At age nine, Merna met a little girl in her dance class name Lita. The two soon became friends, as did their mothers. These friendships lasted for years, all the way to Hollywood when Lita became Lita Grey Chaplin after marrying Charlie Chaplin at age sixteen. It was Lita who gave Merna her big break in Hollywood. 

Chaplin was looking to cast his leading lady in his upcoming film, The Circus. Lita had been the leading lady to her husband, but she had two sons to take care of now and wasn't going to be appearing on the screen anytime soon. So, she had the bright idea of putting her good friend Merna up for the part, but she had to be careful about how to approach the subject to Chaplin. One night, Lita invited Merna out to dinner with her and Charlie so that he could get a look at her and make it seem like the idea for casting Merna was his idea all along. And so, The Circus became Merna Kennedy's film debut! Not a bad way to start!