Margaret Draper
Encyclopedia
Margaret Ruth Draper was an American actress and international service worker. She was born in 1916, the third of six children born to Delbert Morley Draper and Frances Mary Rogers. Shortly after her birth her family relocated to Salt Lake City where she lived until 1934.
From a young age, Margaret was captivated by the theatre, taking advantage of every opportunity to act in school. She performed in her first play when she was four, when the University of Utah
drama department came to Stewart School to find two children – Margaret and her brother Courtney - to appear in “The Hour Glass”.
Margaret attended East High School
in Salt Lake City, where she pursued her chosen passion in dramatic, dancing and musical productions. Due to shortened school years and the Great Depression
, Margaret entered the University of Utah at age 15. Due to unsatisfactory grades, she was sent by her parents to business college for a year, where she learned skills that helped her earn a living when she was later to arrive in New York. She was readmitted to the University the following year, and majored in dramatics, graduating with a respectable average.
The summer Margaret was graduated from the University, she was invited to accompany a friend and his sister to New York City
in their Ford coupe; despite her older sister’s impending wedding, she accepted without hesitation, realizing this would be her only chance to pursue a career in the theatre. She departed the following day with a single bag and $38.50 in her purse. Alone in New York, she found a small room in Tudor City, and realized that she soon must find employment, which she secured in G. Schirmer's music store.
By dint of perseverance and incessant self-promotion, she landed her first job with the Provincetown Theater in return for translating a French play. During World War II
, she worked for two years for the Red Cross in Europe
and the Middle East
as a recreational director, and returned to lean years in New York until 1947, when she got her first radio role with Carl Beier in the CBS
program "Joe Powers of Oakville." Subsequently Margaret appeared in the Actor's Equity presentation of "Peer Gynt", and was voted one of the most promising actresses of the year. She obtained supporting roles in two Broadway shows, and in 1949 was invited to audition for the part of Liz Dennis in "Brighter Day". She won the part, and played Liz until around 1954, when the part of Linda Pepper was being cast for "Pepper Young's Family
". Margaret "Perfect Wife" Draper auditioned, and won the role.
Margaret married the actor Joe De Santis
in May 1949, and became the mother of her only child, Christopher, in 1951. The marriage ended in 1957. In 1959, Margaret married Nicol Bissel, an architect. She moved to Mamaroneck
, New York, and for a year and a half played the part of housewife and mother. She was again divorced in 1960, and returned to Manhattan
. She continued to work in various theatrical productions whenever possible, but made her living, in large part, doing TV and radio commercials. In addition to hundreds of individual spots for various products, she acted as the spokesperson for Camel
cigarettes, Kraft Foods
products, Woolite
detergent and others.
In 1966 Margaret became a disc jockey
for an all-woman FM radio station in New York, WFEM (otherwise known as WNEW
-FM) and in 1969, she joined the United Seamen's Service
, an organization that provided rest and service clubs for merchant marine sailors around the world. Her first assignment was as the assistant Director of the club in Cam Ranh Bay
, Viet Nam. In 1970, the Viet Nam club was closed because of the war, and she was transferred to the club in Naples
, Italy
as director, where she served until 1972.
In 1972, she married J. Norman Messer (CDR USN) who was serving as Executive Officer on the USS Cascade, stationed in Naples. They moved to Key West
, Florida
, but Margaret was once again divorced in 1973. Subsequently, she lived in Geneva
, Switzerland
; in Alexandria
, Egypt
, where she established a club for the United Seamen's Service; and in Washington, DC, where she worked for the National Alliance of Business as a reference specialist in the PSIP Clearinghouse.
Margaret retired in 1985, in New York City, and began writing an autobiographical novel. She resided for a time in Santa Fe
, New Mexico
, a place she had always loved, but found that she missed the culture, theater, and activity or New York, as well as her many friends, and returned there. In later life she was married to Wesley Brown and traveled extensively with him until his death after four years.
In 2003, Margaret moved to an independent living community in Salt Lake City. In the fall of 2010, she moved to her son's home in Payson, Utah
, and the following spring Margaret settled in a care facility in that same town. She died on October 14, 2011 at age 94.
From a young age, Margaret was captivated by the theatre, taking advantage of every opportunity to act in school. She performed in her first play when she was four, when the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
drama department came to Stewart School to find two children – Margaret and her brother Courtney - to appear in “The Hour Glass”.
Margaret attended East High School
East High School (Salt Lake City)
East High School is a public high school in the Salt Lake City School District in Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S. and serves grades nine through twelve. It also accepts and cares for mentally and physically disabled children. East High School was founded in 1914 and currently has an enrolled student...
in Salt Lake City, where she pursued her chosen passion in dramatic, dancing and musical productions. Due to shortened school years and the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, Margaret entered the University of Utah at age 15. Due to unsatisfactory grades, she was sent by her parents to business college for a year, where she learned skills that helped her earn a living when she was later to arrive in New York. She was readmitted to the University the following year, and majored in dramatics, graduating with a respectable average.
The summer Margaret was graduated from the University, she was invited to accompany a friend and his sister 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...
in their Ford coupe; despite her older sister’s impending wedding, she accepted without hesitation, realizing this would be her only chance to pursue a career in the theatre. She departed the following day with a single bag and $38.50 in her purse. Alone in New York, she found a small room in Tudor City, and realized that she soon must find employment, which she secured in G. Schirmer's music store.
