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Marjorie Reynolds

Real name: Marjorie Bell Goodspeed

1917 - 1997


Another pretty and talented actress, Marjorie Reynolds was a good singer and dancer. She was playing kid roles during the 1920s, and bit parts as a teenager (including a bit in GONE WITH THE WIND). She was the female lead in a dozen or so westerns in the late 1930s to early 1940s with cowboy heroes Bob Baker, George O'Brien, Tim Holt, Roy Rogers, Tex Ritter and Ken Maynard.

She also portrayed "Betty Lou" in the series of Tailspin Tommy airplane adventures at Monogram in 1939-1940. And she was "Bobby Logan" in the Boris Karloff/MR. WONG mystery series. Reynolds was one of the Revolutionary War ghosts in THE TIME OF THEIR LIVES (Universal, 1946), an Abbott and Costello comedy.

Probably her most remembered roles are as the love interest to Bing Crosby in HOLIDAY INN (Paramount, 1942), and as William Bendix's wife Peg in the LIFE OF RILEY TV series which ran from 1953-1958.

You may want to go to the In Search Of ... page on the Old Corral.  There is a record for Marjorie Reynolds on the California Death Records database --- it shows her birth year and state as 8/12/1917 and Idaho, mother's maiden name of Jennings, fathers last name as Goodspeed, and she passed away on 2/1/1997.  The Social Security Death Index (SSDI) lists her name as Marjorie Haffen and the same birth and death years. She was married and divorced from Jack Reynolds and they had a daughter.  She later married actor and film editor John Haffen and reports were that they lived in Beverly Hills and owned an apartment building.  Haffen passed away in 1985, and both the California Death Records and SSDI have records on him.

Above, Marjorie Reynolds (as a brunette) in one of her films with Universal cowboy Bob Baker.



(Courtesy of Les Adams)

Above, John Trent and Reynolds in a trade paper ad for Monogram's Tailspin Tommy series of airplane adventures.  Third billed was Milburn Stone, better known as "Doc Adams" on TV's GUNSMOKE.


(Courtesy of Tom Bupp)

Above seated from L-to-R are Tommy Bupp, Marjorie Reynolds and Tex Ritter, and in the background are Tex's sidekicks, the moustached Snub Pollard and Horace Murphy. From TEX RIDES WITH THE BOY SCOUTS (Grand National, 1937), and this scene occurs at the finale.


Courtesy of Minard Coons)

Above are stage driver John Ridgely and guard Forrest Taylor, and inside the coach are Bob Baker and Marjorie Reynolds. Scene from Baker's WESTERN TRAILS (Universal, 1938), a remake of the John Wayne DAWN RIDER (Lone Star/Monogram, 1935), and one of Baker's weakest films.


(Courtesy of Minard Coons)

Above from L-to-R are John Ridgely, Forrest Taylor, singin' cowboy Bob Baker and Reynolds in WESTERN TRAILS (Universal, 1938).


  Although some of the data is incomplete or inaccurate, the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) has information on Marjorie Reynolds, and husbands Jack Reynolds and John Haffen (who used the stage name of "John Whitney" during his acting days):

          Marjorie Reynolds: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0721851/
          Jack Reynolds: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0721756/
          John Haffen: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0353110/

There's an interesting shot of Reynolds - probably from a World War II USO Tour - at the Kodiak, Alaska Military History Museum website. Go to: http://209.165.152.119/faw4/album3.html, and scroll down to photo number 0198, and click on that. Or, click on http://209.165.152.119/faw4/3/0198_.jpg

Jerry Murbach's Doctor Macro website has several images of Reynolds: http://www.doctormacro.com/Movie%20Star%20Pages/Reynolds,%20Marjorie.htm



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