Esther Howard
Esther Howard (April 4, 1892 – March 8, 1965) was an American stage and film character actress who played a wide range of supporting roles, from man-hungry spinsters to amoral criminals, appearing in 108 films in her 23-year screen career. From 1940 to 1949, Howard was part... Read full bio →
Featured Characters
Roles you can spot in Whatthemovie snapshots
No Man of Her Own
A penniless pregnant woman adopts the identity of a rich woman killed in a train crash.
Caged
Caged tells the story of a teenage newlywed, who is sent to prison for being an accessory to a robbery. Her experiences while incarcerated, along with the killing of her husband, change her from a very frightened young girl into a hardened convict.
The Lady Gambles
When Joan Boothe accompanies husband-reporter David to Las Vegas, she begins gambling to pass the time while he is doing a story. Encouraged by the casino manager, she gets hooked on gambling, to the point where she "borrows" David's expense money to pursue her addiction.
The Crooked Way
A war veteran suffering from amnesia, returns to Los Angeles from a San Francisco veterans hospital hoping to learn who he is and discovers his criminal past.
Hellfire
Zeb Smith is a gambler with a larcenous streak, but when an itinerant preacher takes a bullet meant for him, Zeb vows to fulfill the preacher's mission of building a church. Frustrated in his attempts to get donations, Zeb attempts to capture fugitive Doll Brown in order to obtain the reward.
Champion
An unscrupulous boxer fights his way to the top, but eventually alienates all of the people who helped him on the way up. One of the all-time great boxing movies. Academy Award Nominations: 6, including Actor--Kirk Douglas, Best Screenplay. Academy Awards: Best Film Editing.
The Velvet Touch
After accidentally killing her lecherous producer, a famous actress tries to hide her guilt.
Song of the Thin Man
Nick and Nora investigate a murder on a gambling cruise.
Born to Kill
Helen Brent (Claire Trevor) has just received a Reno divorce. That night, she discovers one of her neighbors, Laury Palmer, and a gentleman caller murdered in Palmer's home. The killer is her neighbor's other boyfriend, Sam Wilde (Lawrence Tierney), an insanely jealous man who won't abide anyone "cutting in" on him.
Without Reservations
En route to Hollywood, an author becomes smitten with a marine, though he is unaware of her celebrity status and is critical of her best-selling novel.
The Falcon's Alibi
A wealthy woman's secretary, fearing that she will be blamed if her employer's jewelry is stolen, hires the Falcon as guardian. The Falcon is blamed when the jewels are stolen and murders ensue.
Dick Tracy vs. Cueball
A police detective uses his girlfriend to track down a homicidal maniac.
The Great Flamarion
A vaudevillian is tricked into murder by a bored wife.
Detour
Al Roberts, a New York nightclub pianist, hitch-hikes to Hollywood to meet his girlfriend Sue. The gambler he's riding with, Charles, unexpectedly dies. Afraid the police wouldn't believe the truth, Al takes the man's identity. In a gas station, he gives a lift to Vera, a woman that knew Charles and blackmails Al with tragic consequences.
Adventure
A rough and tumble man of the sea falls for a meek librarian.
The Miracle of Morgan's Creek
A small-town girl with a soft spot for American soldiers wakes up the morning after a wild farewell party for the troops to find that she married someone she can't remember.
The Big Noise
During World War II Stan and Ollie find themselves as improbable bodyguards to an eccentric inventor and his strategically important new bomb.
Hail the Conquering Hero
Having been discharged from the Marines for a hayfever condition before ever seeing action, Woodrow Lafayette Pershing Truesmith delays the return to his hometown, feeling that he is a failure.
The Palm Beach Story
A New York inventor, Tom Jeffers, needs cash to develop his big idea, so his adoring wife, Gerry, decides to raise it by divorcing him and marrying an eccentric Florida millionaire, J. D. Hackensacker III.
My Favorite Blonde
Larry Haines, a mediocre vaudeville entertainer, boards a train for Los Angeles. Aboard, he meets an attractive, blonde British agent carrying a coded message hidden in a brooch—and is being pursued by Nazi agents.
I Married a Witch
A witch and her sorcerer father who were burned at the stake by Puritans in the 17th century return to the present to haunt the descendant of the man who condemned them.
Sullivan's Travels
Sullivan is a successful, spoiled, and naive director of fluff films, with a heart-o-gold, who decides he wants to make a film about the troubles of the downtrodden poor. Much to the chagrin of his producers, he sets off in tramp's clothing with a single dime in his pocket to experience poverty first-hand, and gets a reality shock...
The Great McGinty
Told in flashback, Depression-era bum Dan McGinty is recruited by the city's political machine to help with vote fraud. His great aptitude for this brings rapid promotion from "the boss," who finally decides he'd be ideal as a new, nominally "reform" mayor; but this candidacy requires marriage.
The Gracie Allen Murder Case
Super-sleuth Philo Vance faces the zaniest case of his career when Gracie Allen "helps" him try to solve the murder of an escaped convict. As she attempts to clear the name of a friend accused of the killing, her wacky, scatterbrained ways constantly impede the investigation.
Marie Antoinette
The young Austrian princess Marie Antoinette is arranged to marry Louis XVI, future king of France, in a politically advantageous marriage for the rival countries. The opulent Marie indulges in various whims and flirtations.
Rhythm in the Clouds
Struggling songwriter Judy Walker talks her way into the apartment of a famous composer, and finds that he's on vacation. Homeless and without any money, she decides to stay at his place, making use of all his belongings.
Dead End
Dead End concerns itself with several denizens of New York's East River district. Here the elite and the slum-dwellers rub shoulders due to the close proximity of the riverfront tenements with the East Side luxury hotels.
Klondike Annie
Carlton Rose, a girl known as "the Frisco Doll" escapes to Alaska after accidentally killing her guard.
Below the Sea
A wealthy woman funds an underwater expedition to explore for marine life, but what she doesn't know is that her "colleagues" have other intentions.
Merrily We Go to Hell
A drunken newspaperman is rescued from his alcoholic haze by an heiress whose love sobers him up and encourages him to write a play, but he lapses back into dipsomania.