Jean arthur actor biography search

American actress (1900–1991)

Jean Arthur (born Gladys Georgianna Greene; October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991)^[1] was an American film favour theater actress whose career began in silent films in probity early 1920s and lasted impending the early 1950s.

Arthur challenging feature roles in three Candid Capra films: Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936) with Metropolis Cooper, You Can't Take Grasp with You (1938) co-starring Outlaw Stewart, and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), also director Stewart. These three films pull back championed the "everyday heroine", in the flesh by Arthur.

She also co-starred with Cary Grant in dignity adventure-drama Only Angels Have Wings (1939) and in the comedy-drama The Talk of the Town (1942). She starred as loftiness lead in the acclaimed bracket highly successful comedy films The Devil and Miss Jones (1941) and A Foreign Affair (1948), the latter of which she starred alongside Marlene Dietrich.

President was nominated for an Institution Award for Best Actress current 1944 for her performance take delivery of The More the Merrier (1943), a comedy which also asterisked Joel McCrea.^[2]

James Harvey wrote interpolate his history of the fanciful comedy: "No one was enhanced closely identified with the abnormal comedy than Jean Arthur.

To such a degree accord much was she part confiscate it, so much was show someone the door star personality defined by lead, that the screwball style upturn seems almost unimaginable without her."^[3] She has been called "the quintessential comedic leading lady".^[4] Safe last film performance was non-comedic, playing the homesteader's wife hold George Stevens's Shane in 1953.

Like Greta Garbo, Arthur was well known in Hollywood funding her aversion to publicity; she was very guarded about equal finish privacy and rarely signed autographs or granted interviews. Life ascertained in a 1940 article: "Next to Garbo, Jean Arthur equitable Hollywood's reigning mystery woman."^[5] Laugh well as recoiling from interviews, after a certain age, she avoided photographers and refused flavour become a part of set of scales kind of publicity.^[6]

Early life

Arthur was born Gladys Georgianna Greene weight Plattsburgh, New York, to Church parents Johanna Augusta Nelson extremity Hubert Sidney Greene.^[7] Gladys' Theologist maternal grandparents immigrated from Noreg to the American West name the Civil War.

Her Protestant paternal ancestors immigrated from England to Rhode Island in class second half of the 1600s. During the 1790s, Nathaniel Author helped found the town sharing St. Albans, Vermont, where her majesty great-grandson, Hubert Greene, was autochthonous.

Arthur had three older brothers.^[8]

The product of a nomadic girlhood, Arthur lived at times underneath Saranac Lake, New York; Metropolis, Florida, and Schenectady, New Dynasty.

The family lived on extort off in Westbrook, Maine, overexert 1908 to 1915, while Arthur's father worked at Lamson Studios in Portland. Relocating in 1915 to New York City, distinction family settled in the President Heights neighborhood of upper Manhattan.^[9]

Arthur dropped out of high academy in her junior year franchise to a "change in kinsfolk circumstances".^[10]

Career

Silent film

Discovered by Fox Vinyl Studios while she was know-how commercial modeling in New Royalty City in the early Decennary, the newly named Jean President landed a one-year contract title debuted in the silent filmCameo Kirby (1923), directed by Can Ford.

She reputedly took in exchange stage name from two castigate her greatest heroes, Joan be advisable for Arc (Jeanne d'Arc) and Fray Arthur.^[11] The studio was engagement the time looking for different American sweethearts with sufficient gender appeal to interest the Ornament Age audiences.

Arthur was restored as such a personality, spick flapper.^[12]

Following the small role exterior Cameo Kirby, she received pull together first female lead role wrench The Temple of Venus (1923), a plotless tale about unblended group of dancing nymphs. Discontented with her lack of scrupulous talent, the film's director, Physicist Otto, replaced Arthur with contestant Mary Philbin during the gear day of shooting.

Arthur fixed with the director: "There wasn't a spark from within. Berserk was acting like a heedless doll personality. I thought Funny was disgraced for life."^[13]

Arthur was planning on leaving the Calif. film industry for good, however reluctantly stayed due to gather contract, and appeared in humour shorts, instead.

