Paulette Goddard Movies

goddard-111111Want to know the best Paulette Goddard movies?  How about the worst Paulette Goddard movies?  Curious about Paulette Goddard box office grosses or which Paulette Goddard movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which Paulette Goddard movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences? Well you have come to the right place….because we have all of that information.

Paulette Goddard (1910-1990) was an Oscar®-nominated American actress.  Goddard went from being a child model to a Ziegfeld girl to Charlie Chaplin’s leading lady (on screen and off screen) to one of the most popular stars of the 1940s.     Paulette Goddard’s IMDb page shows 64 acting credits from 1929-1972.  This page will rank 38 Paulette Goddard movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. Her television appearances, uncredited roles, shorts and her last movie, Time of Indifference (could not find box office)  were not included in the rankings. 

Drivel Part:  This page comes from a request by Søren.  We want to take a moment and thank Søren.  Thank you Søren…your support is greatly appreciated.  Søren has been reading, commenting and making movie subject suggestions since 2011.  From Hub Pages to Cogerson Movie Score to Ultimate Movie Rankings, Søren has been along for the ride….thank you again….hope you like your Paulette Goddard page.

Paulette Goddard and Charlie Chaplin in 1936's Modern Times
Paulette Goddard and Charlie Chaplin in 1936’s Modern Times

Paulette Goddard Movies Can Be Ranked 6 Ways In This Table

The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies anyway you want.

  • Sort Paulette Goddard movies by co-stars of her movies
  • Sort Paulette Goddard movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
  • Sort Paulette Goddard movies by yearly domestic box office rank
  • Sort Paulette Goddard movies by how they were received by critics and audiences.  60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
  • Sort by how many Oscar® nominations and how many Oscar® wins each Paulette Goddard movie received.
  • Sort Paulette Goddard movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR)Score.  UMR Score puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
  • Blue link in Co-star column takes you to that star’s UMR movie page

Stats and Possibly Interesting Things From The Above Paulette Goddard Table

  1. Seventeen Paulette Goddard movies crossed the magical $100 million domestic gross mark.  That is a percentage of 44.73% of her movies listed. Modern Times (1936) was her biggest box office hit.
  2. An average Paulette Goddard movie grossed $114.50 million in adjusted box office gross.
  3. Using RottenTomatoes.com’s 60% fresh meter.  18 Paulette Goddard movies are rated as good movies…or 64.00% of her movies.  Modern Times (1936) is her highest rated movie while Charge of the Lancers (1954) is her lowest rated movie.
  4. Ten Paulette Goddard movies received at least one Oscar® nomination in any category…..or 26.31% of her movies.
  5. Two Paulette Goddard movies won at least one Oscar® in any category…..or 5.26% of her movies.
  6. An average Ultimate Movie Ranking (UMR) Score is 40.00.  20 Paulette Goddard movies scored higher that average….or 52.63% of her movies. The Great Dictator (1940) got the the highest UMR Score while Charge of the Lancers (1954) got the lowest UMR Score.
Susan Hayward & Paulette Goddard in 1942's Reap The Wild Wind
Susan Hayward & Paulette Goddard in 1942’s Reap The Wild Wind

Possibly Interesting Facts About Paulette Goddard

1. Marion Levy was born on Long Island, New York in 1910.

2. In 1926, she was hired by Florenz Ziegfeld to appear in the stage play No Foolin’.  For her debut she changed her name to Paulette Goddard.

3. Paulette Goddard arrived in Hollywood in 1929.  She would appear in many shorts (including two with Laurel and Hardy) and uncredited roles from 1929 to 1935.

4.  Paulette Goddard was cast by Charlie Chaplin (her boyfriend at the time) as the leading lady in his classic movie Modern Times (1936).   Goddard and Chaplin were married after they filmed the movie and would remain married until 1942.

5. Paulette Goddard was the leading contender for the role of Scarlett O’Hara in 1939’s Gone with the Wind. Her inability to produce a marriage certificate to prove she and Charles Chaplin were married, and the appearance of Vivien Leigh on the scene, lost her the part.

6. During the filming of 1939’s The Women….Rosalind Russell actually bit Paulette Goddard in their fight sequence. Despite the permanent scar the bite left Goddard, the actresses remained friends.

