#Edwardian actress

[heaveninawildflower]

I posted the FAB silk postcard of the American actress, Maude Fealy a couple of weeks ago and said that I would post some more about her, here a are few more images of Maude from my collection of postcards and photographs.

The first postcard shows Maude as Alice Faulkner from the play 'Sherlock Holmes.' The third one shows Maude as Eunice from 'Quo Vadis'.

The sixth postcard shows a winning photograph by Burr McIntosh from the French magazine 'Paris Figaro Illustre.' Maude's photograph was sent to their competition (to find the most beautiful woman in the world) by the American photographer, William Burr McIntosh. Maude was the winner, chosen from out of 30, 000 entrants from all over the world.

Some information about Maude from Wikimedia.

Maude Mary Hawk was born on March 3/4, 1881-3 in Memphis, Tennessee (the dates vary depending upon the source) the daughter of actress Margaret Fealy and James Hawk, who divorced. Maude took her mother's name, Fealy.

In 1896, she made her debut at the Elitch Theatre in Denver playing various children's roles. Her first appearance was during the week of July 19 in Henry Churchill de Mille's The Lost Paradise. In 1905, Churchill de Mille's son Cecil B. DeMille was hired as a stock player at Elitch Theatre, and Maude appeared as the featured actress in several plays. Their friendship continued for decades, including when DeMille cast Maude in his film The Ten Commandments.

Maude made her Broadway debut in the 1900 production of Quo Vadis, again with her mother.

Maude toured England with William Gillette in Sherlock Holmes from 1901 to 1902. Between 1902 and 1905, she frequently toured with Sir Henry Irving's company in the United Kingdom, and by 1907, she was the star in touring productions in the United States.

In Denver, Colorado, Maude met a drama critic from a local newspaper named Louis Hugo Sherwin (son of opera singer Amy Sherwin). The two married in secret on July 15, 1907, because, as they expected, her domineering mother did not approve. The couple soon separated and divorced in Denver in 1909. Maude then married actor James Peter Durkin. He was a silent film director with Adolph Zukor's Famous Players Film Company. This marriage ended in divorce for non-support in 1917. Soon after this, Maude married John Edward Cort. This third marriage ended in a 1923 annulment and was her last marriage. She bore no children in any of the marriages.

Maude died on November 10, 1971.

[blondebrainpowered]

Evelyn Nesbit as 'The Little Butterfly' portrait on a polar bear-skin rug, 1901

Photographer: Rudolph Eickemeyer

[edwardian-girl-next-door]

Billie Burke, 1909

via wisconsinhistory.org

[illustratus]

[lilyelsie]

[resplendentoutfit]

Oscar Bluhm (German, 1867–1912) • Soirée • 1907

This painting, dated 1907, depicts a social event with the two main female figures – the one standing with a gentleman, the other sitting with her back to the viewer – are wearing rather risqué dresses for the Edwardian era.

I like the painting, so I thought I'd use it as a springboard to discuss its atypical choice of dresses for the era. What's mostly seen in Edwardian evening attire, circa 1907, looks like this:

Plenty of lace, yes but generally not sleeveless or cut too low in front or back. Drapey, sheer panels and wraps were popular, as shown in the image on the left. On the right we see a dress with an S silhouette, which lasted only a couple of years and gave way to the more relaxed fashions depicted in the left image.

I did, however, find several photographs of actresses from the early 1900s who are wearing what we now call "bodycon" dresses; curve-hugging, sleeveless or off-shoulder, and low-cut.

The actress on the right is Ethel Barrymore.

So perhaps the women depicted in the painting are actresses, daring socialites, or escorts.

[mahgnib]

[silentdivasblog]

Lady of The Day 🌹 Minnie Ashley ❤️

[thelastcinematicgirl]

she is the canonical edwardian beauty

[postcard-from-the-past]

Edwardian actress Miss Deborah Volar on a vintage postcard

[clarabowlover]

British Edwardian Actress

Constance Worth (ca.1919)

[mr-oscarwilde]

Photograph taken of stage actress Ione Bright in 1912 (Studio of Luther S. White, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)⁠

[monkeyssalad-blog]

Postcard of Miss Lily Elsie by totallymystified

[edwardian-girl-next-door]

Billie Burke (1905)

via wikimedia commons

[lilyelsie]

From country to stage - Mrs. Iam Bullough is returning to the stage for a short while. Her salary will go to the Disabled Soldiers' and Sailors' Fund. - 1915

[courseyoulovemeyoudontknowme]

Howards End (1992, James Ivory)

11/11/2024