Ann Blyth (August 16, 1928)
Although the majority of her career was spent portraying well-scrubbed ingenues, this petite beauty is best known as Joan Crawford's wonderfully wicked daughter, Veda, in Mildred Pierce (1945).
Blyth's later films never really fulfilled her early promise, and were mostly either second-string comedies (1948's Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid) or second-string musicals (the dismal 1955 version of Kismet). Perhaps her most memorable appearance, other than Mildred Pierce, was on the 1954 Oscars telecast, singing the nominated song "Secret Love" (as in, "...now my secret love's no secret anymore") while seven months pregnant.
Still glamorous and lovely today, Blyth recently made a much-ballyhooed appearance at San Francisco's Castro Theater for a Q&A session following a screening of Mildred. Firmly in the pro-Joan camp (another reason we like her!), Blyth remained friendly with her screen mother long after filming wrapped.
JOAN CRAWFORD & ANN BLYTH, 1959
Happy Birthday, Ann Blyth! We have a Hostess Cake with a candle on it, just for you.
