Clara Blandick

Clara Blandick was an American actress born as Clara Dickey and born aboard an American ship off the coast of Hong Kong on June 4, 1880. Little is known about her early life until she became an actress. She grew up in Boston and first acted on stage in E.H. Sothern's 'Richard Lovelace'. Although she appeared in 118 films, she was primarily a stage actress. She began her film career at a late age. She was 33 when she was picked for the role as Emily Mason in Mrs. Black Is Back (1914). Her next film was The Stolen Triumph (1916), after which she returned to the stage, where she seemed more comfortable. She did not make another film until the age of 48, when she appeared in Poor Aubrey (1930). She had only three films under her belt by this time but would appear in more than 100 over the next 20 years. She made nine films in 1930, and thirteen the following year. The role that was to immortalize her, however, was "Auntie Em" in The Wizard of Oz (1939). She continued in films until 1950,