Never quite in the front rank along with Davis and Crawford, Ann Sheridan nevertheless had a very successful career and proved herself a snappy and adept actress in both comedies (The Man Who Came to Dinner) and dramas (Nora Prentiss). Sheridan was a beauty contest winner who came to Hollywood and beat the odds by actually getting a long-time career out of it. For a long time she had minor roles in minor films until the studio came up with the idea of billing her as the "Oomph Girl," with "oomph" replacing "It" as a combination of sex appeal and dynamic presence. Sheridan grew to hate the appellation and feared people would assume she wasn't a real actress. Sheridan married three actors -- Edward Norris, George Brent, and Scott McKay -- only the third seemed to work (until her death). She was not above being a homewrecker on more than one occasion, however. When her film career began to dry up, she turned to television and starred in a western sitcom called Pistols 'n' Petticoats, which was fairly successful -- but Sheridan died of cancer during its run. Some of her more memorable films include The Unfaithful and George Washington Slept Here, which illustrate her abilities as both a dramatic thespian and comedienne.
Verdict: A workmanlike career study of a most interesting performer. ***.
