Martha Wentworth

Verna Martha Wentworth (June 2, 1889 – March 8, 1974) was an American actress. Her vocal variety led to her being called the "actress of 100 voices".[1]

Martha Wentworth
Martha Wentworth standing at center in The Stranger (1946)
Born
Verna Martha Wentworth

(1889-06-02)June 2, 1889
New York City, New York, U.S.
DiedMarch 8, 1974(1974-03-08) (aged 84)
Sherman Oaks, California, U.S.
OccupationActress
Years active1920s–1963

Early years

Wentworth was born in New York City. After graduating from public schools, she attended the National School of Expression. She was one of Minnie Maddern Fiske's proteges and appeared in several stage productions, beginning when she was 17 years old.[2]

Acting career

Wentworth's long radio career began in the early 1920s. She played The Wintergreen Witch on The Cinnamon Bear (1937) radio program,[3]:76 Annie Wood and Mrs. Littlefield on Crime Classics (1953), and Ma Danields on The Gallant Heart (1944). She portrayed Joe Penner's mother on The Park Avenue Penners.[3]:265 She also had semi-regular roles on Broadway Is My Beat, On Stage, The Witch's Tale,[3]:356 The Baby Snooks Show,[3]:32 and The Abbott and Costello Show.[3]

Wentworth also did the voices for Mama Katzenjammer in the Katzenjammer Kids adaptation of The Captain and the Kids.

Later years and death

She later became a film actress in the 1940s, starring in several Red Ryder Western films. She was in “Lassie” as neighbor Bertha aired on 3/22/1959 in season 5 episode 29. Two of her well known roles is when she worked as a voice artist for Walt Disney Productions; as Nanny, Queenie the Cow and Lucy the Goose in One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) and as Madame Mim in The Sword in the Stone (1963), her final credited film appearance two years later.

She died on March 8, 1974 at age 84.

Selected filmography

References
  1. Hischak, Thomas S. (2011). Disney Voice Actors: A Biographical Dictionary. McFarland. p. 221. ISBN 9780786486946. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  2. "Ether Etchings". The Los Angeles Times. California, Los Angeles. August 26, 1934. p. Part II - Page 4. Retrieved January 25, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. Terrace, Vincent (1999). Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows. McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 7. ISBN 978-0-7864-4513-4.
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