Selena Royle
Selena Royle | |
---|---|
Publicity still from 1948 | |
Born |
New York City, New York, U.S. | November 6, 1904
Died |
April 23, 1983 78) Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico | (aged
Other names | Selena Royale |
Occupation | Actress, writer |
Years active | 1921-55 |
Spouse(s) |
Earle Larrimore (m. 1932; div. 1942) |
Selena Royle (November 6, 1904 – April 23, 1983) was an American actress (of stage, radio, television and film), and later, an author.
Early life and career
As actress
Royle was born in New York City to playwright Edwin Milton Royle and actress Selena Fetter (April 12, 1860 - May 10, 1955).[1] She had an older sister, Josephine Fetter Royle (1901–1992).
Her mother recounted in a newspaper article that she used to take Selena along with her to her rehearsals and performances. One night, then seven-year-old Selena went missing. While the mother frantically searched for her, holding up act two, the audience became restless. The youngster finally turned up - she had gone on stage dressed in her mother's second-act costume; she made a bow, much to the audience's amusement. She later remarked, "And that is the first time I was ever on stage, and I liked it so well I stayed."[1]
Her father wrote the 1921 Broadway play Lancelot and Elaine to provide both her and sister Josephine with their first professional roles,[1] as Guinevere and Elaine respectively.[2] Eventually, she landed a part on her own in the 1923 Theatre Guild production of Peer Gynt, with Joseph Schildkraut, and became a respected Broadway actress. She made one film in the 1930s, Misleading Lady, but otherwise worked on the stage and on radio.
Royle began her radio career in 1926 or 1927 and performed "almost continuously since", according to a 1939 newspaper item.[3]
Her body of work includes playing the title role in Hilda Hope, M.D. She also played Martha Jackson in Woman of Courage, Mrs. Allen in Against the Storm, Joan in The O'Neills, and Mrs. Gardner in Betty and Bob,[4] and appeared in Kate Hopkins, Angel of Mercy.
In the 1940s, she returned to film and had a successful run, mainly playing maternal characters such as the bereaved mother of The Fighting Sullivans (1944), mother to Jane Powell in the big screen adaptation of A Date with Judy (1948) and the title character's mother opposite Ingrid Bergman as Joan of Arc (1948).[5]
HUAC
She made several appearances on early television. However, in 1951, when she refused to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee. She sued the American Legion, which had published Red Channels, in which her name was listed, and won but her acting career ended. She made only three more roles, the last being Murder Is My Beat (1955).[5]
As Writer
She also wrote several books, including Guadalajara: as I Know It, Live It, Love It (which went through several editions) and a couple of cookbooks,[6] and some magazine articles.[7] She was the "radio editor" of the short-lived New York periodical Swank.[7]
Personal life and death
During the early Depression, Selena Royle and Elizabeth Beatty started the Actors Free Dinner Club in Union Church on West 48th Street. It was organized so that those who came to volunteer and those who came out of necessity were indistinguishable from each other.
Her first husband was Earle Larrimore, a cousin of actress Laura Hope Crews. They married in 1932 and divorced in 1942. She was married to actor Georges Renavent from 1948 until his death in 1969.
Royle died in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, on April 23, 1983, aged 78.
Complete filmography
- The Misleading Lady (1932)
- Stage Door Canteen (1943)
- The Fighting Sullivans (1944)
- Mrs. Parkington (1944)
- Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944)
- This Man's Navy (1945)
- Main Street After Dark (1945)
- The Harvey Girls (1946)
- The Green Years (1946)
- Night and Day (1946)
- Till the End of Time (1946)
- Courage of Lassie (1946)
- Gallant Journey (1946)
- No Leave, No Love (1946)
- The Romance of Rosy Ridge (1947)
- Cass Timberlane (1947)
- You Were Meant for Me (1948)
- Summer Holiday (1948)
- Smart Woman (1948)
- A Date with Judy (1948)
- Moonrise (1948)
- Joan of Arc (1948)
- Bad Boy (1949)
- My Dream Is Yours (1949)
- You're My Everything (1949)
- The Heiress (1949)
- The Damned Don't Cry (1950)
- The Big Hangover (1950)
- Branded (1950)
- He Ran All the Way (1951)
- Come Fill the Cup (1951)
- I Lift Up My Lamp (1952 TV movie)
- Robot Monster (1953)
- The Good Samaritan (1954 TV movie)
- Murder Is My Beat (1955)
See also
References
- 1 2 3 "Selena Royle profile". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. April 14, 1923 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Lancelot and Elaine at the Internet Broadway Database
- ↑ "Actress on Air Waves For 13-Year Period". The Evening News. August 5, 1939 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Saturday's Highlights" (PDF). Radio and Television Mirror. 13 (5): 54. March 1940. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
- 1 2 "Actress Selena Royle Dies in Mexico at 78". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Associated Press. May 6, 1983 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Selena Royle Books". amazon.com. Retrieved February 27, 2015.
- 1 2 "Actress-Author Shows Herself Skilled Bandage-Maker, Too". The Salt Lake Tribune. March 18, 1944 – via Newspapers.com.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Selena Royle. |
- Selena Royle at the Internet Broadway Database
- Selena Royle on IMDb
- Selena Fetter (mother of Selena Royle)'s portrait, University of Louisville archives; accessed May 24, 2018.