson. She died at age 81 on 23 August 1963 in Pasadena after a long illness.[4]
Selected filmography
The Dome Doctor (1925, Short) - Woman with Long Hair (uncredited)
Mary Gordon (born Mary Gilmour; 16 May 1882 – 23 August 1963) was a Scottish actress who mainly played housekeepers and mothers, most notably the landlady
Mrs. Hudson in the
Sherlock Holmes series of movies of the 1940s starring
Basil Rathbone and
Nigel Bruce. Her body of work included nearly 300 films between 1925 and 1950.
Early life
Gordon was born on 16 May 1882 in
Glasgow, Scotland, the fifth of seven children of Mary and Robert Gilmour, a wire weaver.[1] She worked as a dressmaker before finding work on the stage.[citation needed] She became a concert singer when she was 17 years old, but she left that career behind when she married. After her husband died during World War I she opened a boarding house to support her mother, her baby daughter, and herself.[2] Joining a company bound for an American tour, she came to the U.S. in her twenties, apparently making a few appearances on Broadway in small roles, but primarily touring in
stock companies.[citation needed] Gordon came to the United States with her mother and daughter soon after World War I ended. After working three months as a waitress in the
Robertson-Cole Studios, she became the cook there. She had bit parts in films and coached
Katharine Hepburn on using a Scottish dialect for the film The Little Minister.[3]
Career
With her mother and daughter, she arrived in
Los Angeles in the mid-1920s and began playing variations on the roles she would spend her career on. She became friends with
John Ford while making Hangman's House in 1928 and made seven more films with him. In 1939, she took on her best-remembered role as Sherlock Holmes' landlady, Mrs. Hudson, and played the role in ten films and numerous radio plays. She was a charter member of the
Hollywood Canteen, entertaining servicemen throughout the
Second World War. On the radio show Those We Love, she played the regular role of Mrs. Emmett.
She entered retirement just as television reshaped the entertainment industry, making only a single appearance in that medium.
She lived out her final years in
Pasadena, California with her daughter and grandson. She died at age 81 on 23 August 1963 in Pasadena after a long illness.[4]
Selected filmography
The Dome Doctor (1925, Short) - Woman with Long Hair (uncredited)