Mary Maguire: Movies & Filmography

Born Ellen Theresa Maguire on February 22, 1919, in Melbourne, Australia, she was known professionally as Mary Maguire and nicknamed "Peggy" by her family. She grew up as the second of five sisters in a household headed by her father, Michael "Mickey" Maguire, a former welterweight boxer, footballer, racehorse owner, and hotel proprietor who managed Melbourne's famous "Bull and Mouth Hotel" and later Brisbane's iconic Bellevue Hotel. After attending the Academy of Mary Immaculate in Fitzroy, Melbourne, Maguire began her acting career at age sixteen when director Charles Chauvel cast her in the 1935 Australian film Heritage. Her performance caught the attention of director Miles Mander, who encouraged her to pursue international opportunities, leading to her starring role in the Anglo-Australian production The Flying Doctor alongside American actor Charles Farrell. In September 1936, Maguire relocated to Hollywood with her family, securing a contract with Warner Bros. through the assistance of Australian expatriate John Farrow, and quickly established herself as a promising ingenue in films such as That Man's Here Again, Confession alongside Kay Francis, Alcatraz Island with Ann Sheridan, and Sergeant Murphy featuring Ronald Reagan.

After moving to 20th Century Fox in 1938 and appearing in Mysterious Mr. Moto, she transitioned to the British film industry, where she starred in productions including the Gracie Fields comedy Keep Smiling, The Outsider opposite George Sanders, and Black Eyes with Otto Kruger. Her personal life attracted significant controversy when she married fascist activist and First World War veteran Robert Gordon-Canning in August 1939, thirty years her senior, a union that produced a son, Michael Robert, who tragically died in 1942, and ended in divorce in 1944. She subsequently married American engineer Philip Henry Legarra in 1945, with whom she remained until his death in 1971. Maguire's final screen appearance came in 1942 with This Was Paris, and despite attempts to revive her career, she faded from public view, eventually succumbing to acute alcoholism in Long Beach, California, on May 18, 1974, at the age of 55. She was part of the celebrated "Marrying Maguires" sisters, who collectively made high-profile marriages into British aristocracy and society.