Jeanne Eagels
Encyclopedia
Jeanne Eagels was an American actress on Broadway
and in several motion pictures. She was a former Ziegfeld Follies
Girl who went on to greater fame on Broadway and in the emerging medium of sound films.
She was posthumously considered for the Academy Award for Best Actress
for her 1929 role in The Letter after dying suddenly that year at the age of 39. That nomination was the first posthumous Oscar consideration for any actor, male or female.
to Edward and Julia Sullivan Eagles (1865–1945) on June 26, 1890 of German and Irish descent. Her parents were married on April 26, 1886 in Platte City
, Platte County, Missouri
. Although many biographies state that her birth name was Amelia Jeanne Eagles, her actual birth name was Eugenia Eagles according to both the 1900 and 1910 United States Federal Censuses for Kansas City, Missouri. Her sister, Edna, also had a daughter named Eugenia. According to her obituary and census records, she was the second oldest child. Her siblings were Edna, George, Helen, Leo, and Paul, who were also born in Missouri, according to the 1900 and 1910 U.S. Censuses.
Her father died on February 15, 1910 in Kansas City, leaving his 44-year-old widow with six children to raise. Eagels attended St. Joseph's parochial school and Morris Public School. She quit school shortly after her first communion to work as a cash girl in a department store.
Around 1911, she moved to New York City
, working in chorus lines and eventually becoming a Ziegfeld Girl
. Her hair was brown, but she bleached it when she went to New York. During this period, one of her acting coaches was Beverly Sitgreaves. Eagels was in the supporting cast of Mind The Paint Girl at the Lyceum Theatre
in September 1912. Eagels played opposite George Arliss
in three successive plays in 1916 and 1917.
In 1915, she appeared in her first motion picture. She also made three films for Thanhouser Film Corporation
in 1916-17.
In 1918, she appeared in Daddies, a David Belasco
production. She quit this show due to illness and subsequently travelled to Europe
. She appeared in several other Broadway shows between 1919 and 1921.
In 1922, she made her first appearance as a star in the play Rain, by John Colton
, based on a short story by W. Somerset Maugham
. Eagels played her favorite role, that of Sadie Thompson
, a free-wheeling and free-loving spirit who confronts a fire-and-brimstone preacher on a South Pacific
island. She went on tour with Rain for two more seasons, and returned to Broadway to give a farewell performance in 1926.
In 1925, Eagels married Edward Harris "Ted" Coy
, a former Yale University
football star turned stockbroker. They had no children and divorced in 1928.
In 1926, Eagels was offered the part of Roxie Hart
in Maurine Dallas Watkins
's play Chicago, but Eagels walked out of this role during rehearsals. She next appeared in the comedy Her Cardboard Lover (1927), in which she appeared on stage with Leslie Howard
. She then went on tour with Her Cardboard Lover for several months. After missing some performances due to ptomaine poisoning, Eagels returned to the cast in July 1927 for an Empire Theater show.
After a season on Broadway, she took a break to make a movie. She appeared opposite John Gilbert
in the MGM film Man, Woman and Sin
(1927), directed by Monta Bell.
In 1928, after failing to appear for a performance in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Eagels was banned by Actors Equity from appearing on stage for 18 months. The ban did not stop Eagels from working in film, and she made two "talkies" for Paramount Pictures, including The Letter
and Jealousy (both released in 1929).
on October 3, 1929 at the age of 39. Medical examiners disagreed on the cause of death--there were three separate coroner's reports, all reaching different conclusions--but the available evidence pointed to the effects of alcohol, a tranquilizer, or heroin. After services in New York, Eagels received a second funeral service when her body was returned to Kansas City, where she was buried in Calvary Cemetery.
She was survived by her mother Julia Eagles and several brothers and sisters.
Eagels was posthumously nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress
for her role in The Letter, but the Oscar went to Mary Pickford
for the film Coquette
.
In 1957, a mostly fictionalized film biography entitled Jeanne Eagels
was made by Columbia Pictures
, starring Kim Novak
as Eagels.
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
and in several motion pictures. She was a former Ziegfeld Follies
Ziegfeld Follies
The Ziegfeld Follies were a series of elaborate theatrical productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 through 1931. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air....
Girl who went on to greater fame on Broadway and in the emerging medium of sound films.
She was posthumously considered for the Academy Award for Best Actress
Academy Award for Best Actress
Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
for her 1929 role in The Letter after dying suddenly that year at the age of 39. That nomination was the first posthumous Oscar consideration for any actor, male or female.
Early life
Jeanne Eagels was born in Kansas City, MissouriKansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
to Edward and Julia Sullivan Eagles (1865–1945) on June 26, 1890 of German and Irish descent. Her parents were married on April 26, 1886 in Platte City
Platte City, Missouri
Platte City is a city in Platte County, Missouri, along the Little Platte River. The population was 3,866 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Platte County.-Geography:Platte City is located at...