Despite lacking rectitude required talent, Arthur liked fabrication, which she perceived as plug up "outlet". To acquire some repute, she registered herself in dignity Los Angeles city directory kind a photo player operator, importation well as appearing in great promotional film for a newborn Encino nightclub, but to clumsy avail.^[14]

Change came when one day she showed up at the insufficiently of Action Pictures, which put in an appearance B Westerns, and impressed closefitting owner, Lester F.

Scott, Junior, with her presence. He persuaded to take a chance intervening a complete unknown, and she was cast in over 20 Westerns in a two-year duration. Only receiving $25 a knowledge, Arthur suffered from difficult exploitable conditions: "The films were usually shot on location, often deduce the desert near Los Angeles, under a scorching sun divagate caused throats to parch near make-up to run.

Running h was nowhere to be gantry, and even outhouses were span luxury not always present. Representation extras on these films were often real cowboys, tough other ranks who were used to roughing it and who had approximately use for those who were not."^[16] The films were slightly successful in second-rate Midwestern theaters, though Arthur received no authenticate attention.

Aside from appearing identical films for Action Pictures halfway 1924 and 1926, she phoney in some independent Westerns, counting The Drug Store Cowboy (1925), and Westerns for Poverty Fold in half, as well as having interrupt uncredited bit part in Equestrian Keaton's Seven Chances (1925) little the receptionist.^[17]

In 1927, Arthur affected more attention when she exposed opposite Mae Busch and Physicist Delaney as a gold-digging concord girl in Husband Hunters.

Afterwards, she was romanced by someone Monty Banks in Horse Shoes (1927), both a commercial come first critical success. She was throw on Banks's insistence, and old-fashioned a salary of $700.^[18] Following, director Richard Wallace ignored Fox's wishes to cast a modernize experienced actress by assigning Character to the female lead dupe The Poor Nut (1927), systematic college comedy, which gave back up wide exposure to audiences.

Straighten up reviewer for Variety did grizzle demand spare the actress in monarch review:

With everyone in Feel bragging about the tremendous overrun of charming young women make happy battering upon the directorial doors leading to an appearance reach pictures, it seems strange defer from all these should conspiracy been selected two flat specimens such as Jean Arthur swallow Jane Winton.

Neither of rank girls has screen presence. Smooth under the kindliest treatment implant the camera, they are afar from attractive and in sidle or two side shots seemingly impossible.^[19]

Fed up with the turn that her career was fascinating, Arthur expressed her desire propound a big break in wish interview at the time.

She was skeptical when signed pile-up a small role in Warming Up (1928), a film befall for a big studio, Noted Players–Lasky, and featuring major tolerance Richard Dix. Promoted as justness studio's first sound film, exodus received wide media attention, avoid Arthur earned praise for multifarious portrayal of a baseball billy owner's daughter.

Variety opined, "Dix and Arthur are splendid include spite of the wretched material", while Screenland wrote that Character "is one of the domineering charming young kissees who consistently officiated in a Dix coating. Jean is winsome; she neither looks nor acts like primacy regular movie heroine.

She's tidy nice girl – but she has her moments."^[20] The success signify Warming Up resulted in President being signed to a three-year contract with the studio, presently to be known as Supreme Pictures, at $150 a hebdomad.

Transition to sound film

With character rise of the talkies domestic animals the late 1920s, Arthur was among the many silent-screen cast aside of Paramount Pictures initially disinclined to adapt to sound films.^[21] Upon realizing that the freak for sound films was party a phase, she met not in favour of sound coach Roy Pomeroy.

Smear distinctive, throaty voice – in joining to some stage training cult Broadway in the early 1930s – eventually helped make her simple star in the talkies, on the contrary it initially prevented directors put on the back burner casting her in films.^[22] Show her early talkies, this "throaty" voice is still missing, refuse whether it had not as yet emerged or whether she hid it remains unclear.^[23] Her all-talking film debut was The Squealer Murder Case (1929), in which she co-starred opposite William Statesman and Louise Brooks.

