Patti Woodard, later known as Jane Darwell, was born in Palmyra, Missouri, to William Robert Woodard, president of the Louisville Southern Railroad, and Ellen (Booth) Woodard. Growing up on a ranch, she initially aspired to become an opera singer, but her father's disapproval led her to put her ambitions on hold.
Instead, she made her stage debut at the age of 33, and almost 40 when she appeared in her first film, a silent movie, in 1913. Darwell seamlessly transitioned from silent films to talkies, and became known for her portrayals of kindly, grandmotherly characters.
Her most iconic role was as Ma Joad, the strong and resilient matriarch of the Joad family, in the classic film The Grapes of Wrath (1940),for which she received the Academy Award. However, she also demonstrated her versatility by playing against type in films such as The Ox-Bow Incident (1942),where she portrayed the shrewish and menacing Ma Grier, a leader of a lynch mob, and Caged (1950),as the unsympathetic and strict prison matron in charge of the isolation ward.
Throughout her career, Darwell appeared in over 200 films. Her final role was in Mary Poppins (1964),which was made at the personal request of Walt Disney. After her retirement, Disney came to the Motion Picture Country Home to ask her to appear in the film, and she subsequently returned to retirement.
Sadly, Darwell passed away in 1967, following a stroke and heart attack. She was laid to rest at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.
