Skip to content
MovieCove
Betty Field

Betty Field

Actor · Died September 13, 1973, aged 60 · Boston, Massachusetts, USA

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Betty Field (February 8, 1913 – September 13, 1973) was an American film and stage actress. Through her father, she was a direct descendant of the Pilgrims John Alden and Priscilla Mullins. Born in Boston, Massachusetts to George Field and Katharine Lynch, Field began her acting career on the London stage in Howard Lindsay's farce, She Loves Me Not. Following its run she returned to the United States and appeared in several stage successes, before making her film debut in 1939. Her role as Mae, the sole female character, in Of Mice and Men (1939) established her as a dramatic actress. She starred opposite John Wayne in the 1941 film The Shepherd of the Hills. Field played supporting roles in films such as Kings Row (1942), in which she played a victim of incest, although that fact was not readily apparent due to the heavy censorship of the time. Field preferred performing on Broadway and appeared in Elmer Rice's Dream Girl and Jean Anouilh's The Waltz of the Toreadors, but returned to Hollywood regularly, appearing in Flesh and Fantasy (1943), The Southerner (1945), The Great Gatsby (1949), Picnic (1955), Bus Stop (1956), Peyton Place (1957), BUtterfield 8 (1960) and Birdman of Alcatraz (1962). Her final film role was in Coogan's Bluff in 1968. She also appeared on television. Description above from the Wikipedia article Betty Field, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Read more

Biography from TMDB.

Born
February 8, 1913
Died
September 13, 1973 (aged 60)
From
Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Works as
Actor
Titles
20 on MovieCove · 39 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 38 days to Oct 27Down 17% in 30 days

What are Betty Field's films like?

Across their 14 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.

Genres

Drama7 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 75th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Adventure2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 86th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Adventure movies
Comedy2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 52nd percentile
: browse their Comedy movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Bonds
32%
Self
24%
Morality
19%
Survival
13%
Ideas
6%
Society
4%
Power
1%
Romantic love4 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival3 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship3 titles, browse their movies with this themeSelf-worth3 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose2 titles, browse their movies with this themeSacrifice2 titles, browse their movies with this themeObsession2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 14 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 10 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 0

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 2 · Charged 10 · Intense 2

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 5 · Shifting 8 · Whiplash 1

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 11 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 2

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

A split, not a type: Slow burn 9 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 1

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 5 · Engaged 9 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 11 · Open-ended 3 · Ambiguous 0

Roles they play

7 analyzed roles

Usually the Ally: 2 of 7 analyzed roles.

Ally
2 of 7
Herald
1 of 7
Hero
1 of 7
Shapeshifter
1 of 7
Mentor
1 of 7
Trickster
1 of 7
Show the 7 roles

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Melancholic
9
Tense
6
Hopeful
6
Romantic
3
Bittersweet
3
Other
9

How their films linger

Hopeful7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteDevastating2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy2
  • Bittersweet8
  • Tragic3
  • Ambiguous1

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Betty Field's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 10 of their 20 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Prime Video (7).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Betty Field's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

39 credits, 20 with a MovieCove page.

  • Coogan's Bluff(1968)

    as Ellen Ringerman

    Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all films

  • The Outsider (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • How to Save a Marriage and Ruin Your Life(1968)

    as Thelma

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films

  • 7 Women(1965)

    as Mrs. Florrie Pether

    Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films

  • Going My Way (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • The Alfred Hitchcock Hour(1962)

    Show 1 episode · as Jenny Davies

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all shows

  • Sam Benedict (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • Birdman of Alcatraz(1962)

    as Stella Johnson

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • Ben Casey (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • Dr. Kildare (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Show 1 episode · as Mrs. Harper

  • BUtterfield 8(1960)

    as Mrs. Fanny Thurber

    Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films

  • Route 66(1960)

    Show 3 episodes · Actor

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all shows

  • Hound-Dog Man (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)

    as Cora McKinney

  • Naked City(1958)

    Show 1 episode · as Mrs. Brent · as Pauline Kater

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all shows

  • Peyton Place(1957)

    as Nellie Cross

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • Bus Stop(1956)

    as Grace

    Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films

  • Picnic(1955)

    as Flo Owens

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films

  • Alfred Hitchcock Presents(1955)

    Show 1 episode · as Helen

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all shows

  • Climax! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1954)

    Show 1 episode · as Callie Bellason

  • The Loretta Young Show(1953)

    Show 1 episode · as Frances Palmer

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all shows

  • General Electric Theater (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1953)

    Show 1 episode · as Emily Marsden

  • Actors and Sin (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1952)

    as Betty Field (Woman of Sin sequence) (archive footage)

  • Hallmark Hall of Fame (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1951)

    Show 1 episode · as Lily Miller

  • Lux Video Theatre (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1950)

    Show 1 episode · as Carol · as Martha Shanks / Madeline

  • Robert Montgomery Presents (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1950)

    Show 1 episode · as Mrs. Howard

  • The Great Gatsby(1949)

    as Daisy Buchanan

    Midcredits score: 58th percentile of all films

  • The Philco Television Playhouse (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1948)

    Show 1 episode · as Rose

  • The Southerner(1945)

    as Nona Tucker

    Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all films

  • Tomorrow, the World! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1944)

    as Leona Richards

  • The Great Moment (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1944)

    as Elizabeth Morton

  • Flesh and Fantasy(1943)

    as Henrietta (segment 1)

    Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films

  • Are Husbands Necessary? (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1942)

    as Mary Elizabeth Cugat

  • Kings Row(1942)

    as Cassandra Tower

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • Blues in the Night(1941)

    as Kay Grant

    Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all films

  • The Shepherd of the Hills(1941)

    as Sammy Lane

    Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films

  • Victory (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1940)

    as Alma

  • Seventeen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1940)

    as Lola Pratt

  • Of Mice and Men(1939)

    as Mae

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • What a Life (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1939)

    as Barbara Pearson

Career shape

Star power in the 95th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 39 titles from 1939 to 1968; peak year 1961.

Biggest box office

Kings Row (1942)

$5.1M worldwide

Highest rated

Birdman of Alcatraz (1962)

Midcredits 97th

Film career

19391968

Peak 1961 · steadily prominent in film for years. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting39 of 39: 39 only acting, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score76th

By decade

1930s2 · acting1940s12 · acting1950s13 · acting1960s12 · acting

Billing

usually 4th · top billed in 0% of 12 roles
3954

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30; the columns are the share of top-billed roles in each era, 5-year spans from the year on the label, merged until each holds at least 5 roles.

How do Betty Field's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 75th percentile, the median of all 15; across their 14 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 71st percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

71stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 14

Approval · how many liked their films

72ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 14

Reach · how many have seen their films

68thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 14

Midcredits score across 20 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up12
  • 50th to 74th8

Shape of the crowd

14 of their 20 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved6
  • Crowd Pleaser14

Most loved · actor

Birdman of Alcatraz (1962)

Midcredits 97th · 88% liked

Reviewers score the acting 76/100 in their films, across 14 reviewed titles; fans 82, detractors 49. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Betty Field's work okay for kids?

Across up to 5 MovieCove titles with content scores, every category sits near the median of all films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Sex & Nudity5 titles14–45 · median 25 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does Betty Field work with?

People who share at least 2 of Betty Field's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Joshua Logan shares the most, 2.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers