Illinois teacher Dee Green earned fame in Hollywood when she worked with The Three Stooges in the movie Brideless Groom (1947). Photo Credit: IMDb

Many talented classroom teachers achieve success in fields other than education. One such teacher was Delores Mae Green, who better known as Dee Green.

Dee was a beloved music and choir teacher who was also an acclaimed actress in Hollywood. Her claim to fame is that she worked with the Three Stooges. She is well-known for playing the part of one of Shemp’s potential brides. She was the plain, tall, and fawning Miss Fanny Dinkelmeyer in the comedy short Brideless Groom. She also portrayed the homely and unattractive fiance in I’m a Monkey’s Uncle and the daughter of King Rootintootin’ in Mummy’s Dummies. Unfortunately, Dee’s acting career ended when  a motor vehicle ran over her feet in New York. The accident resulted in the need for orthopedic footwear for the remainder of her life.

Dee was born on November 16, 1916, in Peoria, Illinois. After she concluded her career in show business, she earned her Master’s degree in music. She returned to her home town and taught music and choir classes at Peoria Heights Grade School in Peoria Heights, Illinois, during the 1960’s. Throughout the late 1970’s and early 1980’s she taught Language Arts and Drama at Roosevelt Junior High, which is now known as Rockford Alternative Middle School, in Rockford, Illinois. She produced many annual events, including a production of Babes in Toyland and numerous elaborate Christmas pageants that included every student in the school.

Dee inspired more than one of her students to pursue a career in theater. Some of them eventually earned success on Broadway in New York. She was often described by her students as kind and generous, and a woman of great courage, talent, and vision.

This amazing Chalkboard Champion passed away from cancer on April 24, 1985, in Rockford, Illinois. She was 65 years old.