Thelma Alice Todd was an American actress and businesswoman who carried the nicknames "The Ice Cream Blonde" and "Hot Toddy". Appearing in about 120 feature films and shorts between 1926 and 1935, she is remembered for her comedic roles opposite ZaSu Pitts, and in films such as Marx Brothers' Monkey Business and Horse Feathers and a number of Charley Chase's short comedies. She co-starred with Buster Keaton and Jimmy Durante in Speak Easily. She also had roles in several Wheeler and Woolsey and Laurel and Hardy films, the last of which featured her in a part that was cut short by her sudden death in 1935 at the age of 29.
Todd, c. 1933
Todd in Corsair (1931)
Todd, Roland Young, Lili Damita in This Is the Night (1932)
Thelma Todd's Sidewalk Cafe, 17575 Pacific Coast Highway, Pacific Palisades
ZaSu Pitts was an American actress whose career spanned nearly five decades, starring in many silent film dramas, including Erich von Stroheim's 1924 epic Greed, and comedies, before
transitioning successfully to mostly comedy roles with the advent of sound films. She also appeared on numerous radio shows and, later, made her mark on television. She was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960 at 6554 Hollywood Blvd.
Pitts in 1934
Pitts, c. 1920
David Butler and Pitts look lovingly at each other while Jack McDonald glares in a scene still for the 1919 silent drama Better Times
Pitts and husband John Woodall circa 1935