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Oberon, Merle: Norma’s only friend and confidant for years. After Oberon confided in Norma that she was the daughter of a black-skinned Eurasian mother and raised in a Bombay tenement, Norma confided in Merle about the mental problems of both Athole and Andrew Shearer. They were introduced through Douglas Fairbanks Sr. in 1934, but their friendship ended after 1950 when their lives just happened to go in different directions.
When Merle first started out in movies, she passed her mother off as her maid. Then when her career started to take off, she ditched her mother in a London hotel. Her mother died around 1931 and was buried in an unmarked grave. Merle’s film career spanned over four decades.
Eugene O’Brien: Norma’s costar in 1922’s Channing of the Northwest. The two briefly dated during production. Norma said of their relationship:
“Eugene, being an actor, had an enormous yellow roadster that looked as if it had cost $25,000, but which, being all front, had an engine about the size of a peck-basket. In this gorgeous red ‘Mountrie’ costume, Eugene would drive through Forty Second Street, with me, tingling with excitement, beside him. We’d dash up Broadway so everybody could get a good look at this prosperous actor, and then dodge down a side street to a tearoom where they served a very nice lunch for 35 cents.
The car broke down under the elevated Sixth Avenue one day, and Eugene, in his stunning costume, had to help a policeman push it to the curb, while hundreds of people stood on the sidewalk and grinned. Eugene’s face was redder than his coat, and we jumped quickly into a taxi and left the car to be brought by the studio by a repairman. He was so humiliated he didn’t ask me to go with him to lunch anymore.”
Old Acquaintance: Bette Davis and Jack Warner asked Norma to accept the role of “Mildred”. Norma refused, mostly because she didn’t want to play second fiddle to Bette Davis.
Olivier, Lawrence: Perhaps the greatest Classical Actor the screen has known. Olivier was originally to star with Norma in 1940’s Pride and Prejudice until Mayer cast Greer Garson in the Norma Shearer part instead.
O’Sullivan, Maureen: Often cited as Ireland’s first movie star, and most known for her work as “Jane” in the Tarzan series. O’Sullivan costarred with Norma in not only The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1934), but she also had a small role in 1932’s Strange Interlude. Maureen said of Norma:
I was really devoted to Norma. Although she was definitely Queen of the Lot, she was so much fun. She created a very relaxed atmosphere, serving eggnog in her splendid trailer at four in the afternoon. And sometimes she would suddenly call Bullocks or another department store, and order clothes to be sent over for approval. She didn’t necessarily plan to buy anything but loved trying them on…
As an actress I found her extraordinarily professional. In a way very studied. She hardly ever varied anything. Yet as a person she could be very flirtatious-she flirted like crazy, in fact, but in a charming way. And yet, underneath it-like the acting-there was something else. She was a very passionate woman.