Verree Teasdale (March 15, 1903 – February 17, 1987) was an American actress born in Spokane, Washington.

Verree Teasdale
Teasdale, c. 1933
Born(1903-03-15)March 15, 1903
DiedFebruary 17, 1987(1987-02-17) (aged 83)
Other namesVeree Teasdale
Marion O'Neal[1]
OccupationActress
Years active1924–c.1950
Spouses
William J. O'Neal
(m. 1927; div. 1933)
(m. 1935; died 1963)
Children1

Early years

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A cousin to poet Sara Teasdale and second cousin of Edith Wharton,[2] Teasdale attended Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn and trained as a stage actress with the Institute Players at the Academy of Music.[3]

Career

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Frame from First Lady (1937)

Teasdale debuted on Broadway, straight from the Institute Players, as the "caustic-tongued poseur" Augusta Winslow Martin in The Youngest (1924).[4] She performed regularly on Broadway until 1932.[5]

After co-starring in Somerset Maugham's play The Constant Wife with Ethel Barrymore in 1926–1927, she was offered a film contract, and her first film, Syncopation, was released in 1929. Teasdale appeared older than her physical age, which enabled her to play bored society wives, scheming other women and second leads in comedies such as Roman Scandals (1933). In 1935, she played Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night's Dream.[citation needed]

Personal life and death

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Teasdale married actor William O'Neal in 1927, and they divorced in 1933.[1] In 1935, she married actor Adolphe Menjou, and they remained together until his death in 1963. Teasdale and Menjou appeared together in two films, The Milky Way in 1936 and Turnabout in 1940, and were co-hosts of a syndicated radio program in the late 1940s and early 1950s.[citation needed] A June 19, 1949, review by Jack Gould in The New York Times said Meet the Menjous "easily is among the most literate and enjoyable items on the daytime schedule".[6]

Teasdale retired after the radio program finished its run, keeping busy with her hobby of costume design. She died on February 17, 1987, in Culver City, California.[citation needed]

Broadway theater[5]

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  • The Youngest, from December 22, 1924, to March 23, 1925 - Augusta Winslow Martin
  • The Morning After, from July 27, 1925, to August 1925 - Mrs. Madera
  • The Master of the Inn, from December 21, 1925, to January 1926 - Harriet Norton
  • Buy, Buy, Baby, from October 07, 1926, to October 1926 - Pauline Lunt
  • The Constant Wife, from November 29, 1926, to August 13, 1927 - Marie-Louise Durham
  • By Request, from September 27, 1928, to October 1928 - Claudia Wynn
  • Precious, from January 14, 1929, to February 1929 - Sonia
  • Nice Women, from June 10, 1929, to August 1929 - Dorothy Drew
  • Soldiers and Women, from September 02, 1929, to October 1929 - Helen Arnold
  • The Royal Virgin, from March 17, 1930, to March 1930 - The Countess of Nottingham
  • The Greeks Had a Word for It, from September 25, 1930, to May 1931 - Jean
  • Marriage for Three, from November 11, 1931, to November 1931 - Peggy Howard
  • Experience Unnecessary, from December 30, 1931, to February 1932 - Theda Thompson

Complete filmography

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Verree Teasdale freed". The New York Times. Associated Press. January 28, 1933. p. 14. ProQuest 100586114. Retrieved November 6, 2020 – via ProQuest.
  2. ^ "Players Playing 'Possum". The Evening Star. Washington, D.C. July 6, 1930. p. 43 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "'Miss Lulu Bett' At The Academy". Brooklyn Times Union. Brooklyn, New York. March 7, 1924. p. 6 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ A. J. B. (December 23, 1924). "The New Play". Brooklyn Times Union. Brooklyn, New York. p. 6 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b "Verree Teasdale". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on July 24, 2016. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  6. ^ Gould, Jack (June 19, 1949). "Programs in Review". The New York Times. p. X 9. ProQuest 105830934. Retrieved November 6, 2020 – via ProQuest.
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