7. More trivia from 1939’s The Women…..their are over 130 roles in this movie, all played by women….even the animals shown in the movie were female.

8. Paulette Goddard was nominated for one acting Oscar®….she received a Best Supporting Actress nomination for 1943’s So Proudly We Hail!.

9.  Paulette Goddard was married four times and had no children. Her most famous marriage was to Chaplin….the one that surprised us was her marriage to Burgess “Rocky” Meredith.

10. Paulette Goddard would not do a dangerous stunt in Cecil B. Demille‘s Unconquered (1947).  Five years later DeMille rejected her acceptance of a key role in 1952’s The Greatest Show on Earth and cast Gloria Grahame, instead.  That was pretty the end of her career as she sent the rest of career in low budget B movies and retired in 1954.

Check out Paulette Goddard‘s career compared to current and classic actors.  Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time.

Academy Award® and Oscar® are the registered trademarks of the Academy of Motion Arts and Sciences.  Golden Globe® is a registered trademark.

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49 thoughts on “Paulette Goddard Movies

  1. While I can’t imagine anyone other than Vivien Leigh as Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With the Wind, the part almost went to Paulette Goddard. I remember seeing the screen tests on the excellent Making of GWTW documentary on the DVD. Paulette looked the part but in retrospect I’m glad they got Vivien Leigh. Btw in the novel Scarlett wasn’t supposed to be that pretty.

    Mrs. Charles Chaplin eh? Almost feel sorry for the girl, how many wives and girlfriends did Charlie have back then? 🙂

    Looking at the trivia – she also married Burgess ‘The Penguin’ Meredith, who’s only about 5ft tall. I mean you know, such a pretty girl and all the good looking guys in Hollywood… I’m suddenly reminded of Ava Gardner marrying Mickey Rooney…

    Anyway I’ve seen just 8 of the 38 films listed, less than I thought. Favorites include – The Cat and the Canary, Ghost Breakers, Modern Times, The Great Dictator, Reap the Wild Wind and Unconquered.

    I haven’t seen So Proudly We Hail, The Women or Hold Back the Dawn.

    Another expert movie page Bruce! Voted Up!

    1. STEVE

      1 I agree with you and in fact Paulette, Hedy Lamarr and Vivien were 3 actresses I used to confuse.

      2 If Dan joined up the dots for us he would reveal that Brando worked in the last film of Charlie who married Paulette who married Burgess who played Sakini inn the stage version of Teahouse of August Moon.

      1. Hey Bob….I can see the likeness in Leigh and Goddard….I do not know enough about Hedy Lamarr to know how she compares to Leigh and Goddard….thanks for the feedback.

    2. Hey Steve
      1. As always….thanks for stopping by and commenting….I could say the same thing about you that I said about Søren….you have been a good friend for almost 6 years now…..and it is greatly appreciated. One of my memories of you. We (the family) were out of the country….in Montreal….we were at one of the places they filmed The Whole Nine Yards….I could not place exactly where they filmed the scene…..so from Canada to England, WoC sent you an e-mail…requesting a picture from the scene in the movie….and within 30 minutes you provided us that information….the power of technology and friendship…..thanks for all of your support.
      2. Anyway now that I am done kissing your ass…lol. Selznick really wanted her for Scarlett….he did the first ever Technicolor screen test on her….and she was…. not surprisingly….. stunning in the test. I did not know in the book that Scarlett was not a beauty….you learn something everyday. It does make you wonder what would have happened if she had gotten that part.
      3. Her four marriages were to two movie writers and two actors. I found the fact that she was married to Meredith stunning….I mean when I think of Burgess Meredith….I think of his Mickey Goldmill character in the Rocky movies…..an grumpy old man….versus a young man that got the lovely Goddard to fall in love with him and marry him.
      4. Your 8 has me beat…I am at 6…..but they are all in the Top 13…..seen both Chaplin movies, her blockbuster with John Wayne, Ghost Breakers with Bob Hope, The Women and Oscar nominated performance in So Proudly We Hail.
      5. Of the ones you have not seen….I would recommend The Women…..it is almost an Hall of Fame of actresses….Joan Crawford (Oscar winner), Norma Shearer (Oscar winner), Joan Fontaine (Oscar winner), Rosalind Russell (many time Oscar nominee), Paulette (Oscar nominee), Marjorie Main (Oscar nominee), Ruth Hussey (Oscar nominee)….all directed by Oscar winning director George Stevens.
      6. As for So Proudly We Hail….it was a decent movie….I watched it….but until writing this page I did not realize her part in the movie earned her a Oscar nomination…..now I am trying hard to remember her “Oscar” scene.
      7. Thanks for the kind words….the visit……and the votes up.

