Carol Tevis was a beautiful 1930s starlet who became known for her baby voice
She was born Carrie Rutledge on March 6, 1907 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. When she was a child her family moved to Cincinnati, Ohio. Sadly her mother died from cancer in 1914. At the age of nineteen she married William Tevis, a salesman. Their daughter, Nancy Lou, was born in 1927. The following year she divorced William and moved to Los Angeles, California. Carol started her career singing and doing impressions on the radio. Her high pitched baby voice quickly became her trademark. Walt Disney heard her on the radio and hired her to be the voice of Minnie Mouse in his cartoons. In 1930 she married William Britton. The beautiful blonde made her film debut in the 1931 drama The Secret Six. She had small roles numerous films including Taxi Barons, Mixed Nuts, Flying Down To Rio, and The Girl From Missouri.
With Grady Sutton
After just two years of marriage she divorced William claiming "he was rude and gruff to me". Carol co-starred with Grady Sutton in the comedy shorts Flirting In The Park, Contented Calves, and The Dancing Millionaire. In 1939 she provided he voice for one of the munchkins in The Wizard Of Oz. Although she appeared in more than fifty films she never became a major star. By the early 1940s she was tired of acting and decided to retire. Her final film was the 1941 comedy Unfinished Business. Then she reconciled with her first husband William Tevis. The couple remarried in 1944 and bought a home in Pacific Palisades. Unfortunately she became addicted to prescription drugs. On May 15, 1965 she died from an accidental overdose. She was only fifty-eight years old. Carol was buried with her mother at
Elmwood Cemetery in
Norfolk, Virginia.
