Madge Kennedy(April 19, 1891 – June 9, 1987) was a stage, film and television actress whose career began as a stage actress in 1912 and flourished in motion pictures during thesilent filmera. In 1921, journalistHeywood Broundescribed her as "the best farce actress in New York".[1]
Madge Kennedy | |
|---|---|
 Kennedy, ca. 1916 | |
| Born | April 19, 1891 |
| Died | June 9, 1987(aged 96) Woodland Hills, Los Angeles,California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1912–1976 |
| Spouses | Harold Bolster
(m.1918; died 1927)William B. Hanley Jr.
(m.1939; died 1959) |
Early years
editKennedy was born in Chicago.[2]Her father was a judge in a criminal court.[3]After she and her family lived in California,[2]she moved toNew York Citywith her mother to paint. She studied two years at theArt Students League,planning to be an illustrator.[4]Luis Mora saw her art work and recommended that she go to Siasconset (inNantucket, Massachusetts) for a summer.
Career
editTheater
editThe Siasconset colony was evenly divided among actors and artists, and painters often gave theatrical performances.
Kennedy appeared in a skit written by Kenneth and Roy Webb[5]and impressed professional Harry Woodruff, who commented, "She could act rings around anybody."[citation needed]As a result, she was offered the lead opposite Woodruff inThe Genius.[6]Soon she was inCleveland,where Robert McLaughlin gave her work with his stock company.[5]
Kennedy first appeared onBroadwayinLittle Miss Brown(1912),[7]afarcein three acts presented at the 48th Street Theater. Critics found Kennedy's performance most pleasing, writing, "Miss Kennedy's youth, good looks, and marked sense of fun helped her to make a decidedly favorable impression last night."[citation needed]That same year she appeared inThe Point of View.[7]
1914 saw her in the popularTwin Beds,[7]and in 1915 she scored a sensational hit at the Eltinge Theater as Blanny Wheeler opposite John Cumberland in Avery Hopwood's classic farce,Fair and Warmer,[7]which ran 377 performances. Critic Louis Vincent DeFoe wrote, "Madge Kennedy proves anew that consummate art is involved even in farcical acting."[citation needed]In the late Teens she would leave the stage for three years to appear in moving pictures for Samuel Goldwyn (see "Films" below).
Kennedy returned to the New York stage in November 1920, playing inCornered,[7]staged at theAstor Theatre.Produced by Henry Savage, the play, taken from the writing of Dodson Mitchell, offered Kennedy a dual role.
In 1923, she starred oppositeW.C. FieldsinPoppy,where she enjoyed top billing. In the comedy,Beware of Widows(1925),[7]which was produced atMaxine Elliott Theatre,a reviewer forThe New York Timesnoted, once again, Kennedy's physical beauty as well as her skill as a comedian.
Later, she starred in Philip Barry'sParis Bound(1927) and inNoël Coward'sPrivate Lives(1931),[7]having succeededGertrude Lawrence.[2]
After an absence of 33 years, she returned to Broadway in August 1965, appearing with her good friendRuth Gordonin Gordon and Kanin'sA Very Rich Woman.[7]
Films
edit
In 1917,Sam GoldwynofGoldwyn Picturessigned Kennedy to a film contract. She starred in 21 five-reel films,[2]such asBaby Mine(1917),Nearly Married(1917),Our Little Wife(1918),The Service Star(1918) andDollars and Sense(1920).
Kennedy told a reporter in 1916, "I have discovered that one of the best ways to act is to make your mind as vacant as possible."[citation needed]In 1918,Our Little Wifepremiered with Kennedy playing the role of Dodo Warren. The story is about a woman whose marriage is both humorous and sad. The screenplay was adapted from a comedy byAvery Hopwood.
A Perfect Lady(1918) was released in December and was taken from a stage play byChanning Pollockand Rennold Wolf. Kennedy co-starred with James Montgomery. In 1923, she starred inThe Purple Highway.Thescreenplayis an adaptation of the stage playDear Me,written by Luther Reed and Hale Hamilton.
