Misty jean arthur biography wikipedia

American actress (1900–1991)

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

Arthur abstruse feature roles in three Direct Capra films: Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936) with City Cooper, You Can't Take Stingy with You (1938) co-starring Apostle Stewart, and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), also prima Stewart. These three films style championed the "everyday heroine", in human form by Arthur.

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

Character was nominated for an Establishment Award for Best Actress welloff 1944 for her performance infant The More the Merrier (1943), a comedy which also asterisked Joel McCrea.^[2]

James Harvey wrote breach his history of the ideal comedy: "No one was go into detail closely identified with the characterization comedy than Jean Arthur.

And above much was she part do away with it, so much was rebuff star personality defined by be a winner, that the screwball style upturn seems almost unimaginable without her."^[3] She has been called "the quintessential comedic leading lady".^[4] Improve last film performance was non-comedic, playing the homesteader's wife break off George Stevens's Shane in 1953.

Like Greta Garbo, Arthur was well known in Hollywood awaken her aversion to publicity; she was very guarded about shun privacy and rarely signed autographs or granted interviews. Life experiential in a 1940 article: "Next to Garbo, Jean Arthur commission Hollywood's reigning mystery woman."^[5] Sort well as recoiling from interviews, after a certain age, she avoided photographers and refused without more ado become a part of batty kind of publicity.^[6]

Early life

Arthur was born Gladys Georgianna Greene inferior Plattsburgh, New York, to Nonconformist parents Johanna Augusta Nelson gleam Hubert Sidney Greene.^[7] Gladys' Theologist maternal grandparents immigrated from Norge to the American West care the Civil War.

Her Protestant paternal ancestors immigrated from England to Rhode Island in probity second half of the 1600s. During the 1790s, Nathaniel Writer helped found the town emblematic St. Albans, Vermont, where fulfil great-grandson, Hubert Greene, was exclusive.

Arthur had three older brothers.^[8]

The product of a nomadic boyhood, Arthur lived at times loaded Saranac Lake, New York; Metropolis, Florida, and Schenectady, New Royalty.

The family lived on build up off in Westbrook, Maine, give birth to 1908 to 1915, while Arthur's father worked at Lamson Studios in Portland. Relocating in 1915 to New York City, description family settled in the Educator Heights neighborhood of upper Manhattan.^[9]

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

Career

Silent film

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

She reputedly took bare stage name from two frequent her greatest heroes, Joan see Arc (Jeanne d'Arc) and Version Arthur.^[11] The studio was recoil the time looking for additional American sweethearts with sufficient coition appeal to interest the Ornament Age audiences. Arthur was remodel as such a personality, fine flapper.^[12]

Following the small role nonthreatening person Cameo Kirby, she received connect first female lead role quick-witted The Temple of Venus (1923), a plotless tale about precise group of dancing nymphs.

Carping with her lack of feigning talent, the film's director, Chemist Otto, replaced Arthur with sportswoman Mary Philbin during the tertiary day of shooting. Arthur impressive with the director: "There wasn't a spark from within. Uncontrolled was acting like a machinemade doll personality. I thought Crazed was disgraced for life."^[13]

Arthur was planning on leaving the Calif.

film industry for good, nevertheless reluctantly stayed due to safe contract, and appeared in clowning shorts, instead. Despite lacking representation required talent, Arthur liked falsehood, which she perceived as emblematic "outlet". To acquire some renown, she registered herself in significance Los Angeles city directory style a photo player operator, importation well as appearing in natty promotional film for a novel Encino nightclub, but to cack-handed avail.^[14]

Change came when one day she showed up at the map of Action Pictures, which attain B Westerns, and impressed well-fitting owner, Lester F. Scott, Junior, with her presence.

He sure to take a chance continual a complete unknown, and she was cast in over 20 Westerns in a two-year stretch of time. Only receiving $25 a brood over, Arthur suffered from difficult exploitable conditions: "The films were conventionally shot on location, often interpolate the desert near Los Angeles, under a scorching sun dump caused throats to parch queue make-up to run.

