Rita Johnson

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Rita Ann Johnson (August 13, 1913 – October 31, 1965) was an American actress. Early in her career, Johnson was busy in radio. Johnson began acting on Broadway in 1935 and started her film career two years later. She played a murderer in Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941) and a doomed wife in the RKO film noir They Won't Believe Me (1947). In an incident that was never fully explained, Johnson suffered a head trauma on September 6, 1948 that required brain surgery. Unsubstantiated rumors promulgated by gossip columnists such as Walter Winchell suggested she might have been abused by a boyfriend, but the only explanation she offered was that a large, industrial-grade hair dryer at her apartment had fallen on her. She was in a coma for two weeks and it was reported it took her a year to recover. Her left side was paralyzed temporarily and for a while she couldn't walk. The injury put a virtual halt to her film career. Her screen time in movies after that was limited due to her reduced mobility and powers of concentration. Johnson suffered from alcoholism from the time of her injuries until her death of a brain hemorrhage at age 52. From Wikipedia.

Filmography

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1957
All Mine to Give
Movie Katie Tyler
1956
Emergency Hospital
Movie Head Nurse Norma Mullen
1954
Susan Slept Here
Movie Dr. Rawley
1952
Mr. & Mrs. North
TV show
1950
The Second Face
Movie Claire Elwood
1949
The Art Director
Movie Self - from 'The Big Clock' (archive footage) (uncredited)
1948
Family Honeymoon
Movie Minna Fenster
1948
An Innocent Affair
Movie Eve Lawrence
1948
The Big Clock
Movie Pauline York
1948
Sleep, My Love
Movie Barby
1947
Michigan Kid
Movie Sue Dawson
1947
They Won't Believe Me
Movie Greta Ballentine
1947
The Perfect Marriage
Movie Mabel Manning
1945
Pardon My Past
Movie Mary Pemberton
1945
The Affairs of Susan
Movie Mona Kent
1945
The Naughty Nineties
Movie Bonita Farrow