Minnette Barrett
Minnette Barrett | |
|---|---|
.png) Minnette Barrett c. 1910 | |
| Born | March 25, 1880 |
| Died | June 20, 1964 (aged 84) |
Minnette Barrett (March 25, 1880 – June 20, 1964) was an American actress. Born in Gainesville, Georgia, she began her career on the stage in California in 1899 as a member of Harry Corson Clarke's theater troupe. She worked in stock theatre, on tour, and in vaudeville in her early career. In 1904 she married Hiram Mitchell, the son of United States senator John H. Mitchell. She gave her first performance on Broadway in 1907, and performed periodically on the New York stage into the 1950s. She also appeared in a few silent films during the 1910s.
Life and career
[edit]Minnette Barrett was born in Gainesville, Georgia on March 25, 1880.[1] Her real name was Minnie Smith and she was the daughter of Amelia de F. Smith.[2] She began her career as a member of Harry Corson Clarke's theatre troupe in 1899;[2] performing in What Happened to Jones at theaters in California.[3] That same year she became a member of T. Daniel Frawley's theatre troupe which was then playing in San Francisco.[4] In March 1900 she toured with Fawley's company to Oregon as Isabelle Popervach in Henry Arthur Jones's The Dancing Girl and as Sophie in David Belasco's The Charity Ball in 1900.[5] The following month she performed at the Los Angeles Theater in Los Angeles with Fawley's troupe in An Unconventional Honeymoon,[6] and in In Paradise.[7]
In 1901 Barrett performed at the Burbank Theatre as Maria in Brother John.[8] In 1902 she toured with Frawley's troupe as Ottilene Mallinson in Lord and Lady Algy,[9] and toured in vaudeville in the Orpheum Circuit.[10] She appeared in vaudeville with Joe Jefferson Jr. and Florence Nash.[11] In 1903 she was a member of Gertrude Berkeley's theatre company which was in residence in Kansas City, Missouri.[12] In 1904 she married Hiram Mitchell, the son of United States senator John H. Mitchell, at the Little Church Around The Corner in New York City.[13]
In 1906 Barrett portrayed Louise in Leo Ditrichstein's new farce Before and After.[14] She portrayed Hortense Madigan in the 1907 Broadway production of The Primrose Path.[15] That same year she portrayed Annie White in Jean Schwartz's Broadway musical Lola from Berlin at the Liberty Theatre,[16] and Pauline Shank in The Coming of Mrs. Patrick at the Madison Square Theatre.[17]
Barrett portrayed Cornelia Van Gorder in both the original 1920 Broadway production and the 1937 Broadway revival of Mary Roberts Rinehart and Avery Hopwood hit play The Bat.[11] Her other Broadway credits included The Show Off, Mr. Buttles (1910), Mother (1910, as Ardath Wetherill), In 1999 (1912) (playlet)[18] Lovely Lady (1925), Desire Under the Elms (1952), and Mrs. McThing (1952-1953).[11] She had roles in the silent films Salvation Nell (1915)[19] and The Ragamuffin (1916).[20] During World War II she led the American Theatre Wing's war bonds drive.[11]
Barrett died on June 20, 1964 in Queens, New York.[1]
References
[edit]Citations
[edit]- ^ a b Vazzana 2001, p. 31.
- ^ a b "Prefers Practice to Theory March 5, 1899". The Sunday Oregonian. p. 15.
- ^ "What Happened to Jones". Santa Cruz Evening Sentinel. November 9, 1899. p. 3.
- ^ "About Plays and Players". San Francisco Chronicle. November 27, 1899. p. 7.
- ^ "Frawley's Last Week". The Sunday Oregonian. March 11, 1900. p. 17.
- ^ "T. Daniel Frawly Received a Great Ovation Last Night". Los Angeles Evening Express. April 16, 1900. p. 4.
- ^ "In Paradise Presented By Members of Frawley's Company". Los Angeles Evening Express. April 23, 1900. p. 4.
- ^ "Morosco's Burbank". Los Angeles Evening Express. February 23, 1901. p. 7.
- ^ "Entertainments". Minneapolis Star Tribune. January 7, 1902. p. 4.
- ^ "The Play's the Thing". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. March 2, 1902. p. 25.
- ^ a b c d (22 June 1964). Minnette Barrett, Actress, On Stage and in Vaudeville, The New York Times
- ^ "Gertrude Berkeley's Playhouse". Kansas City Journal. January 25, 1903. p. 32.
- ^ "Lieutenant Mitchell Weds an Actress". The Oregon Daily Journal. April 7, 1904. p. 5.
- ^ "Theatres Last Night". The Baltimore Sun. February 27, 1906. p. 12.
- ^ "A Play That Offers Topic for Debate". The New York Times. May 7, 1907. p. 9.
- ^ Dietz 2022, pp. 442–443.
- ^ "NEW PLAY SEEN AT MADISON SQUARE; " Coming of Mrs. Patrick" Does Not Add to Rachael Crothers's Reputation. CLUMSY AND FAMILIAR Laura Nelson Hall and Others Play Well, but the Piece Is Slow and Tedious". The New York Times. November 7, 1907. p. 5.
- ^ (6 February 1912). Mock Problem Play is Rich in Satire - Mr. de Mille's "In 1999" Shows What May Happen if Woman Has Her Way, The New York Times
- ^ Salvation Nell at silentera.com
- ^ The Ragamuffin at silentera.com
Bibliography
[edit]- Dietz, Dan (2022). The Complete Book of 1900s Broadway Musicals. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. ISBN 9781538168943.
- Vazzana, Eugene Michael (2001). "Barrett, Minnette". Silent Film Necrology. McFarland & Company. ISBN 9780786410590.
External links
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