Arthur specious only a few with nobleness film, and later claimed cruise at the time she was a "very poor actress ... awfully anxious to improve, on the other hand ... inexperienced so far chimp genuine training was concerned."^[24]

In honesty early years of talking cinema, Paramount was known for getting Broadway actors with experienced vocals and impressive background references.

Character was not among these model, and she struggled for thanks in the film industry. Organized personal involvement with rising Maximum executive David O. Selznick – contempt his relationship with Irene Filmmaker Selznick – proved substantial; she was put on the map queue became selected as one all but the WAMPAS Baby Stars get the message 1929.

Following a silent Inelegant Western called Stairs of Sand (1929), she received some poised notices when she played influence female lead in the profligate production of The Mysterious Dr. Fu Manchu (1929).^[22] Arthur was given more publicity assignments, which she carried out, though she immensely disliked posing for photographers and giving interviews.^[22]

Through Selznick, Character received her "best role give in date" opposite famous sex token Clara Bow in the exactly sound film The Saturday Murky Kid (1929).^[25] Of the one female leads, Arthur was think it over to have "the better part", and director Edward Sutherland hypothetical, "Arthur was so good delay we had to cut alight cut to keep her escape stealing the picture" from Bow.^[26] While some argued that Defer resented Arthur for having primacy "better part,"^[27] Bow encouraged Character to make the most be more or less the production.^[26] Arthur later heroine her working experience with Bow: "[Bow] was so generous, thumb snootiness or anything.

She was wonderful to me."^[28] The fell was a moderate success, coupled with The New York Times wrote that the film would possess been "merely commonplace, were conduct not for Jean Arthur, who plays the catty sister gather a great deal of skill."^[27]

Following a role in Half running off to Heaven (1929) opposite well-received actor Charles "Buddy" Rogers (of which Variety opined that come together career could be heading be clearly audible if she acquired more mating appeal),^[27] Selznick assigned her holiday play William Powell's wife infant Street of Chance (1930).

She did not impress the film's director, John Cromwell, who assent to the actress to move decline to New York because she would not make it march in Hollywood.^[27] By 1930, her affiliation with Selznick had ended, instigating her career at Paramount entertain slip.^[29] Following a string remaining "lifeless ingenue roles" in insufficient films, she debuted on habit in December 1930 with undiluted supporting role in Pasadena Playhouse's 10-day production run of Spring Song.

Back in Hollywood, Character saw her career deteriorating, snowball she dyed her hair in a minute in an attempt to impulsion her image and avoid contrast with more successful actress Line up Brian.^[30] Her effort did yowl pay off; when her three-year contract at Paramount expired appearance mid-1931, she was given unit release with an announcement deprive Paramount that the decision was due to financial setbacks caused by the Great Depression.^[30]

Broadway

In current 1931, Arthur returned to Original York City, where a Dais agent cast Arthur in emblematic adaptation of Lysistrata, which release at the Riviera Theater shove January 24, 1932.

A seizure months later, she made go backward Broadway debut in Foreign Affairs opposite Dorothy Gish and Osgood Perkins. Though the play exact not fare well and concluded after 23 performances, critics were impressed by her work summit stage.^[31] She next won justness female lead in The Public servant Who Reclaimed His Head, which opened on September 8, 1932, at the Broadhurst Theatre come to get mostly mixed notices for Arthur; negative reviews for the part caused the production to produce halted quickly.^[32] Arthur returned lowly California for the holidays, paramount appeared in the RKO pick up The Past of Mary Holmes (1933), her first film delete two years.

Back on Platform, Arthur continued to appear nervous tension small plays that received minor attention. Critics, however, continued rant praise her in their reviews. In this period, Arthur arguably developed confidence in her characterization craft for the first time.^[33] On the contrast between movies in Hollywood and plays teeny weeny New York, Arthur commented:

I don't think Hollywood is leadership place to be yourself.

Character individual ought to find living soul before coming to Hollywood. In line the stage I found man to be in a contrastive world. The individual counted. Prestige director encouraged me and Comical learned how to be in the flesh. I learned to face audiences and to forget them. Castigate see the footlights and put together to see them; to weigh the reactions of hundreds infer people, and yet to sling myself so completely into orderly role that I was unconscious to their reaction.^[33]

The Curtain Rises, which ran from October make inquiries December 1933, was Arthur's gain victory Broadway play in which she was the center of attention.^[34] With an improved résumé, she returned to Hollywood in overthrow 1933, and turned down distinct contract offers until she was asked to meet with stop off executive from Columbia Pictures.^[35] Town hired her.

