Her daughter, Sylvia
Thompson, told the Los Angeles Times that Stuart died Sunday night in her home
in Los Angeles. She was diagnosed with breast cancer some five years ago, but
had survived the disease. "She just paid no attention to illness. She was
a very strong woman and had other fish to fry," Thompson said. Stuart was
born July 4, 1910 in Santa Monica, California, and she studied drama and
philosophy in college before starting her career in theater and later Hollywood
movies. She was a founding member of the Screen Actors Guild, the trade union
that represents actors and actresses, and was under contract for Universal
Studios and 20th Century in the 1930s. Her early movie roles ranged widely from
star turns in horror flicks such as "The Invisible Man" to playing
opposite Shirley Temple in "Poor Little Rich Girl" and working in
director Busby Berkeley's "Gold Diggers of 1935."