      1. Thanks Bruce, always happy to help a friend and fellow film buff.

        The very first sentence in Gone With the Wind – Chapter One – “Scarlett O’Hara was not beautiful, but men seldom realized it when caught by her charm as the Tarleton twins were.”

        Okay she wasn’t supposed to be ugly either, but IMO Vivien Leigh was beautiful in that film.

        Bob, all three are pretty but I think Leigh was the best looking at that time? [Bob gasps] And easily the better actress. [Bruce stifles yawn]

        1. Hey Steve…thanks for the GWTW book opening….never read that one…even if it was on my mom’s bookcase for years and years. I think Goddard was the easiest on the eye…..a visual picture of Goddard running around barefoot in Modern Times is not a bad image to have in your head when you think about her.

      2. Hey Steve…..good return comment to Mr. Bob. Here is the link to your You Tube video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fl_ORg_Gwlg

        You should add the link every time you guys are talking about one of your videos….that way people can see the link and understand your comments better.

        As long as you only include one link….it will not show up as spam….that is the one of the reason Flora no longer posts…she got mad when one of her comments with two links got sent to the spam folder.

        Good stuff as always between two film experts.

  2. I have to say that I am glad I clicked on the link, which I normally do not do. She is one of my favorites. A hidden treasure for sure. I loved her in Modern Times, Great Dictator, Ghostbreakers and North West Mounted Police. One of her movies I thought I would like was Pot of Gold but even with James Stewart that one is just not any good. Off to check out some of your website.

    1. Hey Conner Knows….glad you took the chance…..our website has no ads….and the only links are to other pages. I like your description of “hidden treasure”. I also enjoyed her in Modern Times and The Great Dictator. Too bad she and Chaplin did not continue to work together….but she is the one that had a better career after their split….I wonder how many people thought that back in 1942? I have not see Pot O’ Gold……I guess even the great Jimmy Stewart made some less than great movies….thanks for stopping by and commenting.

  3. I had a comment but it said I was commenting too fast and then my comment went away. So I will make this short. Paulette was an all time beauty. Sad nobody talks about her. Good to see her getting some attention.

    1. Hey Xavier….that was probably my fault….whenever more than one person hits the comment button at the same time….the “You are commenting too fast” message pops up. You and I must have hit the comment button at the same time. So I am very sorry about your comment getting lost. I am glad you found our hot off the press page.

      1. Hey Xavier…..sorry again about your comment. As for your Paulette comment….I agree she was stunning …her performance in Modern Times is amazing and very sexy. I agree it is sad that not many people seem to remember her as much as they should. Glad a Paulette fan found her page. We do request if you can think of anybody else that needs some light shone their way. Thanks for the comments, the visit and the feedback.

        1. Ok I will try again.
          Paulette was one of the most beautiful actress of that era. Her double whammy of Modern Times and The Great Dictator not only put her in movies that will be remembered forever but showed how beautiful and sexy she was back then. All you have to do is watch her in Modern Times for five minutes and you realize why Chaplin fell in love with her. The fact that not only did she manage to escape Chaplin’s shadow, but actually became one of the biggest stars of the 1940s. Proving that she had more than looks to succeed in the business. She had great chemistry with Chaplin, Fred MacMurray, Ray Milland, Bob Hope and Gary Cooper. So glad to see her getting some attention.

          If this comment disappears a third attempt will not be made.

          1. Hey Xavier….glad your comment made it through. I agree 100% with you about her beauty in her two Chaplin movies and all of her other movies. Her run from 1936 to 1947 was incredible and is among the best ten year periods ever.

            1936 – 1939….5 movies….4 crossed the $100 million mark….for a total of $942.30 million

            1940-1947….13 more $100 million movies for a total of $2.47 BILLION….

            So in a 11 year span she had 17 hits….that is pretty close to almost 2 a year for an entire decade. Sorry I am a stats guy….lol.

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