Hedda Hopper
Biography
Hedda Hopper was born on May 2, 1885, in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, United States, and died on February 1, 1966, at the age of eighty. She was an American actress and gossip columnist. Before writing the column Hedda Hopper's Hollywood for the Los Angeles Times beginning in 1938, she worked for years as a moderately successful actress of stage and screen, accumulating 166 known acting credits according to movie database records. At the peak of her readership in the 1940s, she reached 35 million people. Known for her political conservatism, she named suspected communists during the McCarthy era. She continued writing gossip for various magazines and later on radio until the end of her life.
Career overview
Hedda Hopper was born on May 2, 1885, in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, and passed away on February 1, 1966, at the age of eighty. Before transitioning to journalism, she established a career as an actress of both the stage and screen, achieving moderate success over the course of many years. Her extensive career in the entertainment industry is documented by a total of 166 known acting credits recorded in her filmography.
In 1938, Hopper was offered the opportunity to write a gossip column titled Hedda Hopper's Hollywood for the Los Angeles Times. This marked a major shift in her professional life, moving her from her previous acting work into the realm of gossip reporting. By the 1940s, her column reached the height of its power and commanded a readership of 35 million people.
Alongside her entertainment reporting, Hopper was known for her political conservatism and actively named suspected communists during the McCarthy era. She maintained her career as a gossip writer until the end of her life, with her work appearing across numerous magazines and eventually expanding to radio broadcasts. Throughout her life, she also became notorious for her feuds with her arch-rival, Louella Parsons.
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Frequent co-stars
Career timeline
Full Filmography
168 titles- The Real Charlie Chaplin (2021) as Self (archive footage)
- Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story (2018) as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
- Junket Whore (1998) as Self
- Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage (1983) as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
- Bob Hope's World of Comedy (1976) as Self (archive footage)
- Hooray for Hollywood (1976) as Self (archive footage)
- The Oscar (1966) as Hedda Hopper
- Alice in Wonderland or What's a Nice Kid Like You Doing in a Place Like This? (1966) as Hedda Hatter
- The Patsy (1964) as Herself
- The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962) as Self
- The Merv Griffin Show (1962) as Self
- The Beverly Hillbillies (1962) as Herself
- Pepe (1960) as Hedda Hopper
- Hedda Hopper's Hollywood (1960) as Self
- Disneyland '59 (1959) as Self
- Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse (1958)
- Small World (1958) as Self
- The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour (1957) as Hedda Hopper
- The Last Tycoon (1957) as Self - Announcer
- The Hostess with the Mostes' (1957) as Maizie Weldon
- The Steve Allen Show (1956) as Self
- A Star Is Born World Premiere (1954) as Self
- I Love Lucy (1951) as Hedda Hopper
- What's My Line? (1950) as Self
- The Colgate Comedy Hour (1950) as Self
- Sunset Boulevard (1950) as Hedda Hopper
- The Corpse Came C.O.D. (1947) as Herself
- Breakfast in Hollywood (1946) as Self
