Marjorie Bennett was a renowned Australian actress who spent most of her career working in the United Kingdom and the United States. Born in York, Western Australia, a town that played a significant role during the Australian gold rushes of the late 19th century, Bennett was located 97 kilometers east of Perth, Western Australia's capital and largest city.
Bennett made her film debut in the 1917 film "The Girl, Glory" and had a few credited roles in silent films of the 1910s, including "Naughty, Naughty!", "Hugon, the Mighty", and "The Midnight Patrol". However, none of these films had a lasting impact.
After a hiatus, Bennett resumed her film career in 1946 with an uncredited role in the mystery film "Dressed to Kill", which was the 14th and final entry in a film series featuring Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes. She began appearing regularly in minor film roles in the late 1940s, with films such as the black comedy "Monsieur Verdoux" (1947),the romantic comedy "June Bride" (1948),and the horror comedy "Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff" (1949).
By the 1950s, Bennett had established herself as a character actress in both film and television, playing the gruff landlady Mrs. Alsop in "Limelight" (1952),appearing in several more "Abbot and Costello" films, and having a recurring role in the television series "Lassie".
In the 1960s, Bennett had her first known role as a voice actress, as the character "Duchess" in the animated film "One Hundred and One Dalmatians" (1961). She continued to regularly appear in film throughout the decade, with small roles in "Mary Poppins" (1964) and "My Fair Lady" (1964),as well as the psychological thriller "The Night Walker" (1964) and the horror film "Billy the Kid Versus Dracula" (1966).
In the 1970s, Bennett had a more substantial role in the mystery film "Stacey" (1973),playing aging heiress Florence Chambers who hired private investigator Stacey Hanson to examine whether the surviving members of Florence's family were worthy to be included in her will.
Bennett's other film roles in this decade included the crime thriller "Charley Varrick" (1973),the disaster film "Airport 1975" (1974),the black comedy "I Wonder Who's Killing Her Now?" (1975),and the crime comedy "The North Avenue Irregulars" (1979). She also made several more television appearances, including the television film "Sherlock Holmes in New York" (1976),in which she played Mrs. Martha Hudson, Holmes' landlady, and the television film "Better Late Than Never" (1979),in which she played Marjorie Crane, one of the residents of a nursing home who revolt against oppressive rules.
In 1980, Bennett finally retired due to poor health, and her final television appearance was in an episode of the sitcom "Barney Miller" (1975-1982). Bennett died in 1982, and her ashes were interred in the Great Mausoleum's Columbarium of Dawn at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale.
According to a 1977 article by "The Los Angeles Times", Bennett was one of the busiest of Hollywood's veteran character actresses, with her face being familiar to many Americans due to her numerous starring roles in television commercials.
