---
name: "Ruth Donnelly"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/ruth-donnelly"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "17 May 1896"
died: "17 November 1982"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 1
updated: "2026-09-16T21:20:37.560332+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Ruth Donnelly

Actor. Born 17 May 1896 in North Trenton - New Jersey - USA. Died 17 November 1982.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 17 May 1896, North Trenton - New Jersey - USA
- **Died:** 17 November 1982

## Biography

Ruth Donnelly (1896–1982) was an American stage and film actress. She began her stage career at the age of 17 in the 1913 touring production of *The Quaker Girl*. Her Broadway debut led to comic-relief roles in musicals by George M. Cohan, including *Going Up* (1917).

Her Hollywood career began in earnest in 1931 and continued until 1957. She frequently appeared as the wife of Guy Kibbee, including in *Footlight Parade* (1933), *Wonder Bar* (1934) and *Mr. Smith Goes to Washington* (1939). Other notable roles include Mabel Dawson in *Mr. Deeds Goes to Town* (1936), Sister Michael in *The Bells of St. Mary's* (1945) and Nora Marko in *A Slight Case of Murder* (1938).

Donnelly was married to Basil de Guichard from 1932 until his death in 1958.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (1)

- *Mr. Smith Goes to Washington* (1939), Fi1m 84, as Emma Hopper — [page](https://film.one/film/mr-smith-goes-to-washington.md)

## Also known for

- *Mr. Deeds Goes to Town* (1936), Mabel Dawson
- *Where the Sidewalk Ends* (1950), Martha
- *The Bells of St. Mary's* (1945), Sister Michael
- *The Snake Pit* (1948), Ruth
- *Footlight Parade* (1933), Mrs. Gould
- *Autumn Leaves* (1956), Liz Eckhart
- *A Slight Case of Murder* (1938), Nora Marko
- *Jewel Robbery* (1932), Berta, Teri's Maid (uncredited)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/ruth-donnelly