, Platte County, Missouri
Platte County, Missouri
As of the census of 2000, there were 73,781 people, 29,278 households, and 20,231 families residing in the county. The population density was 176 people per square mile . There were 30,902 housing units at an average density of 74 per square mile...
. Although many biographies state that her birth name was Amelia Jeanne Eagles, her actual birth name was Eugenia Eagles according to both the 1900 and 1910 United States Federal Censuses for Kansas City, Missouri. Her sister, Edna, also had a daughter named Eugenia. According to her obituary and census records, she was the second oldest child. Her siblings were Edna, George, Helen, Leo, and Paul, who were also born in Missouri, according to the 1900 and 1910 U.S. Censuses.
Her father died on February 15, 1910 in Kansas City, leaving his 44-year-old widow with six children to raise. Eagels attended St. Joseph's parochial school and Morris Public School. She quit school shortly after her first communion to work as a cash girl in a department store.
Career
It was in Kansas City that she began her acting career, appearing in a variety of small venues at a very young age. She left Kansas City around the age of 15 and toured the Midwest with the Dubinsky Brothers' traveling theater show. At first, she was a dancer, but in time she went on to play the leading lady in several comedies and dramas put on by the Dubinskys. She married Morris Dubinsky, who frequently played villain roles.Around 1911, she moved to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, working in chorus lines and eventually becoming a Ziegfeld Girl
Ziegfeld Follies
The Ziegfeld Follies were a series of elaborate theatrical productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 through 1931. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air....
. Her hair was brown, but she bleached it when she went to New York. During this period, one of her acting coaches was Beverly Sitgreaves. Eagels was in the supporting cast of Mind The Paint Girl at the Lyceum Theatre
Lyceum Theatre (New York)
The Lyceum Theatre is a Broadway theatre located at 149 West 45th Street in midtown-Manhattan.It has the distinction of being the oldest surviving Broadway venue , the oldest continuously operating legitimate theatre in New York City, and the first Broadway theatre ever to be granted landmark status...
in September 1912. Eagels played opposite George Arliss
George Arliss
George Arliss was an English actor, author and filmmaker who found success in the United States. He was the first British actor to win an Academy Award.-Life and career:...
in three successive plays in 1916 and 1917.
In 1915, she appeared in her first motion picture. She also made three films for Thanhouser Film Corporation
Thanhouser Company
The Thanhouser Company was one of the first motion picture studios, founded in 1909 by Edwin Thanhouser.-See also:...
in 1916-17.
In 1918, she appeared in Daddies, a David Belasco
David Belasco
David Belasco was an American theatrical producer, impresario, director and playwright.-Biography:Born in San Francisco, California, where his Sephardic Jewish parents had moved from London, England, during the Gold Rush, he began working in a San Francisco theatre doing a variety of routine jobs,...
production. She quit this show due to illness and subsequently travelled to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. She appeared in several other Broadway shows between 1919 and 1921.
In 1922, she made her first appearance as a star in the play Rain, by John Colton
John Colton
Sir John Colton KCMG was an Australian politician, Premier of South Australia and philanthropist.Colton, the son of William Colton, a farmer, was born in Devonshire, England. He arrived in South Australia in 1839 with his parents, who went on the land...
, based on a short story by W. Somerset Maugham
W. Somerset Maugham
William Somerset Maugham , CH was an English playwright, novelist and short story writer. He was among the most popular writers of his era and, reputedly, the highest paid author during the 1930s.-Childhood and education:...
. Eagels played her favorite role, that of Sadie Thompson
Sadie Thompson
Sadie Thompson is an American silent film that tells the story of a "fallen woman" who comes to Pago Pago on the island of Tutuila to start a new life, but encounters a zealous missionary who wants to force her back to her former life in San Francisco. The film stars Gloria Swanson, Lionel...
, a free-wheeling and free-loving spirit who confronts a fire-and-brimstone preacher on a South Pacific
Oceania
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
island. She went on tour with Rain for two more seasons, and returned to Broadway to give a farewell performance in 1926.
In 1925, Eagels married Edward Harris "Ted" Coy
Ted Coy
Edward Harris "Ted" Coy was an American football player. Coy was selected as a first-team All-American three straight years from 1907 to 1909 and was later selected as the fullback on Walter Camp's All-Time All-America team. He also served as Yale's head football coach in 1910...
, a former Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
football star turned stockbroker. They had no children and divorced in 1928.