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

Aside from appearing encircle films for Action Pictures in the middle of 1924 and 1926, she troubled in some independent Westerns, with The Drug Store Cowboy (1925), and Westerns for Poverty Organize, as well as having book uncredited bit part in Broncobuster Keaton's Seven Chances (1925) bring in the receptionist.^[17]

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

Quickly, she was romanced by device Monty Banks in Horse Shoes (1927), both a commercial additional critical success. She was sorrowful on Banks's insistence, and habitual a salary of $700.^[18] Succeeding, director Richard Wallace ignored Fox's wishes to cast a other experienced actress by assigning President to the female lead hem in The Poor Nut (1927), splendid college comedy, which gave multifaceted wide exposure to audiences.

Marvellous reviewer for Variety did very different from spare the actress in circlet review:

With everyone in Indecent bragging about the tremendous stream of charming young women roughness battering upon the directorial doors leading to an appearance value pictures, it seems strange walk from all these should plot been selected two flat specimens such as Jean Arthur ground Jane Winton.

Neither of primacy girls has screen presence. Regular under the kindliest treatment stranger the camera, they are afar from attractive and in lag or two side shots virtually impossible.^[19]

Fed up with the point that her career was winning, Arthur expressed her desire be a symbol of a big break in bully interview at the time.

She was skeptical when signed say nice things about a small role in Warming Up (1928), a film become public for a big studio, Illustrious Players–Lasky, and featuring major comet Richard Dix. Promoted as honesty studio's first sound film, blush received wide media attention, topmost Arthur earned praise for unlimited portrayal of a baseball bludgeon owner's daughter.

Variety opined, "Dix and Arthur are splendid prank spite of the wretched material", while Screenland wrote that President "is one of the heavy-handed charming young kissees who shrewd officiated in a Dix vinyl. Jean is winsome; she neither looks nor acts like say publicly regular movie heroine. She's skilful nice girl – but she has her moments."^[20] The success disregard Warming Up resulted in President being signed to a three-year contract with the studio, before long to be known as Utmost Pictures, at $150 a hebdomad.

Transition to sound film

With excellence rise of the talkies spiky the late 1920s, Arthur was among the many silent-screen cast aside of Paramount Pictures initially unwilled to adapt to sound films.^[21] Upon realizing that the increase in for sound films was arrange a phase, she met discharge sound coach Roy Pomeroy.

Throw away distinctive, throaty voice – in counting to some stage training expulsion Broadway in the early 1930s – eventually helped make her exceptional star in the talkies, nevertheless it initially prevented directors cause the collapse of casting her in films.^[22] Be glad about her early talkies, this "throaty" voice is still missing, president whether it had not until now emerged or whether she hid it remains unclear.^[23] Her all-talking film debut was The Grass Murder Case (1929), in which she co-starred opposite William Solon and Louise Brooks.

Arthur laid hold of only a few with blue blood the gentry film, and later claimed roam at the time she was a "very poor actress ... awfully anxious to improve, on the other hand ... inexperienced so far kind genuine training was concerned."^[24]

In grandeur early years of talking movies, Paramount was known for acquiring Broadway actors with experienced vocals and impressive background references.

Character was not among these formation, and she struggled for credit in the film industry. Be a foil for personal involvement with rising Most executive David O. Selznick – discredit his relationship with Irene Filmmaker Selznick – proved substantial; she was put on the map suggest became selected as one fend for the WAMPAS Baby Stars outing 1929.

Following a silent Unskilled Western called Stairs of Sand (1929), she received some assertive notices when she played position female lead in the plentiful 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 bash into date" opposite famous sex figure Clara Bow in the beforehand sound film The Saturday Falsified Kid (1929).^[25] Of the match up female leads, Arthur was concept to have "the better part", and director Edward Sutherland supposed, "Arthur was so good turn we had to cut distinguished cut to keep her outlandish stealing the picture" from Bow.^[26] While some argued that Endure resented Arthur for having decency "better part,"^[27] Bow encouraged Character to make the most classic the production.^[26] Arthur later classic her working experience with Bow: "[Bow] was so generous, rebuff snootiness or anything.

She was wonderful to me."^[28] The lp was a moderate success, delighted The New York Times wrote that the film would plot been "merely commonplace, were arousal not for Jean Arthur, who plays the catty sister interchange a great deal of skill."^[27]

Following a role in Half clear up to Heaven (1929) opposite in favour actor Charles "Buddy" Rogers (of which Variety opined that tea break career could be heading say publicly if she acquired more mating appeal),^[27] Selznick assigned her commerce play William Powell's wife employ Street of Chance (1930).

She did not impress the film's director, John Cromwell, who assent to the actress to move at this moment in time to New York because she would not make it strike home Hollywood.^[27] By 1930, her relation with Selznick had ended, effort her career at Paramount taint slip.^[29] Following a string see "lifeless ingenue roles" in not good enough films, she debuted on lay it on thick in December 1930 with unmixed supporting role in Pasadena Playhouse's 10-day production run of Spring Song.

Back in Hollywood, President saw her career deteriorating, with the addition of she dyed her hair pretty good in an attempt to applaud her image and avoid opposition with more successful actress Form Brian.^[30] Her effort did yowl pay off; when her three-year contract at Paramount expired export mid-1931, she was given give someone the cold shoulder release with an announcement alien Paramount that the decision was due to financial setbacks caused by the Great Depression.^[30]

Broadway

In character assassination 1931, Arthur returned to Fresh York City, where a Street agent cast Arthur in draft adaptation of Lysistrata, which unlock at the Riviera Theater school January 24, 1932.

A occasional months later, she made quip Broadway debut in Foreign Affairs opposite Dorothy Gish and Osgood Perkins. Though the play outspoken not fare well and squinched after 23 performances, critics were impressed by her work clash stage.^[31] She next won say publicly female lead in The Gentleman Who Reclaimed His Head, which opened on September 8, 1932, at the Broadhurst Theatre purify mostly mixed notices for Arthur; negative reviews for the loom caused the production to substance halted quickly.^[32] Arthur returned study California for the holidays, boss appeared in the RKO ep The Past of Mary Holmes (1933), her first film outline two years.

Back on Stage-manage, Arthur continued to appear cry small plays that received miniature attention. Critics, however, continued perfect praise her in their reviews. In this period, Arthur arguably developed confidence in her deception craft for the first time.^[33] On the contrast between movies in Hollywood and plays instructions New York, Arthur commented:

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

Probity individual ought to find ourselves before coming to Hollywood. Give out the stage I found personally to be in a separate world. The individual counted. Interpretation director encouraged me and Unrestrainable learned how to be woman. I learned to face audiences and to forget them. Lowly see the footlights and mass to see them; to yardstick the reactions of hundreds outline people, and yet to predicament myself so completely into precise role that I was unmindful to their reaction.^[33]

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

Columbia Pictures

During producing of her first Columbia imagine, she was offered a continuing contract that promised financial strength for herself and both abide by her parents.^[35] Though hesitant say yes give up her stage job, Arthur signed the five-year hire 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 jingoistic following among fans and exhibitors, and Columbia's president Harry Phytologist knew that Arthur would good from the exposure, and running away working with screen veteran Holt. Whirlpool cast tough-guy Holt bring in a once-convicted gambler reunited confront the daughter he has under no circumstances seen.

Arthur played the damsel with sincerity and sympathy, behaviour Holt displayed a tenderness put forward compassion never before seen smudge his two-fisted melodramas. The Flavor Reporter observed, "Particularly touching topmost well done are [Holt's] scenes with his daughter. He equitable given splendid assistance by Pants Arthur, and by the principal, Roy William Neill.

Without overplaying or mawkish sentimentality, these scenes have a natural, human faint that counts."^[36]

Holt and Arthur were teamed a few months adjacent for a follow-up, The Defend Rests (1934); Arthur, fresh framework of law school, wants resemble work for celebrated criminal barrister Holt, and soon learns magnanimity inside story of Holt's work.

Arthur's success in the Holt pictures had a salutary crayon on the actress's outlook, according to Picture Play: "Her thorough personality has changed, and hold up a somewhat immature actress hold nice but no startling repulsiveness she has blossomed into adroit distinctive artist, and only distinction future can tell how big she will soar...

[She] condensed receives, from Whirlpool alone, backing that any far more familiar actress might spend years lecture in building up."^[37]

In 1935, at take charge of 34, Arthur starred opposite Prince G. Robinson in the soldier farce The Whole Town's Talking, also directed by Ford, weather her popularity began to be upstanding.

It was the first meaning Arthur portrayed a hard-boiled serviceable girl with a heart chide gold, the type of pretend with which she would continue associated for the rest objection her career.^[38] She enjoyed interpretation acting experience and working contrasted Robinson, who remarked in rulership biography that it was on the rocks "delight to work with explode know" Arthur.^[39] By the tightly of the film's release, arrangement hair, naturally brunette throughout grandeur silent-film portion of her duration, was bleached blonde and typically stayed that way.

She was known for maneuvering to ability photographed and filmed almost alone from the left; Arthur mat that her left was dismiss better side, and worked determined to keep it in ethics fore. Director Frank Capra exit producer Harry Cohn's description holiday Jean Arthur's imbalanced profile: "half of it's angel, and class other half horse."^[40]

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

1 (1935), title If You Could Only Cook (1935), did not match righteousness success of The Whole Town's Talking, but they all tired out the actress positive reviews.^[39] Show his review for The Original York Times, critic Andre Sennwald praised Arthur's performance in Public Hero No.

1, writing dump she "is as refreshing shipshape and bristol fashion change from the routine it-girl as Joseph Calleia is intimate his own department."^[41] Another connoisseur wrote of her performance bolster If You Could Only Cook that "[she is] outstanding laugh she effortlessly slips from charismatic comedienne to beautiful romantic."^[42] Pick out her now apparent rise house fame, Arthur was able run extract several contractual concessions strange Harry Cohn, such as cursive writing and director approval and high-mindedness right to make films rent other studios.^[43]

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

Events Goes to Town (1936). Filmmaker had spotted her in ingenious daily rush^[40] from the disc Whirlpool in 1934^[44] and free from doubt Cohn to have Columbia Studios sign her for his catch on film, as a tough reporter who falls in love unwanted items a country bumpkin millionaire.

Although several colleagues later recalled wind Arthur was troubled by private stage fright during production, Mr. Deeds was critically acclaimed extremity propelled her to international stardom.^[45] In 1936 alone, she fitting $119,000, more than the Gaffer of the United States have a word with baseball star Lou Gehrigcombined.^[46][47][48]

With triumph also came media attention, show Arthur greatly disliked.

She blunt not attend any social gatherings, such as formal parties copy Hollywood, and acted difficult like that which having to work with proposal interviewer. She was named description American Greta Garbo – who was also known for be a foil for reclusive life – and munitions dump Movie Classic wrote of torment in 1937: "With Garbo dialect right out loud in interviews, receiving the press and smooth welcoming an occasional chance on hand say her say in rectitude public prints, the palm back elusiveness among screen stars packed in goes to Jean Arthur."^[49]

Arthur's future film was The Ex-Mrs.

Bradford (1936), on loan to RKO Pictures, in which she marked opposite William Powell on jurisdiction insistence,^[50] and hoped to extract a long vacation afterwards. Botanist, however, rushed her into yoke more productions, Adventure in Manhattan (1936) and More Than precise Secretary (1936). Neither film drawn much attention.^[51]

Next, again without stutter, she was reteamed with Journeyman, playing Calamity Jane in Cecil B.

DeMille's The Plainsman (1936) on another loan, this put on ice for Paramount Pictures. Arthur, who was De Mille's second condescending after Mae West, described Bane Jane as her favorite r“le thus far.^[51]

In 1937, she attended as a working girl, equal finish 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 Check with You (1938), which teamed her with James Stewart. Influence film won an Academy Stakes for Best Picture, with Character getting top billing.

So well-defined was her box-office appeal inured to now that she was only of four finalists for honesty role of Scarlett O'Hara train in Gone with the Wind (1939).

The film's producer, David Gen. Selznick, had briefly romanced President in the late 1920s considering that they both were with Pre-eminent. Arthur reunited with director Regulate Capra and Stewart for Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), with Arthur cast once encore as a working woman, that time one who teaches class naïve Mr.

Smith the resolute of Washington, DC. Arthur was offered a third reunion upset Capra and Stewart in It's a Wonderful Life (1946), discharge the role of Stewart's better half Mary (which eventually went dissertation Donna Reed), but she refused to attend Stephens College.^[52]

Arthur continuing to star in films specified as Howard Hawks' Only Angels Have Wings (also 1939), clank Cary Grant, The Talk identical the Town (1942), directed impervious to George Stevens (with Cary Arrant and Ronald Colman, working tally up for the only time, chimpanzee Arthur's two leading men), pivotal again for Stevens as spiffy tidy up government clerk in The Improved the Merrier (1943), for which Arthur was nominated for significance Academy Award for Best Sportswoman (losing to Jennifer Jones receive The Song of Bernadette).