- Reap the Wild Wind (1942) as Aunt Henrietta
- Hedda Hopper’s Hollywood No. 6 (1942) as Herself
- Hedda Hopper’s Hollywood No. 6 (1942) Writer
- Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 5 (1942) as Self
- Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 3 (1942) as Self
- Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 4 (1942) as Self
- Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 2 (1941) as Herself - Host
- Life with Henry (1941) as Mrs. Aldrich
- Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 1 (1941) as Self - Host
- Cavalcade of the Academy Awards (1940) as Self
- Queen of the Mob (1940) as Mrs. Emily Sturgis
- Cross-Country Romance (1940) as Mrs. North
- The Women (1939) as Dolly Dupuyster
- Midnight (1939) as Stephanie
- Laugh It Off (1939) as Elizabeth 'Lizzie' Rockingham
- That's Right – You're Wrong (1939) as Hedda Hopper (Uncredited)
- What a Life (1939) as Mrs. Aldrich
- Dangerous to Know (1938) as Mrs. Carson
- Tarzan's Revenge (1938) as Penny Reed
- Maid's Night Out (1938) as Mrs. Harrison
- Thanks for the Memory (1938) as Polly Griscom
- Topper (1937) as Mrs. Stuyvesant
- Nothing Sacred (1937) as Dowager on Ship (uncredited)
- Walter Wanger's Vogues of 1938 (1937) as Mrs. Van Klettering
- You Can't Buy Luck (1937) as Agnes White
- Artists & Models (1937) as Mrs. Townsend
- Dangerous Holiday (1937) as Lottie Courtney
- Dracula's Daughter (1936) as Lady Esme Hammond
- Doughnuts and Society (1936) as Mrs. Murray Hill
- Bunker Bean (1936) as Mrs. Dorothy Kent
- The Dark Hour (1936) as Mrs. Marian Tallman
- I Live My Life (1935) as Alvin's Mother
- Alice Adams (1935) as Mrs. Palmer
- 3 Kids and a Queen (1935) as Mrs. Cummings
- Society Fever (1935) as Mrs. Vandergriff
- Ship Cafe (1935) as Tutor
- Lady Tubbs (1935) as Mrs. Ronald Ash-Orcutt
- One Frightened Night (1935) as Laura Proctor
- Bombay Mail (1934) as Lady Daniels
- Let’s Be Ritzy (1934) as Mrs. Burton
- No Ransom (1934) as Mrs. John Winfield
- Pilgrimage (1933) as Mrs. Worth
- Beauty for Sale (1933) as Madame Sonia Barton
- The Barbarian (1933) as Mrs. Loway
- Men Must Fight (1933) as Mrs. Chase
- As You Desire Me (1932) as Ines Montari
- Skyscraper Souls (1932) as Ella Dwight
- Downstairs (1932) as Countess De Marnac
- Night World (1932) as Mrs. Rand
- The Man Who Played God (1932) as Mrs. Alice Chittendon
- Speak Easily (1932) as Mrs. Peets
- The Unwritten Law (1932) as Jean
- The Stolen Jools (1931) as Hedda - Norma's Friend
- The Easiest Way (1931) as Mrs. Clara Williams (uncredited)
- The Mystery Train (1931) as Mrs. Marian Radcliffe
- West of Broadway (1931) as Mrs. Trent
- Flying High (1931) as Mrs. Smith
- Men Call It Love (1931) as Callie
- A Tailor-Made Man (1931) as Mrs. Stanslaw
- A Tailor-Made Man (1931) as Mrs. Stanlaw
- Good Sport (1931) as Mrs. Atherton
- The Prodigal (1931) as Christine
- Shipmates (1931) as Auntie
- The Common Law (1931) as Claire Neville Collis
- Rebound (1931) as Liz Crawford
- Holiday (1930) as Susan Potter
- Our Blushing Brides (1930) as Mrs. Russ-Weaver
- Such Men Are Dangerous (1930) as Muriel Wyndham
- Let Us Be Gay (1930) as Madge Livingston
- War Nurse (1930) as Matron
- High Society Blues (1930) as Mrs. Divine
- Murder Will Out (1930) as Aunt Pat
- Half Marriage (1929) as Mrs. Page
- His Glorious Night (1929) as Mrs. Collingswood Stratton
- The Racketeer (1929) as Mrs. Lee
- The Last of Mrs. Cheyney (1929) as Lady Maria
- Girls Gone Wild (1929) as Mrs. Holworthy
- Cat, Dog & Co. (1929) as Be Kind to Animals Society President
- Harold Teen (1928) as Mrs. Hazzit
- Runaway Girls (1928) as Mrs. Hartley
