Nydia Westman

Nydia Westman

1902-02-19 – 1970-05-23 (age 68) New York City, New York, USA
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Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Nydia Eileen Westman (February 19, 1902 – May 23, 1970) was an American actress and singer of stage, screen and television.

Westman's parents, Theodore and Lily (Wren) Westman were active in vaudeville in her native New York City. In addition to their working together on stage, her mother was a writer and her father was a composer. She attended the Professional Children's School.

Her sisters, Lolita and Neville were actresses, and her brother, Theodore (d. November 20, 1927), was an actor and playwright.

Westman's career ranged from episodic appearances on TV series such as That Girl and Dragnet and uncredited bit roles in movies to appearances in groundbreaking films (such as Craig's Wife, which starred Rosalind Russell, and the first film version of Little Women.

Westman's screen debut came in Strange Justice (1922). She appeared in 31 films in the 1930s.

She appeared as the housekeeper Mrs. Featherstone in the 1962–1963 ABC series, Going My Way, which starred Gene Kelly and Leo G. Carroll as Roman Catholic priests in New York City.

Westman's first Broadway play was Pigs (1924); her last was Midgie Purvis (1961).

She broke ground on stage, debuting the role of Nell off-Broadway in Samuel Beckett's Endgame, for which she won one of the first Obie awards.

Westman was married to Robert Sparks, a producer, from 1930 until 1937; they had a daughter, actress Kate Williamson, born on September 19, 1931.

Westman died of cancer at the age of sixty-eight in Burbank, California.

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Known For

The Chase
The Chase

1966

as Mrs. Henderson

Little Women
Little Women

1933

as Mamie

Princess O'Rourke
Princess O'Rourke

1943

as Mrs. Bowers (uncredited)

Rose Bowl
Rose Bowl

1936

as Susie Reynolds

Captain Hurricane
Captain Hurricane

1935

as Gertie

The Swinger
The Swinger

1966

as Aunt Cora

Pennies from Heaven
Pennies from Heaven

1936

as Slavey - Hotel Maid

Bondage
Bondage

1933

as Irma

When Tomorrow Comes
Manhattan Tower
Manhattan Tower

1932

as Miss Wood

The Ghost and Mr. Chicken
The Ghost and Mr. Chicken

1966

as Mrs. Cobb

One Night of Love
One Night of Love

1934

as Muriel

Hullabaloo
Hullabaloo

1940

as Lulu Perkins

The Reluctant Astronaut
The Reluctant Astronaut

1967

as Aunt Zana

Rabbit, Run
Rabbit, Run

1970

as Mrs. Smith

They All Kissed the Bride
They All Kissed the Bride

1942

as Lewis, M.J.'s Secretary

The First Hundred Years
The Velvet Touch
The Velvet Touch

1948

as Susan Crane

The Gorgeous Hussy
The Gorgeous Hussy

1936

as Maybelle

The Cat and the Canary