Favorite Film Butlers and Maids

[SarLei]

That's a great question Cheryl...

Hattie McDaniel, Gone with the Wind (of course!)

Claudette Colbert & Charles Boyer, Tovarich (still my two favourite French actors to play Russian servants )

Nancy Olson, Mary Grace Canfield, Reta Shaw & the Butler (of whom I've forgotten the name), Pollyanna

[Reanne]

Haha when I think butler the first thing that comes to my mind is William Powell in My Man Godfrey

[Jakey-O]

I'm surprised nobody's mentioned Richard Haydn as Rogers the butler in And Then There Were None!

Haydn is a fantastic actor overall in my opinion; he delivered amazing performances both as the caterpillar in Alice In Wonderland and as Bartlett Finchley in the Twilight Zone episode "A Thing About Machines" - yet he's mostly only remembered for his role as Max Detweiler in Sound Of Music.

EDIT: I strongly recommend watching the Twilight Zone episode, for any Haydn fans out there!

[David]

I'm surprised nobody's mentioned Richard Haydn as Rogers the butler in And Then There Were None!

Haydn is a fantastic actor overall in my opinion; he delivered amazing performances both as the caterpillar in Alice In Wonderland and as Bartlett Finchley in the Twilight Zone episode "A Thing About Machines" - yet he's mostly only remembered for his role as Max Detweiler in Sound Of Music.

EDIT: I strongly recommend watching the Twilight Zone episode, for any Haydn fans out there!

Oh yes of course! I remember him most vividly not as a butler, but as one of the professors in "Ball of Fire"

[aggie-obsessed]

I'm surprised nobody's mentioned Richard Haydn as Rogers the butler in And Then There Were None!

Haydn is a fantastic actor overall in my opinion; he delivered amazing performances both as the caterpillar in Alice In Wonderland and as Bartlett Finchley in the Twilight Zone episode "A Thing About Machines" - yet he's mostly only remembered for his role as Max Detweiler in Sound Of Music.

EDIT: I strongly recommend watching the Twilight Zone episode, for any Haydn fans out there!

Ooh, yes! I completely forgot about him! I just loved that movie, and he really was a great butler! I can't believe I forgot him!

[MissMonoki]

I do miss one person on this topic:

Thelma Ritter in Pillow Talk.
She is not much of a maid, she has serious hangovers, listens to phone conversations, has an attitude, gives good advice and drinks Rock Hudson under the table. She makes me laugh every time and she gets my vote!

[McGrainger13]

I really liked If You Could Only Cook with Jean Arthur and Herbert Marshall. Marshall plays a successful executive who meets the unemployed Arthur and before he knows it finds himself posing as her husband to fill a butler and cook job. I thought it was pretty funny; I mean, it has Jean Arthur...need I say more?

[Cheryl]

I really liked If You Could Only Cook with Jean Arthur and Herbert Marshall. Marshall plays a successful executive who meets the unemployed Arthur and before he knows it finds himself posing as her husband to fill a butler and cook job. I thought it was pretty funny; I mean, it has Jean Arthur...need I say more?

That's a great film. And I agree with you about Jean Arthur - a wonderful actress!