Actress. Born Elizabeth Keno in Bronx, New York. At the age of three, she debuted on stage in her parents' vaudeville act. A move to Hollywood won her a contract with Paramount Pictures appearing in such films as "Tom Sawyer" in 1930 and "Huckleberry Finn" in 1931. She became known as Little Mitzi and was the first child Paramount ever signed to a multi-picture contract. She was given broader scope in musicals and comedies, giving clever impressions of adult celebrities such as Greta Garbo and delivering musical performances such as in 1932's "Girl Crazy." Maturing early, she was cast as the coquette in 1934's "Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round" at the age of 14, which marked the end of her juvenile film career. She left Hollywood for a return to New York, and spent several years on Broadway starring in the original production of Rogers and Hart's "Babes in Arms." In 1942 she married Broadway director Joseph Pevney and retired to raise their four children. She staged a short-lived comeback on screen, appearing in the Abbott and Costello comedy "Lost in Alaska" as well as "Bloodhounds of Broadway" in 1952. In 1955, she co-starred in the slapstick sitcom "So This is Hollywood" in which she played stunt woman Queenie Dugan. Semi-retired, she appeared occasionally in summer stock and dinner theatre for several years. She succumbed to cancer at the age of 48.
Actress. Born Elizabeth Keno in Bronx, New York. At the age of three, she debuted on stage in her parents' vaudeville act. A move to Hollywood won her a contract with Paramount Pictures appearing in such films as "Tom Sawyer" in 1930 and "Huckleberry Finn" in 1931. She became known as Little Mitzi and was the first child Paramount ever signed to a multi-picture contract. She was given broader scope in musicals and comedies, giving clever impressions of adult celebrities such as Greta Garbo and delivering musical performances such as in 1932's "Girl Crazy." Maturing early, she was cast as the coquette in 1934's "Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round" at the age of 14, which marked the end of her juvenile film career. She left Hollywood for a return to New York, and spent several years on Broadway starring in the original production of Rogers and Hart's "Babes in Arms." In 1942 she married Broadway director Joseph Pevney and retired to raise their four children. She staged a short-lived comeback on screen, appearing in the Abbott and Costello comedy "Lost in Alaska" as well as "Bloodhounds of Broadway" in 1952. In 1955, she co-starred in the slapstick sitcom "So This is Hollywood" in which she played stunt woman Queenie Dugan. Semi-retired, she appeared occasionally in summer stock and dinner theatre for several years. She succumbed to cancer at the age of 48.
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