By dint of perseverance and incessant self-promotion, she landed her first job with the Provincetown Theater in return for translating a French play. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, she worked for two years for the Red Cross in 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...
and the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
as a recreational director, and returned to lean years in New York until 1947, when she got her first radio role with Carl Beier in the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
program "Joe Powers of Oakville." Subsequently Margaret appeared in the Actor's Equity presentation of "Peer Gynt", and was voted one of the most promising actresses of the year. She obtained supporting roles in two Broadway shows, and in 1949 was invited to audition for the part of Liz Dennis in "Brighter Day". She won the part, and played Liz until around 1954, when the part of Linda Pepper was being cast for "Pepper Young's Family
Pepper Young's Family
Pepper Young's Family was one of radio's more popular daytime drama series, with various format and title changes during its long run from 1932 to 1959...
". Margaret "Perfect Wife" Draper auditioned, and won the role.
Margaret married the actor Joe De Santis
Joe De Santis
Joseph Vito DeSantis was an American radio, television, movie and theatrical actor and sculptor.-Biography:Joe DeSantis was born Joseph Vito Marcello DeSantis to Italian immigrant parents in New York City...
in May 1949, and became the mother of her only child, Christopher, in 1951. The marriage ended in 1957. In 1959, Margaret married Nicol Bissel, an architect. She moved to Mamaroneck
Mamaroneck (village), New York
Mamaroneck is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 18,929 at the 2010 census. It is located partially within the town of Mamaroneck and partially within the town of Rye. The portion in Rye is unofficially called "Rye Neck"...
, New York, and for a year and a half played the part of housewife and mother. She was again divorced in 1960, and returned to Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
. She continued to work in various theatrical productions whenever possible, but made her living, in large part, doing TV and radio commercials. In addition to hundreds of individual spots for various products, she acted as the spokesperson for Camel
Camel
A camel is an even-toed ungulate within the genus Camelus, bearing distinctive fatty deposits known as humps on its back. There are two species of camels: the dromedary or Arabian camel has a single hump, and the bactrian has two humps. Dromedaries are native to the dry desert areas of West Asia,...
cigarettes, Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods Inc. is an American confectionery, food and beverage conglomerate. It markets many brands in more than 170 countries. 12 of its brands annually earn more than $1 billion worldwide: Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Trident, Tang...
products, Woolite
Woolite
Woolite is a brand of laundry detergent owned by Reckitt Benckiser . It manufactures laundry accessories. Bissell Inc., under license from Reckitt Benckiser, manufactures Woolite carpet cleaning ....
detergent and others.
In 1966 Margaret became a disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
for an all-woman FM radio station in New York, WFEM (otherwise known as WNEW
WNEW
WNEW may refer to:*WNEW , a radio station licensed to Jupiter, Florida, United States*WBBR, a radio station licensed to New York, New York, United States, which used the call sign WNEW until December 1992...
-FM) and in 1969, she joined the United Seamen's Service
United Seamen's Service
The United Seamen's Service, sometimes abbreviated as the USS, is a non-profit, federally-chartered organization founded in 1942 to promote the welfare of American seafarers and their dependents, seafarers of all nations, US government military and civilian personnel, and other persons engaged in...
, an organization that provided rest and service clubs for merchant marine sailors around the world. Her first assignment was as the assistant Director of the club in Cam Ranh Bay
Cam Ranh Bay
Cam Ranh Bay is a deep-water bay in Vietnam in the province of Khánh Hòa. It is located at an inlet of the South China Sea situated on the southeastern coast of Vietnam, between Phan Rang and Nha Trang, approximately 290 kilometers / 180 miles northeast of Hồ Chí Minh City / Saigon.Cam Ranh is...
, Viet Nam. In 1970, the Viet Nam club was closed because of the war, and she was transferred to the club in Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
as director, where she served until 1972.
In 1972, she married J. Norman Messer (CDR USN) who was serving as Executive Officer on the USS Cascade, stationed in Naples. They moved to Key West
Key West
Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida on the North American continent at the southernmost tip of the Florida Keys. Key West is home to the southernmost point in the Continental United States; the island is about from Cuba....
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, but Margaret was once again divorced in 1973. Subsequently, she lived in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
; in Alexandria
Alexandria
Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, where she established a club for the United Seamen's Service; and in Washington, DC, where she worked for the National Alliance of Business as a reference specialist in the PSIP Clearinghouse.
Margaret retired in 1985, in New York City, and began writing an autobiographical novel. She resided for a time in Santa Fe
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is the fourth-largest city in the state and is the seat of . Santa Fe had a population of 67,947 in the 2010 census...
, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, a place she had always loved, but found that she missed the culture, theater, and activity or New York, as well as her many friends, and returned there. In later life she was married to Wesley Brown and traveled extensively with him until his death after four years.
In 2003, Margaret moved to an independent living community in Salt Lake City. In the fall of 2010, she moved to her son's home in Payson, Utah
Payson, Utah
Payson is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Provo–Orem, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 12,716 at the 2000 census. The current mayor is Rick Moore, who in the 2009 election was the first write-in candidate ever to defeat an incumbent mayor in...
, and the following spring Margaret settled in a care facility in that same town. She died on October 14, 2011 at age 94.