Blanche L. Friderici (January 21, 1878 – December 23, 1933) was an American film and stage actress, sometimes credited as Blanche Frederici.

Blanche Friderici
Friderici in A Farewell to Arms (1932)
Born(1878-01-21)January 21, 1878
DiedDecember 23, 1933(1933-12-23) (aged 55)
Other namesBlanche Frederici
OccupationActress
Years active1914–1933
SpouseDonald Campbell (m.1925)

Early years

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Friderici was a native of Brooklyn, New York.[1] Her parents were William E. Friderici and Rosetta Elizabeth Freeman Friderici.[2]

Career

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Friderici in Man of the Forest (1933)

Friderici did not aspire to be an actress, but rather an acting and elocution teacher.[3][4] However, her eyesight began to fail, deteriorating to the point she could no longer read, so she turned from teaching acting to actually acting.[3] An admirer of her recitals introduced her to impresario David Belasco, who cast her in The Darling of the Gods.[3]

Between 1914 and 1927, Friderici appeared in nine Broadway theatre productions in New York City, including a production of 39 East (1919)[5] and as Mrs. Davidson in the play Rain.[1]

Friderici appeared in sixty films from 1920 to 1934. Her début was as Miss McMasters in the film adaptation of 39 East (1920). In Night Nurse (1931), which starred Barbara Stanwyck and Clark Gable, she played a housekeeper too frightened to protect two children from a murder attempt. She portrayed a chaperone in Flying Down to Rio (1933). Her last film role was as a motel owner's wife in It Happened One Night (1934).

Personal life

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Friderici married Donald Campbell in 1925.[2]

Death

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On December 24, 1933,[6] was on her way by automobile to attend a Christmas service at General Grant National Park with her stage manager husband, Donald Campbell; she died of a heart attack just after they reached Visalia, California.[1] She was 55.

Complete filmography

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Noted Actress Dies After Trip to Nation's Tree". The Fresno Bee. December 25, 1933. p. 26 – via Newspapers.com.  
  2. ^ a b Nissen, Axel (August 2016). Accustomed to Her Face: Thirty-Five Character Actresses of Golden Age Hollywood. McFarland. pp. 49–53. ISBN 978-1-4766-2606-2. Retrieved September 13, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c "The Cat and the Kidney". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. December 24, 1922. p. 31 – via Newspapers.com.  
  4. ^ "Miss Blanche L. Friderici". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. September 9, 1900. p. 86 – via Newspapers.com.  
  5. ^ John Corbin (April 1, 1919). "Drama". The New York Times.
  6. ^ "Blanche Friderici". The New York Times. December 25, 1933. p. 23. ProQuest 100791147. Retrieved September 13, 2020 – via ProQuest.
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