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Norma Shearer

Norma Shearer

Known For Acting
Birthday Aug 10, 1902
Died Jun 12, 1983 (80)
Birthplace Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Popularity 0.3 (history)
Updated Aug 05, 2025
Entry Date Apr 13, 2024
Links TMDb IMDb
Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Edith Norma Shearer (August 10, 1902 – June 12, 1983) was a Canadian-American actress. Shearer was one of the most popular actresses in North America from the mid-1920s through the 1930s. Her early films cast her as the girl next door, but for most of the Pre- ... Code film era, beginning with the 1930 film The Divorcee, for which she won an Oscar for Best Actress, she played sexually liberated women in sophisticated contemporary comedies. Later she appeared in historical and period films. Unlike many of her MGM contemporaries, Shearer's fame declined steeply after retirement. By the time of her death in 1983, she was largely remembered at best for her "noble" roles in The Women, Marie Antoinette, and Romeo and Juliet. Shearer's legacy began to be re-evaluated in the 1990s with the publication of two biographies and the TCM (Turner Classic Movies) and VHS release of her films, many of them unseen since the implementation of the Production Code some sixty years before. Focus shifted to her pre-Code "divorcee" persona, and Shearer was rediscovered as "the exemplar of sophisticated [1930's] woman-hood... exploring love and sex with an honesty that would be considered frank by modern standards". Simultaneously, Shearer's ten-year collaboration with portrait photographer George Hurrell and her lasting contribution to fashion through the designs of Adrian were also recognized. Shearer is widely celebrated by some as one of cinema's feminist pioneers: "the first American film actress to make it chic and acceptable to be single and not a virgin on screen". In March 2008, two of her most famous pre-code films, The Divorcee and A Free Soul, were released on DVD. Description above from the Wikipedia article Norma Shearer, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Known For

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Filmography

Thou Shalt Not: Sex, Sin and Censorship in Pre-Code Hollywood

Thou Shalt Not: Sex, Sin and Censorship in Pre-Code Hollywood

2008

as Various Roles (archive footage)

That's Entertainment! III

That's Entertainment! III

1994

as (archive footage)

That's Entertainment!

That's Entertainment!

1974

as (archive footage) (uncredited)

Twenty Years After

Twenty Years After

1944

as (archive footage)

Her Cardboard Lover

Her Cardboard Lover

1942

as Consuelo Croyden

We Were Dancing

We Were Dancing

1942

as Victoria Anastasia Wilomirska

Escape

Escape

1940

as Countess Ruby von Treck

The Women

The Women

1939

as Mary Haines

Idiot's Delight

Idiot's Delight

1939

as Irene Fellara

Screen Snapshots Series 18, No. 8

Screen Snapshots Series 18, No. 8

1939

as Norma Shearer

Marie Antoinette

Marie Antoinette

1938

as Marie Antoinette

Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet

1936

as Juliet

Master Will Shakespeare

Master Will Shakespeare

1936

as Juliet (uncredited)

The Barretts of Wimpole Street

The Barretts of Wimpole Street

1934

as Elizabeth Barrett

Riptide

Riptide

1934

as Lady Mary Rexford

The Film Parade

The Film Parade

1933

as (archive footage) (uncredited)

Smilin' Through

Smilin' Through

1932

as Kathleen / Moonyeen

Strange Interlude

Strange Interlude

1932

as Nina Leeds

A Free Soul

A Free Soul

1931

as Jan Ashe

The Stolen Jools

The Stolen Jools

1931

as Owner of Stolen Jewels

Private Lives

Private Lives

1931

as Amanda Prynne

Strangers May Kiss

Strangers May Kiss

1931

as Lisbeth Corbin

The Divorcee

The Divorcee

1930

as Jerry

Let Us Be Gay

Let Us Be Gay

1930

as Kitty Brown

The Trial of Mary Dugan

The Trial of Mary Dugan

1929

as Mary Elizabeth Dugan

The Last of Mrs. Cheyney

The Last of Mrs. Cheyney

1929

as Fay Cheyney

Their Own Desire

Their Own Desire

1929

as Lucia 'Lally' Marlett

A Man's Man

A Man's Man

1929

as Norman Shearer (uncredited)

