Joan Tetzel

Joan Margaret Tetzel (June 21, 1921 – October 31, 1977) was an American actress born in New York City who built a career across stage, film, radio, and television spanning several decades. She grew up in the Spuyten Duyvil section of the Bronx. Her father was an Austrian illustrator, and her mother was of Scottish-Canadian descent. As a child, Tetzel posed as a model for her father's illustrations.

Tetzel's first performance work came at age 13, when she made her acting debut on a children's radio program. She went on to appear in the CBS radio programs When a Girl Marries and Woman of Courage. Her stage career began in 1938 with Lorelei at the Longacre Theatre in New York City, and she continued performing on Broadway through 1963. In 1942, she signed a contract with producer David O. Selznick, and programs for her stage appearances during that period carried the line "Miss Tetzel appears through the courtesy of David O. Selznick," a notice intended to discourage casting agents and talent scouts.

Her Broadway credits include Harriet (1942), The Damask Cheek (1942), Pretty Little Parlor (1943), Peepshow (1943), Strange Bedfellows (1947), Red Gloves (1948), The Winner (1953), and The Happy Days (1940). She also appeared in the 1940 revival of Liliom and the original stage production of I Remember Mama. On Broadway she portrayed Nurse Ratched in the stage production of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Her prominence as a stage actress was recognized when her photograph appeared on the front cover of Life Magazine on February 16, 1948. Beyond Broadway, Tetzel performed in London, playing Fionna Foster in How the Other Half Loves in 1970.

Tetzel made her film debut in Duel in the Sun (1946), playing Helen Langford. The following year she appeared in Alfred Hitchcock's The Paradine Case (1947) as Judy Flaquer, the daughter of the solicitor portrayed by Charles Coburn. In that film, her character serves as the confidante and closest friend of the wife, played by Ann Todd, of defense lawyer Anthony Keane, played by Gregory Peck, and is positioned to observe how Keane's infatuation with Mrs. Paradine damages his marriage. Her subsequent film appearances included The File on Thelma Jordon (1950), in which she played Pamela Blackwell Marshall, Hell Below Zero (1954) as Judie Nordhal, and Joy in the Morning (1965) as Beverly Karter.

Her television work included a further collaboration with Alfred Hitchcock on his series Alfred Hitchcock Presents, in which she played Eve Ross in the episode "Guest for Breakfast." In 1963 she appeared on Perry Mason as Marian Stuart, wife of the title character, in "The Case of the Decadent Dean." She also made appearances on the series Thriller, in the episodes "An Attractive Family" and "The Devil's Ticket," and on Gunsmoke.

Tetzel was married twice. Her first husband was radio producer John E. Mosman. In 1949 she married Austrian actor Oscar Homolka (1898–1978), and the two remained married until her death. Tetzel died on October 31, 1977, at her home, Beri-Be-Dahn, in Fairwarp, Sussex, England, at the age of 56, from cancer and pneumonia.