ACTOR · BORN 1912 · DIED 2003
Martha Scott
- Born
- 22 September 1912, Jamesport, Missouri, USA
- Died
- 28 May 2003
- Known for
- Ben-Hur (1959), The Ten Commandments (1956), Columbo (1971), Murder, She Wrote (1984)
21 archived facts 4 topics 1 source Last reviewed Sep 2026
12 Facts About Martha Scott's Life and Family
- #001
Martha Scott played Charlton Heston's mother twice, in Ben-Hur (1959) and The Ten Commandments (1956), and also played his wife twice on stage.
- #003
Martha Scott earned a bachelor's degree in drama from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan (1934).
- #007
Although Martha Scott played John Carradine's mother in The Ten Commandments (1956), in real life she was six years younger than he was.
- #008
Martha Scott's mother, Letha McKinley Scott, was a second cousin of President William McKinley.
- #009
Martha Scott was a very active member of both the Hollywood Democratic Committee and the Hollywood Anti-Nazi League, and throughout her life she gave her time and money to many liberal causes (such as the founding of the United Nations and the Civil Rights Movement) and to political candidates (including Franklin D. Roosevelt, Henry Wallace, Adlai Stevenson, John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and Al Gore).
- #010
After graduating from the University of Michigan with a bachelor's degree in drama in 1934, Martha Scott appeared in William Shakespeare's plays at the 1933-1934 Chicago World's Fair before coming to New York.
- #011
Martha Scott was under the protection of her second husband, Benny Goodman, and the singer Peggy Lee was the godmother of their first daughter.
- #013
Martha Ellen Scott died on May 28, 2003, four months after the date that would have been her 91st birthday, September 22.
- #014
Martha Scott's first husband, Carlton Alsop, was a radio and film producer. She had a son, Carleton Scott Alsop, and later had two daughters, Mary and Kathleen, with her second husband, composer Mel Powell.
- #017
Martha Scott was survived by her brother Charles Scott, her son Carleton Scott Alsop and her two daughters Mary Powell Harper and Kathleen Powell.
- #019
Although Martha Scott played Charlton Heston's mother in The Ten Commandments (1956) and Ben-Hur (1959), in real life she was only eleven years older than he was.
- #020
Although Olive Deering's mother played in The Ten Commandments (1956), in real life she was only six years older than her.
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