Anne Morrison

Anne Morrison, born Mary Anne Morrison in Shoals, Indiana, was an American actress, playwright, and screenwriter who worked across stage and screen during the first half of the twentieth century. Of New England and English heritage with Southern roots, she spent part of her early years in Indianapolis, where she pursued business training before turning toward a career in performance. She studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and subsequently built her early professional experience as an actress in Pittsburgh and New York City.

Morrison's Broadway career spanned from 1920 to 1927 and encompassed productions including The Triumphant Bachelor, Lally, A Proud Woman, The Morning After, and Aloma of the South Seas. She was also a working playwright throughout this period, and in 1920 she opened The Wild Westcotts, a play she both wrote and performed in a lead role. That production took her on a continuous national tour through 1923. She continued writing and acting in stage work along the East Coast through the remainder of the decade, with theatrical works including Pigs in 1924 and Wilbur in 1928, followed by Jonesy in 1929, Love and Learn in 1931, Broken Doll in 1932, and No Questions Asked in 1934.

By 1934, Hollywood had drawn Morrison away from acting entirely, and she transitioned into a screenwriting career. Her film credits included Dangerous Corner in 1934, The Soldier and the Lady in 1937, Romance in the Dark and Listen, Darling in 1938, Dancing on a Dime in 1940, Sunset in Wyoming in 1941, The Sailor Takes a Wife in 1945, The Secret Heart in 1946, High Barbaree in 1947, and Big City in 1948. She concluded her fourteen-year screenwriting career at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

In 1928, Morrison married Newton Chapin, her second husband, and thereafter was also known professionally as Anne Morrison Chapin. She died in 1967 at her home in West Hollywood following a prolonged illness, survived by her son, James.