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Anne Shirley

Anne Shirley

Actor · Died July 4, 1993, aged 75 · New York City, New York, USA

Anne Shirley (born Dawn Evelyeen Paris; April 17, 1918 – July 4, 1993) was an American child, teen, and young adult screen actress. She retired at age 26. Initially appearing in films under the name Dawn O'Day, she changed her name to Anne Shirley (the name of the title character she portrayed) upon the success of the 1934 film Anne of Green Gables.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
April 17, 1918
Died
July 4, 1993 (aged 75)
From
New York City, New York, USA
Works as
Actor
Titles
18 on Motif · 65 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 39 days to Oct 28Down 2% in 30 days

What are Anne Shirley's films like?

Across their 13 Motif titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Morality.

Genres

Drama5 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 80th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Comedy4 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 47th percentile
: browse their Comedy movies
Crime2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 86th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Crime movies

Their Motif 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
35%
Morality
24%
Power
17%
Self
12%
Society
9%
Survival
3%
Ideas
2%
Romantic love2 titles, browse their movies with this themeClass3 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship3 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRedemption2 titles, browse their movies with this themeSacrifice2 titles, browse their movies with this themeSelf-worth2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 13 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

A split, not a type: Grounded 7 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 2

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

Gentle 3 · Charged 8 · Intense 2

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

A split, not a type: Steady 7 · Shifting 6 · Whiplash 0

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 5 · Funny 2

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

Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 9 · Relentless 1

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

Casual 8 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 1

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

Resolved 12 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 0

Roles they play

9 analyzed roles

Usually the Ally: 7 of 9 analyzed roles.

Ally
7 of 9
Hero
1 of 9
Herald
1 of 9
Show the 9 roles

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
8
Melancholic
5
Warm
4
Hopeful
5
Joyful
3
Other
8

How their films linger

Feel-good7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteCathartic3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Happy8
  • Bittersweet4
  • Tragic1

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 Anne Shirley's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 3 of their 18 Motif titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Subscription and free streaming for Anne Shirley's titles on Motif; 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

65 credits, 18 with a Motif page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.

  • Make Mine Laughs (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1949)

    as (archive footage)

  • Movieland Magic (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1946)

    as (archive footage)

  • Murder, My Sweet(1944)

    as Ann Grayle

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • Music in Manhattan (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1944)

    as Frankie Foster

  • Man from Frisco (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1944)

    as Diana Kennedy

  • Government Girl(1943)

    as May Harness Blake

    Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films

  • Bombardier(1943)

    as Burton Hughes

    Midcredits score: 41st percentile of all films

  • The Powers Girl (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1943)

    as Ellen Evans

  • Lady Bodyguard (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1943)

    as A. C. Baker

  • The Mayor of 44th Street(1942)

    as Jessey Lee

    Midcredits score: 15th percentile of all films

  • Four Jacks and a Jill(1942)

    as Karanina 'Nina' Novak, the Jill

    Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films

  • Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 2 (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1941)

    Actor

  • Unexpected Uncle (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1941)

    as Kathleen Brown

  • The Devil and Daniel Webster(1941)

    as Mary Stone

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films

  • West Point Widow (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1941)

    as Nancy Hull

  • Anne of Windy Poplars (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1940)

    as Anne

  • Saturday's Children (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1940)

    as Bobby Halevy

  • Vigil in the Night (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1940)

    as Lucy Lee

  • Career (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1939)

    as Sylvia Bartholomew

  • Sorority House (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1939)

    as Alice Fisher

  • Boy Slaves(1939)

    as Annie

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films

  • A Man to Remember(1938)

    as Jean Johnson

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films

  • Girls' School(1938)

    as Natalie Freeman

    Midcredits score: 38th percentile of all films

  • Mother Carey's Chickens (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1938)

    as Nancy Carey

  • Law of the Underworld (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1938)

    as Annabelle Porter

  • Condemned Women (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1938)

    as Millie Anson

  • Stella Dallas(1937)

    as Laurel "Lollie" Dallas

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films

  • Meet the Missus (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1937)

    as Louise Foster

  • Too Many Wives (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1937)

