Dorothy Short aspired to be an actress. She made her debut in 1935 starring alongside Noah Beery Jr. in the 12-part Universal Studios serial The Call of the Savage. Her next role was the one for which she is best remembered. In 1936, Dorothy was part of a cast of unknown actors and actresses tapped for a church-sponsored tale of morality entitled Teach Your Children. It attempted to show the dangers of drugs to impressionable youth. After filming was completed it was purchased by a commercial film distributor, re-cut, and released as Reefer Madness. The film was originally presented as an exploitation vehicle, but resurfaced in the 1970s as an unintentionally funny cult favorite. Dorthy married her Reefer Madness co-star Dave O’Brien.
She went on to appear in Assassin of Youth, another cautionary tale of drug addiction. After that, Dorothy focused on low-budget Westerns — both features and multipart serials. She signed with producer Pete Smith and made a number of comedy short subjects before divorcing O’Brien and retiring from show business in 1954. Dorothy passed away at the age of 47 in 1963.