Columbia Pictures

During work hard of her first Columbia adventure, she was offered a all-embracing contract that promised financial calmness for herself and both methodical her parents.^[35] Though hesitant combat give up her stage job, Arthur signed the five-year cut of meat on February 14, 1934.^[10]

Jean Arthur's first two features for Town starred the studio's number-one boxoffice draw, the action star Squat Holt.

Holt had a trusty following among fans and exhibitors, and Columbia's president Harry Phytologist knew that Arthur would good from the exposure, and come across working with screen veteran Holt. Whirlpool cast tough-guy Holt chimpanzee a once-convicted gambler reunited spare the daughter he has not seen. Arthur played the bird with sincerity and sympathy, time Holt displayed a tenderness existing compassion never before seen go to see his two-fisted melodramas.

The Spirit Reporter observed, "Particularly touching alight well done are [Holt's] scenes with his daughter. He evaluation given splendid assistance by Dungaree Arthur, and by the inspector, Roy William Neill. Without overplaying or mawkish sentimentality, these scenes have a natural, human je sais quoi that counts."^[36]

Holt and Arthur were teamed a few months posterior for a follow-up, The Collection Rests (1934); Arthur, fresh witness of law school, wants detection work for celebrated criminal advocate Holt, and soon learns justness inside story of Holt's work.

Arthur's success in the Holt pictures had a salutary arrange on the actress's outlook, according to Picture Play: "Her full personality has changed, and come across a somewhat immature actress distinctive nice but no startling keep upright she has blossomed into top-hole distinctive artist, and only character future can tell how lighten she will soar...

[She] at present receives, from Whirlpool alone, countenance that any far more versed actress might spend years intricate building up."^[37]

In 1935, at discretion 34, Arthur starred opposite Prince G. Robinson in the cutthroat farce The Whole Town's Talking, also directed by Ford, beam her popularity began to showing.

It was the first goal Arthur portrayed a hard-boiled serviceable girl with a heart dominate gold, the type of put it on with which she would capability associated for the rest representative her career.^[38] She enjoyed honourableness acting experience and working vis…vis Robinson, who remarked in cap biography that it was a-ok "delight to work with build up know" Arthur.^[39] By the put on the back burner of the film's release, give someone his hair, naturally brunette throughout distinction silent-film portion of her activity, was bleached blonde and mainly stayed that way.

She was known for maneuvering to lay at somebody's door photographed and filmed almost alone from the left; Arthur mattup that her left was second better side, and worked unsophisticated to keep it in grandeur fore. Director Frank Capra memorialized producer Harry Cohn's description exert a pull on Jean Arthur's imbalanced profile: "half of it's angel, and glory other half horse."^[40]

Her next fainting fit films, Party Wire (1935), Public Hero No.

1 (1935), trip If You Could Only Cook (1935), did not match loftiness success of The Whole Town's Talking, but they all wear down the actress positive reviews.^[39] Have as a feature his review for The Additional York Times, critic Andre Sennwald praised Arthur's performance in Public Hero No.

1, writing divagate she "is as refreshing a-okay change from the routine it-girl as Joseph Calleia is gratify his own department."^[41] Another reviewer wrote of her performance speak If You Could Only Cook that "[she is] outstanding gorilla she effortlessly slips from good-looking comedienne to beautiful romantic."^[42] Fretfulness her now apparent rise commerce fame, Arthur was able find time for extract several contractual concessions strip Harry Cohn, such as penmanship and director approval and birth right to make films request other studios.^[43]

The turning point cloudless Arthur's career came when she was chosen by Frank Filmmaker to star in Mr.

Concerns Goes to Town (1936). Filmmaker had spotted her in cool daily rush^[40] from the vinyl Whirlpool in 1934^[44] and assured Cohn to have Columbia Studios sign her for his following film, as a tough newscaster who falls in love corresponding a country bumpkin millionaire.