A Lady of Chance

A Lady of Chance

1928

as Dolly Morgan

The Latest from Paris

The Latest from Paris

1928

as Ann Dolan

The Actress

The Actress

1928

as Rose Trelawny

The Demi-Bride

The Demi-Bride

1927

as Criquette

After Midnight

After Midnight

1927

as Mary Miller

Upstage

Upstage

1926

as Dolly Haven

The Devil's Circus

The Devil's Circus

1926

as Mary

The Waning Sex

The Waning Sex

1926

as Nina Duane

Excuse Me

Excuse Me

1925

as Marjorie Newton

A Slave of Fashion

A Slave of Fashion

1925

as Katherine Emerson

Lady of the Night

Lady of the Night

1925

as Molly Helmer / Florence Banning

The Tower of Lies

The Tower of Lies

1925

as Glory/Goldie

Waking Up the Town

Waking Up the Town

1925

as Mary Ellen Hope

Pretty Ladies

Pretty Ladies

1925

as Frances White

Broken Barriers

Broken Barriers

1924

as Grace Durland

The Trail of the Law

The Trail of the Law

1924

as Jerry Vardon

He Who Gets Slapped

He Who Gets Slapped

1924

as Consuelo

Empty Hands

Empty Hands

1924

as Claire Endicott

Blue Water

Blue Water

1924

as Lillian Denton

The Wolf Man

The Wolf Man

1924

as Elizabeth Gordon

The Snob

The Snob

1924

as Nancy Claxton

Broadway After Dark

Broadway After Dark

1924

as Rose Dulane

Married Flirts

Married Flirts

1924

as Norma Shearer (uncredited)

Pleasure Mad

Pleasure Mad

1923

as Elinor Benton

A Clouded Name

A Clouded Name

1923

as Marjorie Dare

The Devil's Partner

The Devil's Partner

1923

as Jeanne

Man and Wife

Man and Wife

1923

as Dora Perkins

The Wanters

The Wanters

1923

as Marjorie

Lucretia Lombard

Lucretia Lombard

1923

as Mimi Winship

The Man Who Paid

The Man Who Paid

1922

as Jeanne Thornton

Channing of the Northwest

Channing of the Northwest

1922

as Jess Driscoll

The Taming of the Shrewd

The Taming of the Shrewd

1922

as Rose Del Mar

The Bootleggers

The Bootleggers

1922

as Helen Barnes

Torchy's Millions

Torchy's Millions

1920

as (uncredited)

The Stealers

The Stealers

1920

as Julie Martin

The Restless Sex

The Restless Sex

1920

as Reveler at Artists Ball (uncredited)

The Flapper

The Flapper

1920

as Schoolgirl (uncredited)

Way Down East

Way Down East

1920

as Barn Dancer (uncredited)

The Star Boarder

The Star Boarder

1919

as Big V Beauty Squad Member (uncredited)

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Organization Category Movie
Academy Awards Best Actress Dr. Christian Meets the Women Nominated
Television Credits

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Popularity Metrics

Popularity History


Year Month Avg Max Min
2024 6 8 14 3
2024 7 12 21 4
2024 8 10 36 3
2024 9 5 11 2
2024 10 3 5 1
2024 11 2 3 1
2024 12 3 6 1
2025 1 6 14 1
2025 2 3 7 1
2025 3 3 4 2
2025 4 0 0 0
2025 5 1 2 1
2025 6 0 1 0
2025 7 0 0 0
2025 8 1 6 0
2025 9 0 0 0
2025 10 0 0 0

Trending Rank


Year Month Avg Rank Max Rank
2024 6 788 470
2025 9 806 745

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