Actress. Born Violet McNaughton in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, she worked in touring stock companies before making her theatre stage debut in September 1910 in the show “Mother”. Much of her subsequent career was on the stage and she is probably best known for originating the role of the sweet tempered serial killer ‘Aunt Martha’ in the play “Arsenic and Old Lace”, which ran from January 1941 to June 1944. She then reprised the role in Frank Capra’s 1944 motion picture version of the play. She was also memorable for her role of ‘Miss Holroyd’ in “Bell, Book, and Candle” which ran on the Broadway stage in New York City, New York from November 1950 to June 1951. Her last appearance in a feature film was in 1948’s ‘The Naked City.’ Her last Broadway performance was as ‘Rebecca Nurse’ in the original production of “The Crucible” in 1953. (bio by: Iola)