Trivia

Was auditioned for the role of Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the Wind (1939), and landed a supporting role in the film.

While attending Howard College (now Samford University) in her native Birmingham, Alabama, Anderson was discovered by the director George Cukor who was casting for the coveted role of Scarlett O'Hara. Cukor was fired and the role went to Vivien Leigh.

Alfred Hitchcock recalled working with her when Dick Cavett asked about the filming of Lifeboat (1944) by stating that she "had great ambitions to become a film star. And I discovered that she was stuffing kleenex into her brassiere to build herself up. And one day she said to me, "Oh Mr. Hitchcock, which do you think is my best side?" And I said, "You're sitting on it, my dear"".

She had a great ambition to be a movie star. Ironically, she played supporting roles in films that won Academy Awards for the leading ladies: Vivien Leigh in Gone with the Wind (1939), Jennifer Jones in The Song of Bernadette (1943), and Olivia de Havilland in To Each His Own (1946).

Older sister of actor James Anderson.

Her only child, Anderson Alexander Shamroy, died on July 1, 1956, at the age of two months.

Although she was white, she was cast as a black girl falsely accused of murder in "The Underworld Story" (1950).

Her second marriage was to Leon Shamroy, who was one of Hollywood's foremost cinematographers. He had the distinction of being one of the cinematographers with the highest number of Academy Award nominations. The marriage lasted 21 years and ended with his death in 1974.