    as Betty Jackson

  • Make Way for a Lady (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1936)

    as June Drew

  • M'Liss (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1936)

    as M'Liss Smith

  • Chatterbox (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1936)

    as Jenny Yates

  • Steamboat Round the Bend(1935)

    as Fleety Belle

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • A Night at the Biltmore Bowl (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1935)

    as Anne Shirley

  • Chasing Yesterday (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1935)

    as Jeanne Alexandre

  • Anne of Green Gables (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1934)

    as Anne Shirley

  • Bachelor Bait(1934)

    as Miriam Johnson (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • The Key (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1934)

    as Flower peddler

  • Finishing School (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1934)

    as Billie

  • School for Girls (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1934)

    as Catherine Fogarty (as Dawn O'Day)

  • The Life of Jimmy Dolan(1933)

    as Mary Lou

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films

  • Rasputin and the Empress(1932)

    as Princess Anastasia

    Midcredits score: 58th percentile of all films

  • Three on a Match(1932)

    as Vivian Revere as a Child

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • The Purchase Price(1932)

    as Sarah Tipton (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films

  • So Big! (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1932)

    as Young Selina Peake (uncredited)

  • Young America (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1932)

    as Mabel Saunders

  • Emma(1932)

    as Isabelle as a Child (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films

  • Rich Man's Folly (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1931)

    as Anne, as a child

  • Gun Smoke (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1931)

    as Horton's Daughter, Isabelle (uncredited)

  • Liliom (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1930)

    as Louise

  • City Girl(1930)

    as Marie Tustine

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • Sins of the Fathers (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1928)

    as Mary, as a child (as Dawn O'Day)

  • Mother Knows Best (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1928)

    as Sally, as a child

  • 4 Devils (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1928)

    as Marion as a girl

  • Night Life (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1927)

    as Daughter of War Profiteer

  • The Callahans and the Murphys (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1927)

    as Mary Callahan (as Dawn O'Day)

  • His Wooden Wedding (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1925)

    Actor

  • Alice's Egg Plant (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1925)

    as Alice

  • Riders of the Purple Sage (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1925)

    as Fay Larkin (uncredited)

  • The Fast Set (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1924)

    as Little Margaret Sones

  • The Man Who Fights Alone (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1924)

    as Dorothy

  • The Spanish Dancer (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1923)

    as Don Balthazar Carlos (as Dawn O'Day)

  • The Rustle of Silk (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1923)

    as Girl

  • Moonshine Valley (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1922)

    as Nancy (as Dawn O'Day)

  • The Hidden Woman (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1922)

    as Girl

Career shape

Star power in the 89th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 65 titles from 1922 to 1949.

Highest rated

City Girl (1930)

Midcredits 95th

Most popular right now

Boy Slaves (1939)

Film career

  • 1930Screen debut· City Girl
  • 1934First top-billed film· Anne of Green Gables
  • 1944Career best· Murder, My Sweet

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting65 of 65: 65 only acting, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score66th

By decade

1920s14 · acting1930s33 · acting1940s18 · acting

Billing

usually 5th · top billed in 14% of 7 roles

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 Motif, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.

How do Anne Shirley's films land?

Their typical Motif film has a Midcredits score in the 66th percentile, the median of all 18; across their 13 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 56th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

56thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 13

Approval · how many liked their films

52ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 13

Reach · how many have seen their films

41stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 13

Midcredits score across 18 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up8
  • 50th to 74th3
  • 25th to 49th5
  • Below 25th2

Shape of the crowd

None of their 18 titles divides audiences: 7 are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved4
  • Crowd Pleaser7
  • Broadly Agreed5
  • Mixed2

Most loved · actor

City Girl (1930)

Midcredits 95th · 83% liked

Reviewers score the acting 72/100 in their films, across 13 reviewed titles; fans 78, detractors 49. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on Motif; 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 Motif 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.

Who does Anne Shirley work with?

People who share at least 2 of Anne Shirley's Motif titles, grouped by what they did on them; Roy Webb shares the most, 5.

Writers

Actors

Composers and cinematographers

Mixed roles