Mary Astor (May 3, 1906 - September 25, 1987) was an Academy Award-winning American actress. Probably most-famous for her role as Brigid O'Shaunessy in The Maltese Falcon (1941) opposite Humphrey Bogart, Astor began her long motion picture career as a teenager in the silent movies of the early 1920s.
She eventually made a successful transition to talkies, but almost saw her career destroyed due to public scandal in the mid-1930s. She was sued for support by her parents and was later branded an adulterous wife by her ex-husband during a custody fight over her daughter.
Overcoming these stumbling blocks in her private life, Astor went on to even greater success on the screen, eventually winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of Sandra Kovack in The Great Lie (1941).
Despite other personal problems, she continued to act in movies, on television and the stage into the 1960s. She retired from the screen in 1964.
Astor was also the author of five novels. Her autobiography became a bestseller, as did her later book, A Life on Film, which was specifically about her career.
Mogambo (1953)
