Joan Carroll

This article is about the U.S. child actress. For the American soprano, see Joan Carroll (soprano).

Not to be confused with Jean Carroll.

Joan Carroll (born Joan Marie Felt, January 18, 1931 - November 16, 2016) was an American child actress who appeared in films until retiring in 1950.

Joan Carroll
Carroll in Laddie (1940) with Tim Holt.
Born	Joan Marie Felt (1931-01-18)January 18, 1931 Elizabeth, New Jersey, U.S.
Died	November 16, 2016(2016-11-16) (aged 85) Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Years active	1936–1969
Spouse	James Joseph Krack ​ ​ (m. 1951; div. 1969)​ [1]
Children	4

Childhood career

Lobby card for Laddie (1940). L-R: Sammy McKim, Martha O'Driscoll, Joan Leslie,
Spring Byington, Joan Carroll and Tim Holt.

Carroll was born Joan Marie Felt to Wright and Freida Felt on January 18, 1931.^[2]

Carroll developed into an excellent singer and tap dancer at the Fanchon and Marco Dancing School in Hollywood,^[3] and became an accomplished child actress. Her stage name was changed to Carol and then Carroll.^[4]

Between 1937 and 1940 she appeared in supporting roles in several movies. Her big break came the 1940 film, Primrose Path, as Ginger Rogers's younger sister, for which she won a Critics Award. The same year she became the first child star to be summoned from Hollywood in order to appear in the leading role in a Broadway musical, Panama Hattie, which ran from October 30, 1940, to January 3, 1942.^[5]

Carroll became RKO Radio Pictures' resident juvenile personality in both "A" and "B" pictures. RKO starred Carroll in the leading role with Ruth Warrick in two zany comedy vehicles, Obliging Young Lady (1941) and Petticoat Larceny (1943). She continued to work in films as an adolescent, but less frequently. Two of her best-remembered pictures came from this period: Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) as Judy Garland and Margaret O'Brien's sister, and The Bells of St. Mary's (1945), in which she played "the sensitive child of separated parents."^[6]

Later life and death

After 1950, Carroll retired. In 1951, she married James Joseph Krack.^[7]

She and her brother donated a historic family lamp to the Nevada State Museum on July 7, 2011.^[8]

Carroll died near her home in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, on November 16, 2016, at the age of 85. She was survived by her four children and extended family.^[2]

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1936	The First Baby
1937	One Mile from Heaven	Sunny
1938	Walking Down Broadway	Sunny Martin
	Gateway	Child	(uncredited)
	Two Sisters	Sally, as a child
1939	Mr. Moto's Last Warning	Mary Delacour	(as Joan Carol)
	Tower of London	Lady Mowbray	(uncredited)
	A Child Is Born	Little Girl
	Barricade	Winifred Ward
1940	Laddie	Sister Stanton
	Primrose Path	Honeybell
	Anne of Windy Poplars	Betty Grayson
1942	Obliging Young Lady	Bridget Potter	(starring role)
1943	Petticoat Larceny	Joan "Small Change" Mitchell
1944	Meet Me in St. Louis	Agnes Smith
	Tomorrow the World	Pat Frame
1945	The Clock	Girl in Penn Station	(uncredited)
	The Bells of St. Mary's	Patsy Gallagher
1950	Second Chance	Nurse Eva

Bibliography

• Best, Marc. Those Endearing Young Charms: Child Performers of the Screen. South Brunswick and New York: Barnes & Co., 1971, pp. 20–24; ISBN 0498077292 / ISBN 9780498077296