The 1920s were a productive period for Kennedy. FollowingThe Purple Highway,she had prominent roles inThree Miles Out(1924),Scandal Sheet(1925),Bad Company(1925),Lying Wives(1925),Oh, Baby!(1926), andWalls Tell Tales(1928).
She was out of motion pictures until she resumed her career inThe Marrying Kind(1952)[2]andMain Street to Broadway(1953).
In the late 1950s, she combined TV work with roles in movies likeThe Rains of Ranchipur(1955),The Catered Affair(1956),Lust for Life(1956),[2]Houseboat(1958),A Nice Little Bank That Should Be Robbed(1958),Plunderers of Painted Flats(1959), andNorth by Northwest(1959).[2]She has an uncredited part as a secretary in theMarilyn MonroefilmLet's Make Love(1960).
Her film career endured into the 1970s with roles inThey Shoot Horses, Don't They?(1969),The Baby Maker(1970),The Day of the Locust(1975), andMarathon Man(1976).[2]
Radio and television
editAs a guest on theRed Davisseries (1934) overNBC RadioandWJZ(WABC-AM) network, Kennedy worked withBurgess Meredithwho had the title role. She was written into the full script by the program's creator,Elaine Sterne Carrington.
Kennedy was prolific in terms of her television appearances beginning with an episode of theSchlitz Playhouse of Stars(1954). Her additional performances in television series areStudio 57(1954),General Electric Theater(1954),Science Fiction Theater(1955),The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp(1960),The Best of the Post(1961),Alfred Hitchcock Presents(1956–1961),The Alfred Hitchcock Hour(1962),The Twilight Zone(1963), andCBS Playhouse(1967). She also had a semi-recurring role as Theodore Cleaver's Aunt Martha on the hit family sitcomLeave it to Beaver(1957–63). She played June Cleaver's aunt and the Beaver's great-aunt. Ms. Kennedy also appeared as Mimi (the wife of Albert, Felix's grandfather played by Tony Randall) inThe Odd Couple(1972).
Producing
editKennedy and her husband, Harold Bolster (who had been an executive with Goldwyn), formed Kenma Corporation, a film production company. Kenma madeThe Purple Highway(1923) andThree Miles Out(1924), both of which starred Kennedy but had little success.[2]
Personal life and death
edit
Kennedy's contract with Goldwyn ended in 1921.[2]She decided to return to the stage so that she could be close to her husband, broker Harold Bolster, in New York. Bolster died on August 3, 1927, from an illness he contracted months before during a business trip toSouth America.He was a member of the New York banking firm of Bennett, Bolster & Coghill. Bolster was 38 and a veteran ofWorld War I.Kennedy inherited more than $500,000 when he died.
She wed William B. Hanley Jr., inKingman, Arizona,on August 13, 1934. Hanley was an actor and radio personality. The couple resided inLos Angeles, California.Kennedy retired temporarily after her marriage before returning to work in entertainment. The couple would remain married until Hanley's death in 1959.
She enjoyed outdoor activities such as playing golf, horseback riding and driving cars. She owned aWillys-KnightGreat Six which she drove avidly at the time she was touring in 1929 in the play,Lulu.In August 1929, she was sued in aNorwich, Connecticut,court for damages she caused in a car accident on theBoston Post RoadnearGroton, Connecticut,in June 1928. The plaintiffs asked for $13,000.[8]
Madge Kennedy died of respiratory failure[9]at theMotion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital[2]inWoodland Hills, California,in 1987. She was 96.