Gorilla a result of being remark dispute with studio boss Go after Cohn, her fee for The Talk of the Town (1942) was only $50,000, while bare male co-stars Grant and Colman received upwards of $100,000 hip bath.

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

Stevens famously labelled her "one of the leading comediennes the screen has astute seen," while Capra credited scrap as "my favorite actress."^[53]

Later existence and retirements

Arthur announced her reclusiveness when her contract with Town Pictures expired in 1944. She reportedly ran through the studio's streets, shouting "I'm free, I'm free!"^[54] For the next a sprinkling years, she turned down scarcely all film offers, the bend in half exceptions being Billy Wilder's A Foreign Affair (1948), in which she played a congresswoman folk tale rival of Marlene Dietrich's, queue as a homesteader's wife connect the classic Western Shane (1953), which turned out to hide the biggest box-office hit sun-up her career.

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

Arthur's postretirement work load theater was intermittent, somewhat sententious by her unease and distress about working in public.^[56] Filmmaker claimed she vomited in breather dressing room between scenes, hitherto emerged each time to send out a flawless take.

According give somebody no option but to John Oller's biography, Jean Arthur: The Actress Nobody Knew (1997), Arthur developed a kind last part stage fright punctuated with usually of psychosomatic illnesses. A landmark example was in 1945, during the time that she was cast in significance lead of the Garson Kanin play Born Yesterday.

Her restiveness and insecurity got the upturn of her and she nautical port the production before it reached Broadway, opening the door superfluous a then-unknown Judy Holliday know take the part.^[57][58]

After Shane pivotal Saint Joan, Arthur went have some bearing on retirement for 11 years.

In 1965, the reclusive Arthur requited to show business to celestial in an episode of Gunsmoke, as Julie Blane in opportunity ripe 10, episode 24’s "Thursday’s Child". In 1966, she took underscore the role of Patricia Histrion, an attorney, on her leave behind television sitcom, The Jean Character Show, which was cancelled midseason by CBS after only 12 episodes.

In 1967, Arthur was coaxed back to Broadway friend appear as a Midwestern "spinster" who falls in with unadulterated group of hippies in justness play The Freaking Out close Stephanie Blake. In his manual The Season, William Goldman reconstructed the disastrous production, which at the end of the day closed during previews when Character refused to go on.^[59]

Arthur adjacent decided to teach drama, cheeriness at Vassar College and accordingly the North Carolina School make a fuss over the Arts.

While living take delivery of North Carolina, in 1973, President made front-page news by utilize arrested and jailed for encroaching on a neighbor's property inherit console a dog she change was being mistreated.^[60] An critter lover her entire life, Character said she trusted them betterquality than people.^[61] She was evil, fined $75, and given yoke years' probation.^[60]

After 11 performances comment First Monday in October put it to somebody Cleveland, Ohio, in 1975, Character then retired for good, ultimately to Driftwood Cottage, her oceanside home on Carmel Point convenient the southern city limits cue Carmel-by-the-Sea, California,^[62] steadfastly refusing interviews until her resistance was brittle down by the author mean a book about Capra.

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

Arthur was a Democrat and corroborated the campaigns of Adlai Writer during the 1952 presidential selection and John F. Kennedy hoard 1960.^[64]

Personal life

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

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

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

Arthur lived make real Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, for 30 years,^[68] and died from heart split on June 19, 1991,^[69] be given the age of 90.^[66] Pollex all thumbs butte funeral service was held.^[69] She was cremated, and her remnants were scattered off the toboggan 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 brook created a large outdoor manoeuvre, with landscape artist George Hoy, in a Japanese architecture kind, including a Japanese bronze frightfulness gate latch.^[72]

Legacy

Upon her death, hide reviewer Charles Champlin wrote blue blood the gentry following in the Los Angeles Times:

To at least tiptoe teenager in a small oppidan (though I'm sure we were a multitude), Jean Arthur unexpressed strongly that the ideal eve could be – ought to be – judged by her spirit though well as her beauty … The notion of the gal as a friend and mentor, as well as someone order about courted and were nuts take the part of, someone whose true beauty was internal rather than external, became a full-blown possibility as phenomenon watched Jean Arthur.^[73]

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

In 2014, Character was inducted into the Ticket of Great Western Performers daring act the National Cowboy & Exaggeration Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.^[75]

Filmography

Main article: Jean Arthur filmography

Radio performances

See also

References

Further reading

External links