Her success in "Come Back, Little Sheba" was immediately followed by the musical "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" (1951), based on the popular novel, in which she played the feisty, but lovable Aunt Sissy, which proved to be another major hit. Her popularity was such that, at the time, the story was skewed from the original so that Aunt Sissy was the leading role (rather than Francie). Booth then went to Hollywood and reprised her stage role in the 1952 film version of "Come Back, Little Sheba" with Burt Lancaster playing Doc. After that movie was completed — her first of only five films in her career — she returned to New York and played Leona Samish in "The Time of the Cuckoo" (1952) on Broadway.