Andy's Girls
The Andy Hardy series often showcased new or up-and-coming actresses at MGM, generally as "Andy's latest crush." It has often been said by film historians that this was done to help get new starlets before the public - the Andy Hardy series was so popular, it was sometimes a boost to an actress' career to appear in one of the episodes. In fact, several young actresses made their debut in one of the Hardy episodes. However, just who was doing whom the favor is highly questionable. Many of these starlets already had an established career. And certainly all of these young ladies did much to brighten the episodes they appeared in, and were doubtless an important factor in the series' success.
Whatever the motives of MGM, several episodes poke fun at the sheer number of these "crushes" by showing a shelf-full of publicity photos, generally referred to as "Andy's Girls." In Andy Hardy Meets Debutante, the final scene finds Andy adding Judy Garland's picture to his collection, saying "My, how one's women do mount up!"
The girls are presented here in alphabetical order:
Patricia (Pat) Dane [Jennitt Hicks], Life Begins for Andy Hardy (1941)
Patricia Dane as Jennitt Hicks
Margaret Early [Clarabelle Lee] in Judge Hardy and Son (1939)
and Andy Hardy's Private Secretary (1941)
Not a crush, but a fellow classmate
Margaret Early in Judge Hardy and Son
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Margaret Early in Andy Hardy's Private Secretary
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Dorothy Ford [Coffy Smith], Love Laughs at Andy Hardy (1946)
Dorothy Ford as Coffy Smith
Judy Garland [Betsy Booth] in:
Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938)
Andy Hardy Meets Debutante (1940)
Life Begins for Andy Hardy (1941)
Judy Garland in Love Finds Andy Hardy
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Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney
in Andy Hardy Meets Debutante
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Judy Garland in Life Begins for Andy Hardy
Helen Gilbert as Rose Meredith in Andy Hardy Gets Spring Fever (1939)
Helen Gilbert in Andy Hardy Gets Spring Fever
Bonita Granville as Kay Wilson in:
Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble (1944)
Love Laughs at Andy Hardy (1946)
Bonita Granville in Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble
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Bonita Granville in Love Laughs at Andy Hardy
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Kathryn Grayson as Kathryn Land in Andy Hardy's Private Secretary (1941)
Kathryn Grayson in Andy Hardy's Private Secretary
Virginia Grey as Consuela McNish in The Hardys Ride High (1939)
Virginia Grey in The Hardys Ride High
Jacqueline Laurent as Suzanne Cortot in Judge Hardy's Children (1938)
Jacqueline Laurent in Judge Hardy's Children
Diana Lewis as Daphne Fowler in Andy Hardy Meets Debutante (1940)
Mickey Rooney and Diana Lewis
in Andy Hardy Meets Debutante
Eleanor Lynn as Jerry Lane in You're Only Young Once (1938)
Eleanor Lynn and Mickey Rooney
in You're Only Young Once
Margaret Marquis as Polly Benedict in A Family Affair (1937)
Margaret Marquis in A Family Affair
Martha O'Driscoll as L. V. "Elvie" Horton in Judge Hardy and Son (1939)
Martha O'Driscoll in Judge Hardy and Son
Susan Peters as Sue in Andy Hardy's Double Life (1942)
Susan Peters in Andy Hardy's Double Life
June Preisser as Euphrasia "Phrasie Daisy" Clark in Judge Hardy and Son (1939)
June Preisser in Judge Hardy and Son
Donna Reed as Melodie Nesbit in The Courtship of Andy Hardy (1942)
Donna Reed in The Courtship of Andy Hardy
Lina Romay as Isobel Gonzales in Love Laughs at Andy Hardy (1946)
Lina Romay in Love Laughs at Andy Hardy
Ann Rutherford as Polly Benedict, Andy's girlfriend in nearly every episode
Ann Rutherford as Polly Benedict
Lana Turner as Cynthia Potter in Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938)
Lana Turner in Love Finds Andy Hardy
Virginia Weidler as Jake Holt in Out West with the Hardys (1938)
Virginia Weidler in Out West with The Hardys
Lee and Lyn Wilde as Lee and Lyn Walker in Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble (1944)
Lee Wilde and Lyn Wilde
in Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble
Esther Williams as Sheila Brooks in Andy Hardy's Double Life (1942)
Mickey Rooney and Esther Williams
in Andy Hardy's Double Life
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