Viola Mallory Lawrence (December 2, 1894,[1] New York City[2] – November 20, 1973)[1] is considered by many to be the first female film editor in Hollywood.

[1][2][3] She was nominated twice for the Academy Award for Best Film Editing: for Pal Joey (1957), with Jerome Thoms; and for Pepe (1960), with Al Clark.

After director Erich von Stroheim was fired from the production of Queen Kelly (1929), star Gloria Swanson herself directed an alternate ending, with the help of cinematographer Gregg Toland and Lawrence.

Orson Welles biographer Charles Higham wrote that, when Lawrence was assigned to The Lady from Shanghai (1947), she reported to studio boss Harry Cohn that "the footage was a jumbled mess".

[8] Following poorly received previews, the studio instructed Lawrence to make drastic cuts, over an hour of footage, shortening the film to 87 minutes.