Helen Westcott (born Myrthas Helen Hickman, January 1, 1928 – March 17, 1998) was an American stage and screen actress. A former child actress, she is best known for her work in The Gunfighter (1950).
Early years Westcott was born on New Year's Day, 1928. She was the daughter of singer Hazel McArthur and Warner Bros. studio actor Gordon Westcott. Her father died from a polo accident when she was seven years old.
When she was two years old, Westcott appeared in vaudeville with her mother. At age seven, she began a nine-year run playing the daughter on stage in a production of The Drunkard in Los Angeles.
Westcott attended Los Angeles City College.
Film When Westcott was 4 years old, she appeared in a series of short films. At 5, she appeared in the full-length Thunder Over Texas. She appeared opposite Gregory Peck in the western classic The Gunfighter released in 1950. She was also known in part for her role in Charles Lamont's 1953 comedy horror film Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
Television
Westcott moved from the big screen to television roles in the late 1950s. In 1958 she appeared on Perry Mason as murderer Marcia Greeley in "The Case of the Haunted Husband." She also made guest appearances on Bonanza, The Twilight Zone and Wanted Dead Or Alive.
Later years Westcott also appeared on the stage later in her career, as well as in films including Anthony Mann's God's Little Acre in 1958.
Personal life Westcott wed actor Don Gordon on February 18, 1948. They had a daughter, Jennifer Kaye (born 1950). They were divorced in 1953.
Death Westcott died of cancer in Edmonds, Washington on March 17, 1998. Her body was cremated.
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes1934 Thunder Over Texas Betty 'Tiny' Norton 1935 The Affair of Susan Engaged Girl on Stoop Uncredited A Midsummer Night's Dream Cobweb 1936 Without Orders Little Girl Uncredited1937 Maid of Salem Little Girl Uncredited1941 Henry Aldrich for President Student Uncredited 1948 13 Lead Soldiers Cynthia Stedman Smart Girls Don't Talk Toni Peters Adventures of Don Juan Lady Diana 1949 Alaska Patrol Mary Lynn Flaxy Martin Peggy Farrar Homicide Jo Ann Rice Mr. Belvedere Goes to College Tri Gam Coed Uncredited One Last Fling Annie Mae Hunter The Girl from Jones Beach Miss Brooks Whirlpool Simms' Secretary Uncredited Dancing in the Dark June Uncredited 1950 Backfire Miss Haller – Receptionist at Mortuary Uncredited Three Came Home Woman Prisoner Uncredited The Gunfighter Peggy Walsh 1951 Take Care of My Little Girl Merry Coombs The Secret of Convict Lake Susan Haggerty 1952 Phone Call from a Stranger Jane Trask Return of the Texan Averill Murray With a Song in My Heart Jennifer March Loan Shark Martha Haines Battles of Chief Pontiac Winifred Lancaster 1953 Cow Country Linda Garnet The Charge at Feather River Anne McKeever Gun Belt Arlene Reach Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Vicky Edwards 1956 Hot Blood Velma I Killed Wild Bill Hickok Belle Longtree 1958 God's Little Acre Rosamund The Last Hurrah Mrs. McCluskey Uncredited Invisible Avenger Tara O'Neill Monster on the Campus Nurse Molly Riordan 1959 Day of the Outlaw Vivian 1960 Studs Lonigan Miss Julia Miller Cimarron Miss Kuye – Schoolteacher Uncredited1963 The Alfred Hitchcock Hour Mrs. Helen Fletcher Season 1 Episode 22: "Diagnosis Danger" (credited as Hellena Westcott) 1964 The Twilight Zone Lilian Pope Season 5 Episode 14: "You Drive" 1970 Pieces of Dreams Mrs. Straub I Love My Wife Mrs. Burrows Source: The Encyclopedia of Fantastic Film: Ali Baba to Zombies
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