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If ever there was a "Renaissance Girl" at Universal in the 1940’s, Nell O’Day was certainly it. Stage and screen actress, dancer, horsewoman, writer and editor. At one time or another in her remarkable life, the diminutive O’Day was all of these. "You see, if you begin to earn a living at the age of eleven, and you live for a rather long time, you can do a great deal of work," she once said.

O’Day began entertaining audiences as a child dancer in the early 1920’s. Her talent led to employment with the Tommy Atkins Sextet before the end of that decade. The group’s popularity resulted in an offer to come to Hollywood to appear in Universal’s 1930 production of "The King of Jazz." The film, which featured Paul Whiteman and his orchestra, was an important release for the studio, and was shot entirely in color.

Afterwards, O’Day continued her stage work. Most notably, she joined Eleanor Powell in the 1930 play "Fine and Dandy," which opened in Chicago on September 23rd of that year and ran for 255 performances.

The 1930’s were a busy time for the young performer. A contract at 20th Century Fox yielded steady film work and she spent the next few years alternating between screen and stage roles quite successfully. Among her film roles were a series of comedy shorts with Harry Langdon, the feature "This Side of Heaven" with Lionel Barrymore and Mae Clarke in 1934, and "Convention Girl" with Rose Hobart the following year.

In 1940, O’Day learned that Universal was seeking a female lead for their western star, Johnny Mack Brown. She auditioned, and thanks to her equestrienne abilities, was awarded the job. For the next two years the Texas native would ride the range with Brown and Fuzzy Knight in a series of action packed films that remain ever popular.

Brown, a former University of Alabama football player, was already recognized as one of Hollywood’s best and most popular western actors. He would continue to be a major player in the genre well into the 1950’s. His gentlemanly manner remains fondly remembered by his contemporaries, including O’Day. "Johnny Mack Brown was a fine person and actor," she said.

These films held a particular fascination for O’Day, especially so since she was very much interested in history. "I came from the oldest of old English – Scottish – northern Irish people, the latest of which came to this country in 1740" she recalled. "Lots of Revolutionary War people involved. Off from Virginia and the Carolinas and on to Texas in about 1833 where they bought land from the Mexican government. They were not settlers. Oddly enough, some of the western films I made were somehow a kind of make believe of the time when my great-grandparents were living in Texas."

Fuzzy Knight, Johnny Mack Brown and Nell O’Day In

Universal’s "Son of Roaring Dan" (1940).

Johnny Mack Brown and Nell O’Day as they appeared in "Law and Order" (1940).

Nell O’Day, Maria Ouspenskaya, Edward Norris, John Litel, Patric Knowles and Lloyd Corrigan in a scene from "Mystery of Marie Roget" (1942).

In 1942, O’Day took a short respite from the westerns and was cast in her lone Universal horror film entry, "The Mystery of Marie Roget." The film was based on the Edgar Allan Poe story of the same name, although loosely so. "Studios simply did as they liked with the original story, especially if the author was long dead," she said. "You might like to know that Poe’s mystery story was suggested by a real murder – of Maria Celilia Rogers in New York."

While not faithful to the Poe original, the film is still regarded as a classic and features an excellent cast. Top billing went to the up and coming Maria Montez, soon to become a major star when Universal’s escapist adventures featuring her and leading man Jon Hall caught on with the public.

"Maria Montez was only recently arrived at the studio," O’Day remembered. "She was very unpopular with all of the hair dressers, the wardrobe people, and anyone else she considered to be in the ‘servant class.’ The fact is that she was the daughter of a professional Spanish ambassador. She had grown up in Paris, Madrid, Rome. She had been married to a titled Irishman."

"All of those good and skillful craftsmen and women in the studios resented being treated as servants," she recalled. "Maria Montez and I got on very well. She said at one time, ‘you see, Nell, you are a real professional actress. I want to be, what do you call it? A glamorous personality.’ And she was certainly that. She really was charming with the people that she thought were her equals. It probably took her a while to understand that the people in the working crews of film-making were not servants. Apparently, her life as the daughter of Spanish ambassador, had been quite different."

Also in the cast was the Russian born actress, Maria Ouspenskaya. She is best remembered today for her portrayal of Maleva, the old gypsy woman, in "The Wolf Man" and "Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man." "Mme Maria Ouspenskaya was a real professional in every way," O’Day said. "A splendid actress and coach and director of a school of drama, she was sure and very secure in her art."

Upon her departure from Universal in 1942, O’Day appeared in several more westerns for Republic, Monogram and PRC. There was also a return to the Broadway stage for a time before embarking on yet another career.

What began with having some stories published in magazines ultimately led O’Day to turn to writing full time. One of her biggest successes with pen and ink was the play, "The Bride of Denmark Hill." O’Day was living in Europe at the time of its writing, and her work was eventually produced for television and aired on the BBC.

Following her return to the United States, O’Day began an editing service that she continued to perform until very near the end of her life. In addition to her work, she took time to correspond with fans, and would often send extensive letters sharing tidbits from her career and thoughts on life in general. "Perhaps having a good point of view about your own life and your work is the best kind of path to follow," she offered. "I think that good work – the work you really like and enjoy are the best beginnings, and then family and the good friends we meet and make on the road of the many years of our lives." Nell O’Day traveled that path, doing much good work and making many good friends along the way.

O’Day passed away in 1989. A sincere, talented and accomplished person, she left behind a legacy of achievement both personal and professional that is not often attained. Yet, for all of her success in many different fields, her most important attribute may well have been her kindness and consideration of others.