Biography
Norma Varden, born Norma Varden Shackleton, was an English-American actress. She was born on 20 January 1898 in London and died on 19 January 1989 in Santa Barbara, California.
She trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama after studying piano in Paris. Her stage career included a debut as Mrs Darling in Peter Pan, a West End appearance in 1920, and work with the Aldwych Theatre company from 1929 to 1933. She began appearing in British films in the 1930s before moving to Hollywood at the start of the Second World War.
Varden became a naturalised United States citizen in 1949. Her film roles include Casablanca (1942), Strangers on a Train (1951), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), Witness for the Prosecution (1957) as Mrs French, and The Sound of Music (1965) as Frau Schmidt. She also appeared in television series such as Hazel and Bewitched. She retired in 1969 and never married.
