Heroine of the Month: Janet Shaw
Janet Shaw was a familiar face among fans of Universal films. Originally signed to Warner Brothers under her own name Eileen Clancy in 1937, she quickly changed it to Janet Shaw where she made small appearances in Jezebel (1938) and The Adventures of Robin Hood (1939). After her contract at Warners ended, Shaw moved over to Universal where she appeared in Hold That Ghost (1941), Night Monster (1942) and Shadow of Doubt (1943).
But it seemed her career was not going to get beyond supporting player status when she got loaned out to Columbia for one of their few totally original serials, Jungle Raiders (1945) helping hero Kane Richmond rescue her father held captive by natives. Returning to Universal, Shaw played the heroine helping the heroes stop an Indian uprising in The Scarlet Horseman (1946).
Her last film for the studio was playing one of Rondo Hatton’s victims in House of Horror (1946). Going freelance, Shaw appeared in the Charlie Chan mystery Dark Alibi (1946) and RKO’s They Won’t Believe Me (1937), before retiring from acting.
Alfred Hitchcock was impressed by her small role in Night Monster and used her in Shadow of a Doubt.