[4] Allen was born Marie Elliot in New York City, and she grew up in Belmont, Massachusetts.

She attended Leland Powers School in Boston[5] and gained acting experience with a stock theater company.

Robert S. Birchard wrote about the process in his book, Cecil B. DeMille's Hollywood, comparing it to "a comic sequence in David O. Selznick's 1937 production of A Star Is Born.

"[8] Birchard related: "Mari Colman was subjected to the same treatment as DeMille, and Paramount tested long lists of potential screen names....

[9] She married Irish boxer, professional wrestler, actor, and a tenor Jack Doyle April 28, 1935, in Agua Caliente, Mexico and filed for divorce or annulment of the marriage, but also was quoted saying she hoped for reconciliation, and filed a $2 million suit against the Dodge heiress she said was trying to steal him away.