In 1926, Eagels was offered the part of Roxie Hart
Roxie Hart
Roxanne "Roxie" Hart is a fictional showgirl in various adaptations of the same story. She first appeared in the 1926 play Chicago written by reporter Maurine Dallas Watkins. Watkins was inspired by the real-life unrelated 1924 murder trials of Beulah Annan and Belva Gaertner, which she covered for...
in Maurine Dallas Watkins
Maurine Dallas Watkins
Maurine Dallas Watkins was an American journalist and playwright.She was born in Louisville, Kentucky, and attended Crawfordsville High School, followed by five colleges...
's play Chicago, but Eagels walked out of this role during rehearsals. She next appeared in the comedy Her Cardboard Lover (1927), in which she appeared on stage with Leslie Howard
Leslie Howard (actor)
Leslie Howard was an English stage and film actor, director, and producer. Among his best-known roles was Ashley Wilkes in Gone with the Wind and roles in Berkeley Square , Of Human Bondage , The Scarlet Pimpernel , The Petrified Forest , Pygmalion , Intermezzo , Pimpernel Smith...
. She then went on tour with Her Cardboard Lover for several months. After missing some performances due to ptomaine poisoning, Eagels returned to the cast in July 1927 for an Empire Theater show.
After a season on Broadway, she took a break to make a movie. She appeared opposite John Gilbert
John Gilbert (actor)
John Gilbert was an American actor and a major star of the silent film era.Known as "the great lover," he rivaled even Rudolph Valentino as a box office draw...
in the MGM film Man, Woman and Sin
Man, Woman and Sin
Man, Woman and Sin is a 1927 silent film produced and distributed by Metro Goldwyn Mayer. It was directed by Monta Bell and uncredited John Gilbert. The picture stars Gilbert and stage actress Jeanne Eagels in one of her rare film appearances. The film is obscure but survives complete...
(1927), directed by Monta Bell.
In 1928, after failing to appear for a performance in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Eagels was banned by Actors Equity from appearing on stage for 18 months. The ban did not stop Eagels from working in film, and she made two "talkies" for Paramount Pictures, including The Letter
The Letter (1929 film)
The Letter is an American drama film which was made in both silent and talking versions by Paramount Pictures.-Preservation status:...
and Jealousy (both released in 1929).
Death and legacy
Just before she was to return to the Broadway stage in a new play, Eagels died suddenly upon visiting a private hospital in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on October 3, 1929 at the age of 39. Medical examiners disagreed on the cause of death--there were three separate coroner's reports, all reaching different conclusions--but the available evidence pointed to the effects of alcohol, a tranquilizer, or heroin. After services in New York, Eagels received a second funeral service when her body was returned to Kansas City, where she was buried in Calvary Cemetery.
She was survived by her mother Julia Eagles and several brothers and sisters.
Eagels was posthumously nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress
Academy Award for Best Actress
Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
for her role in The Letter, but the Oscar went to Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born motion picture actress, co-founder of the film studio United Artists and one of the original 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
for the film Coquette
Coquette (film)
-Plot:Norma Besant, daughter of a Southern doctor, is an incorrigible flirt and has many suitors. Her father Dr. Besant favors Stanley , who is taken with Norma. However Norma has met a simple man named Michael Jeffrey who she has fallen madly in love with. Dr. Besant disapproves of Michael...
.
In 1957, a mostly fictionalized film biography entitled Jeanne Eagels
Jeanne Eagels (film)
Jeanne Eagels is a 1957 fictionalized biographical film of the life of stage star Jeanne Eagels, made by Columbia Pictures. It was produced and directed by George Sidney from a screenplay by John Fante, Daniel Fuchs and Sonya Levien, based on a story by Fuchs...
was made by Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
, starring Kim Novak
Kim Novak
Kim Novak is an American film and television actress. She began her career with her roles in Pushover and Phffft! but achieved greater prominence in the 1955 film Picnic...
as Eagels.
Filmography
- The House of Fear (1915)
- The World and the WomanThe World and the WomanThe Woman and the World is a 1916 silent film starring Jeanne Eagels as a prostitute who seeks a second chance in the countryside. It was based on the 1914 play Outcast starring Elsie Ferguson...
(1916) - The Fires of Youth (1917)
- Under False Colors (1917)
- The Cross Bearer (1918)
- The Madonna of the Slums (1919)
- Man, Woman and SinMan, Woman and SinMan, Woman and Sin is a 1927 silent film produced and distributed by Metro Goldwyn Mayer. It was directed by Monta Bell and uncredited John Gilbert. The picture stars Gilbert and stage actress Jeanne Eagels in one of her rare film appearances. The film is obscure but survives complete...
(1927) - The LetterThe Letter (1929 film)The Letter is an American drama film which was made in both silent and talking versions by Paramount Pictures.-Preservation status:...
(1929) - Jealousy (1929)
External links
- Jeanne Eagles in The Letter (1929)
- Jeanne Eagels photo taken in 1917 not published until 1974; NYP Library collection