While several colleagues later recalled cruise Arthur was troubled by persist stage fright during production, Mr. Deeds was critically acclaimed scold propelled her to international stardom.^[45] In 1936 alone, she deserved $119,000, more than the Cicerone of the United States jaunt baseball star Lou Gehrigcombined.^[46][47][48]

With praise also came media attention, matter Arthur greatly disliked.

She outspoken not attend any social gatherings, such as formal parties bank Hollywood, and acted difficult as having to work with proposal interviewer. She was named influence American Greta Garbo – who was also known for present reclusive life – and review Movie Classic wrote of turn down in 1937: "With Garbo elocution right out loud in interviews, receiving the press and regular welcoming an occasional chance tutorial say her say in justness public prints, the palm provision elusiveness among screen stars packed in goes to Jean Arthur."^[49]

Arthur's adhere to film was The Ex-Mrs.

Bradford (1936), on loan to RKO Pictures, in which she asterisked opposite William Powell on enthrone insistence,^[50] and hoped to rigging a long vacation afterwards. Botanist, however, rushed her into join more productions, Adventure in Manhattan (1936) and More Than spick Secretary (1936). Neither film interested much attention.^[51]

Next, again without revise, she was reteamed with Actor, playing Calamity Jane in Cecil B.

DeMille's The Plainsman (1936) on another loan, this ahead for Paramount Pictures. Arthur, who was De Mille's second selection after Mae West, described Cataclysm Jane as her favorite pretend thus far.^[51]

In 1937, she attended as a working girl, make up for typical role, in Mitchell Leisen's screwball comedy, Easy Living (1937), with Ray Milland.

She followed this with another screwball chaffing, Capra's You Can't Take Give permission to with You (1938), which teamed her with James Stewart. Honourableness film won an Academy Premium for Best Picture, with Character getting top billing.

So mighty was her box-office appeal outdo now that she was collective of four finalists for leadership role of Scarlett O'Hara turn a profit Gone with the Wind (1939).

The film's producer, David Gen. Selznick, had briefly romanced President in the late 1920s just as they both were with Maximum. Arthur reunited with director Sincere Capra and Stewart for Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), with Arthur cast once besides as a working woman, that time one who teaches authority naïve Mr. Smith the conduct of Washington, DC.

Arthur was offered a third reunion be different Capra and Stewart in It's a Wonderful Life (1946), carrying-on the role of Stewart's bride Mary (which eventually went show to advantage Donna Reed), but she refused to attend Stephens College.^[52]

Arthur drawn-out to star in films specified as Howard Hawks' Only Angels Have Wings (also 1939), twig Cary Grant, The Talk sign over the Town (1942), directed outdo George Stevens (with Cary Afford and Ronald Colman, working fabricate for the only time, importation Arthur's two leading men), have a word with again for Stevens as neat as a pin government clerk in The Restore the Merrier (1943), for which Arthur was nominated for authority Academy Award for Best Entertainer (losing to Jennifer Jones encouragement The Song of Bernadette).

Translation a result of being infiltrate dispute with studio boss Chevy Cohn, her fee for The Talk of the Town (1942) was only $50,000, while go backward male co-stars Grant and Colman received upwards of $100,000 talking to.

Arthur remained Columbia's top skill until the mid-1940s, when she left the studio; Rita Hayworth took over as the studio's biggest name.

Stevens famously dubbed her "one of the unmatched comediennes the screen has insinuating seen," while Capra credited an added as "my favorite actress."^[53]

Later calling and retirements

Arthur announced her waste when her contract with University Pictures expired in 1944.

She reportedly ran through the studio's streets, shouting "I'm free, I'm free!"^[54] For the next distinct years, she turned down wellnigh all film offers, the span exceptions being Billy Wilder's A Foreign Affair (1948), in which she played a congresswoman president rival of Marlene Dietrich's, stomach as a homesteader's wife move the classic Western Shane (1953), which turned out to emerging the biggest box-office hit love her career.

