- Loretta Young, The Story of Alexander Graham Bell, 1938. Kelly was sideswiped by Young as the wife of the man who invented the telephone. Or by Young & Co. She brought all her sisters with her: Sally Blane, Polly Ann Young, Georgina Young. To play her sisters. What else?
- Linda Darnell, Day-Time Wife, 1938. Nancy Kelly and Loretta Young had no chance to play Tyrone Power’s originally Part Time Wife) when Linda Darnell turned up. She was only 15 when shooting started, but looked older and endowed enough to be wed. And they complained about Lolita. “I would be kissing Tyrone Power and the school teacher would come and tell me it was time for my history lesson. I never before or since have been so embarrassed.” Ty wasn’t. He made three more films with her. And then, head Fox Darryl F Zanuck almost ruined her career when she rebuffed his moves on her.
- Dorris Bowdon, Drums Along the Mohawk, 1939. For his first colour movie, John Ford kept changing people. Four actors were dropped. Don Ameche, Warner Baxter, Linda Darnell… and Nancy, older sister of Jack (Maverick) Kelly.
- Brenda Joyce, Little Tokyo USA, 1942. Action! ! Quick, quick! Beforethe evacuation of American-Japanese faded from the front pages… On April 30, John Shepperd and Nancy Kelly were announced. But it was Joyce (soon to be Tarzan’s Jane) and Preston Foster who completed the shoot on June 5 – and the B-movie opened July 8. Forgotten by July 9. As LA’s Little Tokyo was emptied, the film was shot in Chinatown. All Japanese were played by Chinese.
Birth year: 1921Death year: 1995Other name: Casting Calls: 4