- Forgotten Faces (1928)
- Undressed (1928) as Mrs. Stanley
- Companionate Marriage (1928) as Mrs. Moore
- The Whip Woman (1928) as Countess Ferenzi
- Green Grass Widows (1928) as Mrs. Worthing
- The Port of Missing Girls (1928) as Mrs. C. King
- Love and Learn (1928) as Mrs. Ann Blair
- The Chorus Kid (1928) as Mrs. Garrett
- Wings (1927) as Mrs. Powell (uncredited)
- French Dressing (1927) as (uncredited)
- Black Tears (1927)
- Children of Divorce (1927) as Katherine Flanders
- The Drop Kick (1927) as Mrs. Hamill
- Orchids and Ermine (1927) as The Modiste
- A Reno Divorce (1927) as Hedda Frane
- Venus of Venice (1927) as Jean's Mother
- One Woman to Another (1927) as Olive Gresham
- Adam and Evil (1927)
- Matinee Ladies (1927) as Mrs. Aldrich
- Don Juan (1926) as Marchesia Rinaldo
- Lew Tyler's Wives (1926) as Virginia Philips
- Skinner's Dress Suit (1926) as Mrs. Colby
- The Silver Treasure (1926) as Mrs. Gould
- The Cave Man (1926) as Mrs. Van Dream
- Pleasures of the Rich (1926) as Mona Vincent
- Obey the Law (1926) as The Society Woman
- Dance Madness (1926) as Valentina
- Fools of Fashion (1926) as Countess de Fragni
- Zander the Great (1925) as Mrs. Caldwell
- Déclassé (1925) as Lady Wildering
- Her Market Value (1925) as Mrs. Bernice Hamilton
- Dangerous Innocence (1925) as Muriel Church
- Borrowed Finery (1925) as Mrs. Bordon
- Raffles: The Amateur Cracksman (1925) as Mrs. Clarice Vidal
- The Teaser (1925) as Margaret Wyndham
- Another Scandal (1924) as Elizabeth MacKenzie
- Sinners in Silk (1924) as Mrs. Stevens
- The Snob (1924) as Mrs. Leiter
- Miami (1924) as Mary Tate
- Why Men Leave Home (1924) as Nina Neilson
- Happiness (1924) as Mrs. Chrystal Pole
- Gambling Wives (1924) as Madame Zoe
- Reno (1923) as Mrs. Kane Norton Tappan
- Has the World Gone Mad! (1923) as Mrs. Adams
- Sherlock Holmes (1922) as Madge Larrabee
- Women Men Marry (1922) as Eleanor Carter
- What's Wrong with the Women? (1922) as Mrs. Neer
- Heedless Moths (1921) as His Wife
- The Man Who Lost Himself (1920) as Countess of Rochester
- The New York Idea (1920) as Vida Phillimore
- Sadie Love (1919) as Mrs. James Wakeley
- The Third Degree (1919) as Mrs. Howard Jeffries Sr
- The Isle of Conquest (1919) as Mrs. Harmon
- By Right of Purchase (1918) as Society Woman (uncredited)
- Virtuous Wives (1918) as Irma Delabarre
- The Beloved Traitor (1918) as Myrna Bliss
- The Food Gamblers (1917) as June Justice
- Seven Keys to Baldpate (1917) as Myra Thornhill (as Elda Furry)
- Nearly Married (1917) as Hattie King
- The Battle of Hearts (1916) as Maida Rhodes
Frequently Asked Questions
What movies or TV shows is Hedda Hopper best known for?
Hedda Hopper is widely recognized for notable roles and projects including Junket Whore (1998), The Oscar (1966), The Patsy (1964), The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962).
When and where was Hedda Hopper born?
Hedda Hopper was born on May 2, 1885 in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, USA. They passed away on February 1, 1966.
How many credits does Hedda Hopper have?
Hedda Hopper has accumulated over 168 film and television credits across a career spanning from 1920 to 2021.
What is Hedda Hopper's background in cinema and television?
Hedda Hopper was born on May 2, 1885, in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, United States, and died on February 1, 1966, at the age of eighty. She was an American actress and gossip columnist. Before writing the column Hedda Hopper's Hollywood for the Los Angeles Times beginning in 1938, she worked for years as a moderately ...