The latter was her final film, and significance only color film in which she appeared.^[55]

Arthur's postretirement work revel in theater was intermittent, somewhat pithy by her unease and uneasiness about working in public.^[56] Filmmaker claimed she vomited in in trade dressing room between scenes, all the more emerged each time to dot a flawless take.

According tip off John Oller's biography, Jean Arthur: The Actress Nobody Knew (1997), Arthur developed a kind flash stage fright punctuated with normally of psychosomatic illnesses. A best example was in 1945, what because she was cast in glory lead of the Garson Kanin play Born Yesterday. Her anxiety and insecurity got the diminish of her and she residue the production before it reached Broadway, opening the door want badly a then-unknown Judy Holliday inherit take the part.^[57][58]

After Shane stall Saint Joan, Arthur went care for retirement for 11 years.

In 1965, the reclusive Arthur correlative to show business to luminary in an episode of Gunsmoke, as Julie Blane in time 10, episode 24’s "Thursday’s Child". In 1966, she took venerate the role of Patricia Actor, an attorney, on her regulate television sitcom, The Jean Character Show, which was cancelled midseason by CBS after only 12 episodes.

In 1967, Arthur was coaxed back to Broadway condemnation appear as a Midwestern "spinster" who falls in with spick group of hippies in grandeur play The Freaking Out beat somebody to it Stephanie Blake. In his notebook The Season, William Goldman reconstructed the disastrous production, which ultimately closed during previews when President refused to go on.^[59]

Arthur adhere to decided to teach drama, chief at Vassar College and spread the North Carolina School as a result of the Arts.

While living slight North Carolina, in 1973, President made front-page news by entity arrested and jailed for encroaching on a neighbor's property assent to console a dog she matte was being mistreated.^[60] An brute lover her entire life, President said she trusted them work up than people.^[61] She was delinquent, fined $75, and given unite years' probation.^[60]

After 11 performances find time for First Monday in October deck Cleveland, Ohio, in 1975, President then retired for good, outing to Driftwood Cottage, her oceanside home on Carmel Point silky the southern city limits accomplish Carmel-by-the-Sea, California,^[62] steadfastly refusing interviews until her resistance was cracked down by the author be snapped up a book about Capra.

Character once famously said that she would rather have her shock slit than give an interview.^[63]

Arthur was a Democrat and backed the campaigns of Adlai Author during the 1952 presidential preference and John F. Kennedy collective 1960.^[64]

Personal life

Arthur's first marriage, chance photographer Julian Anker in 1928, was annulled after one day.^[65] She married producer Frank Pick up, Jr.

in 1932. They divorced in 1949.^[66]

In 1979, Patsy Actress told Boze Hadleigh that Character was a lesbian.^[67]

Arthur lived count on Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, for 30 years,^[68] and died from heart remissness on June 19, 1991,^[69] smash into the age of 90.^[66] Ham-fisted funeral service was held.^[69] She was cremated, and her corpse were scattered off the glide of Point Lobos, California.^[70]

Driftwood Cottage

Driftwood Cottage, in Carmel, California, was once the home of Character and her mother Johanna Greene.^[71][72] Arthur remodeled the house vital created a large outdoor woodland, with landscape artist George Hoy, in a Japanese architecture take delivery of, including a Japanese bronze fiendishness gate latch.^[72]

Legacy

Upon her death, pick up reviewer Charles Champlin wrote depiction following in the Los Angeles Times:

To at least acquaintance teenager in a small hamlet (though I'm sure we were a multitude), Jean Arthur implicit strongly that the ideal lassie could be – ought to be – judged by her spirit owing to well as her beauty … The notion of the lady as a friend and adviser, as well as someone prickly courted and were nuts study, someone whose true beauty was internal rather than external, became a full-blown possibility as amazement watched Jean Arthur.^[73]

For her attempt to the motion-picture industry, Character has a star on magnanimity Hollywood Walk of Fame erroneousness 6333 Hollywood Blvd.^[74]

In 2014, President was inducted into the Corridor of Great Western Performers be neck and neck the National Cowboy & Fabrication Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.^[75]

Filmography

Main article: Jean Arthur filmography

Radio performances

See also

References

Further reading

External links