Gale Sondergaard ttended drama school in Minneapolis School of Dramatic Arts and later transferred to the theater to John Keller Shakespeare Company. With appearances in plays such as Hamlet, Julius Caesar, The Merchant of Venice and Macbeth, she traveled through North America. With the drama of Anthony Adverse (1936) she had her film debut, earning her an Academy Award as best supporting actress. Originally it was in 1939 embodied in the musical film The Wizard of Oz, the figure of the evil witch.

But converting a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer decided the seductive appearance of the evil witch with makeup in an ugly, she declined the role and was replaced by Margaret Hamilton. In 1946 she was again nominated for an Oscar as best supporting actress, won the award this time does not. In 1922 she married Neil O'Malley, but was divorced by 1930 she returned to him. That same year it entered into a marriage with director Herbert Biberman, emerged from the 2 children.

As an actress in the 1930s and 1940s, initially successful, her career suffered a serious setback in the early 1950s during the McCarthy era. Her husband was accused of being a Communist and a list of the Hollywood Ten was added, after which she herself was also on the blacklist. They sold their house in Hollywood and moved to New York where Gale came to the theater. After the death of her husband In 1971, she was seen again in various film and TV productions. At 86 years, she died of cerebral venous thrombosis in Woodland Hills, California.