Recognition
editKennedy has a star at 1600 Vine Street in the Motion Pictures section of theHollywood Walk of Fame.It was dedicated on February 8, 1960.[10]
Filmography
editSilent
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1917 | Baby Mine | Zoie | |
| Nearly Married | Betty Griffon | ||
| 1918 | Our Little Wife | Dodo Warren | Lostfilm |
| The Danger Game | Clytie Rogers | ||
| The Fair Pretender | Sylvia Maynard | ||
| The Service Star | Marilyn March | Lostfilm | |
| Friend Husband | Dorothy Dean | ||
| Stake Uncle Sam to Play Your Hand | Short | ||
| The Kingdom of Youth | Ruth Betts | ||
| A Perfect Lady | Lucille Le Jambon, aka Lucy Higgins | ||
| 1919 | Day Dreams | Primrose | Lostfilm |
| Daughter of Mine | Rosie Mendelsohn / Lady Diantha | ||
| Leave It to Susan | Susan Burbridge | Lostfilm | |
| Through the Wrong Door | Isabel Carter | Lostfilm | |
| Strictly Confidential | Fanny O'Gorman | Incomplete | |
| 1920 | The Blooming Angel | Floss | |
| Dollars and Sense | Hazel Farron | Extant; Library of Congress | |
| The Truth | Becky Warder | ||
| Help Yourself | Emily Ray | Lostfilm | |
| 1921 | The Highest Bidder | Sally Raeburn | Lostfilm |
| The Girl with the Jazz Heart | Kittie Swasher / Miriam Smith | ||
| Oh Mary Be Careful | Mary Meacham | Extant Library of Congress | |
| 1923 | The Purple Highway | April Blair | Lostfilm |
| 1924 | Three Miles Out | Molly Townsend | |
| 1925 | Scandal Street | Sheila Kane | Lostfilm |
| Bad Company | Gloria Waring | Lostfilm | |
| Lying Wives | Margery Burkley | Incompletefilm | |
| 1926 | Oh, Baby! | Dorothy Brennan | Lostfilm |
| 1928 | Walls Tell Tales | Short |
Talkies
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | The Marrying Kind | Judge Anne B. Carroll | |
| 1953 | Main Street to Broadway | Mrs. Cope in Fantasy Sequence | |
| 1955 | The Rains of Ranchipur | Mrs. Smiley | |
| 1956 | Three Bad Sisters | Martha Craig | |
| The Catered Affair | Mrs. Joe Halloran | ||
| Lust for Life | Anna Cornelia Van Gogh | ||
| 1958 | Houseboat | Mrs. Farnsworth | |
| A Nice Little Bank That Should Be Robbed | Grace Havens | ||
| 1959 | Plunderers of Painted Flats | Mary East | |
| North by Northwest | Mrs. Finlay, US Intelligence Agency official | Uncredited | |
| 1960 | Let's Make Love | Miss Manners, Clement's Secretary | Uncredited |
| 1969 | They Shoot Horses, Don't They? | Mrs. Laydon | |
| 1970 | The Baby Maker | Tish's Grandmother | |
| 1975 | The Day of the Locust | Mrs. Johnson | |
| 1976 | Marathon Man | Lady in Bank |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | Lux Video Theatre | Ma Glover | Season 4 Episode 23: "Borrowed Life" |
| Schlitz Playhouse of Stars | Clara Matheson | Season 4 Episode 1: "The Secret" | |
| The Lineup | Victim's Mother | Season 1 Episode 8: "Cop Killer" | |
| Studio 57 | Grandmother | Season 1 Episode 14: "Christmas Every Day" | |
| 1955 | General Electric Theater | Henrietta Mallory | Season 3 Episode 36: "Star in the House" |
| Climax! | — | Season 1 Episode 28: "The Dark Fleece" | |
| Science Fiction Theatre | Mrs. Canby | Season 1 Episode 28: "The Unexplored" | |
| 1956 | The Ford Television Theatre | Helen Quade | Season 5 Episode 6: "Sometimes It Happens" |
| Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Laura Crabtree | Season 1 Episode 27: "Help Wanted" | |
| 1957-63 | Leave It to Beaver | Aunt Martha Bronson | 5 episodes |
| 1958 | Official Detective | Miss Greenville | Season 1 Episode 34: "Murder in a Girls School" |
| 1959 | Goodyear Theatre | Birdie | Season 2 Episode 15: "I Remember Caviar" |
| Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Laura Crabtree | Season 4 Episode 34: "A True Account" | |
| Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Mrs. Barnes | Season 5 Episode 14: "Graduating Class" | |
| 1960 | The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp | Mary Rowland | Season 5 Episode 26: "Don't Get Tough with a Sailor" |
| Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Mrs. Carter | Season 6 Episode 10: "Sybilla" | |
| 1961 | The Best of the Post | Mrs. Bedenbaugh | Season 1 Episode 10: "Carnival of Fear" |
| Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Mrs. Baldwin | Season 6 Episode 26: "Coming, Mama" | |
| 1962 | The Alfred Hitchcock Hour | Mrs. MacFarlane | Season 1 Episode 2: "Don't Look Behind You" |
| 1967 | CBS Playhouse | Mrs. Flagler | Season 1 Episode 2: "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night" |
| 1968 | Julia | Lady Employer | Season 1 Episode 4: "Homework Isn't Housework" |
| 1972 | The Odd Couple | Mimi | Season 2 Episode 18: "Where's Grandpa?" |
References
edit- ^Broun, Heywood (January 8, 1921)."The Play of the Week".Collier's.pp. 15, 23.RetrievedJune 24,2018.
