10/21/2026
100 Years Ago Today... October 21, 1926
The Worthington News reported that a "former Worthington girl," Leoda Knapp, had been appointed assistant stage manager of the Good Friend Company, becoming the first woman to hold that position.
Leoda was the daughter of Carl Knapp, owner of the Ford Agency in Worthington. The family lived for a time on Olentangy River Road and Melrose Avenue in the Clintonville area.
According to her biography on Find a Grave, Leoda Knapp later built a remarkable career in entertainment. Often referred to as the “Eleanor Roosevelt of the Film Extras,” she began as a professional dancer and stage actress, appearing in productions such as Strike Me Pink, A Connecticut Yankee, and Anything Goes. Director Richard Thorpe helped launch her film career with a role in A Date with Judy (1948).
Over the next three decades, Knapp appeared in more than 250 films, frequently portraying mothers, widows, secretaries, nurses, landladies, and society matrons. Her film credits included A Star Is Born, Battle Cry, Designing Woman, Airport, The Poseidon Adventure, Westworld, and American Gi**lo.
She also became a familiar face on television, making guest appearances on many popular series, including I Love Lucy, Leave It to Beaver, The Twilight Zone, Perry Mason, Batman, Bewitched, Mission: Impossible, The Partridge Family, Columbo, Charlie's Angels, The Love Boat, and Murder, She Wrote.
To read the full Find A Grave bio, visit: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/84019695/leoda-richards
To read the full issue of the Worthington News from 100 years ago visit: https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p16007coll97/id/830/rec/1