- ^abcdefghijkSlide, Anthony (2010).Silent Players: A Biographical and Autobiographical Study of 100 Silent Film Actors and Actresses.University Press of Kentucky. pp. 193–197.ISBN978-0-8131-3745-2.RetrievedJune 24,2018.
- ^"Musical and Dramatic Review of Week".The Winnipeg Tribune.December 31, 1910. p. 12.RetrievedJune 24,2018– viaNewspapers.com.
- ^"Actress by Accident".The Philadelphia Inquirer.December 29, 1912. p. 29.RetrievedJune 24,2018– via Newspapers.com.
- ^ab"Discovering Madge Kennedy".Cosmopolitan.LVIII(1): 200–201. December 1914.RetrievedJune 24,2018.
- ^Lowrey, Carolyn (1920).The First One Hundred Noted Men and Women of the Screen.Moffat, Yard. p.94.RetrievedJune 24,2018.
Madge Kennedy.
- ^abcdefgh"Madge Kennedy".Internet Broadway Database.Archived fromthe originalon June 24, 2018.RetrievedJune 24,2018.
- ^"Madge Kennedy Is Sued $13,000".San Mateo Times,August 31, 1929, p. 8.
- ^"Madge Kennedy Dies; A Film and Stage Star".The New York Times.June 13, 1987.Archivedfrom the original on January 30, 2013.RetrievedJune 24,2018.
- ^"Madge Kennedy".Hollywood Walk of Fame.Archived fromthe originalon June 24, 2018.RetrievedJune 24,2018.
- "What Los Angeles Is Doing To Love".Atlanta Constitution.August 7, 1921. p. 49.
- "Actress UsesTonneauOf Car As Dressing Room ".Fresno Bee.October 16, 1929. p. 13.
- "Usual Variety Of Pictures On View".Los Angeles Times.July 22, 1923. p. III27.
- "Mate Dies As She Speeds Toward Him".Los Angeles Times.August 4, 1927. p. A1.
- "Altar Trip Of Actress Disclosed".Los Angeles Times.August 27, 1934. p. 1.
- "Hedda Hopper;Madge Kennedy on Stage Again ".Los Angeles Times.August 18, 1965. p. D12.
- "Madge Kennedy Is Guest Star".Lowell Sun.October 3, 1934. p. 83.
- "Much That Is Funny In This New Farce".The New York Times.August 30, 1912. p. 9.
- "The Story Of Madge Kennedy".The New York Times.February 6, 1916. p. X6.
- "Written On The Screen".The New York Times.February 10, 1918. p. 51.
- "Written On The Screen".The New York Times.December 1, 1918. p. 76.
- "The Play".The New York Times.December 2, 1925. p. 22.
- "Madge Kennedy to Play Here".New York Times.November 29, 1923. p. 23.
- Sharrar, Jack Frederick (1998).Avery Hopwood, His Life and Plays.University of Michigan Press. pp. 84–88.ISBN978-0472109630.
External links
edit
- Works by or about Madge Kennedyat theInternet Archive
- Madge KennedyatIMDb
- Madge Kennedyat theInternet Broadway Database
- Madge Kennedyat Virtual History
