Maude Eburne

Maude Eburne
Eburne in Theatre Magazine, 1914
Born
Maud Eburne Riggs

(1875-11-10)November 10, 1875
Bronte-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada
DiedOctober 15, 1960(1960-10-15) (aged 84)
Hollywood, California, U.S.
Years active1915-1951
Spouse
Eugene J. Hall
​
​
(m. 1905; died 1932)​
Children1

Maude Eburne (born Maud Eburne Riggs, November 10, 1875 – October 15, 1960) was a Canadian character actress of stage and screen, known for playing eccentric roles.

Early years

Eburne was born the daughter of John and Mary Riggs,[1] in Bronte-on-the-Lake, Ontario. She studied elocution in Toronto.

The death of Eburne's father in 1901 was a catalyst for her entry into acting as a profession. She said that he would not have approved a stage career for her and added, "If my father knew I was on the stage, he would not rest in peace."[1]

Career

Lobby card with Louise Fazenda and Maude Eburne (right) in Doughnuts and Society (1936)

Eburne began her career in stock theater in Buffalo, New York.[2] Her early theater work was in Ontario[citation needed] and New York City, debuting on Broadway to great acclaim as "Coddles" in the 1914 farce A Pair of Sixes.[3] "When I first came to New York... I said I didn't want to be beautiful young girls or stately leading women, but wanted parts that had something queer in them, especially if there were dialect."[4]

She continued to play mainly humorous domestic roles on stage, appearing in productions such as The Half Moon (1920), Lady Butterfly (1923), Three Cheers (1928) and Many a Slip (1930),[5] before her first significant film role — and first sound film role —[1] in The Bat Whispers (1930), director Roland West's sound remake of his 1926 silent feature The Bat.

Personal life

Eugene J. Hall married Eburne "in about 1905". They had a daughter, Marion Birdseye Hall, in 1907.[1] He died in 1932.[6]

Eburne retired in 1951.

Death

Eburne died on October 15, 1960, in Hollywood, California,[1] at age 84.

Partial filmography

Eburne's more than 100 films include:

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Nissen, Axel (2016). Accustomed to Her Face: Thirty-Five Character Actresses of Golden Age Hollywood. McFarland. pp. 31–37. ISBN 9780786497324. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
  2. ^ Coons, Robbin (May 2, 1932). "Hollywood Notebook". The Emporia Gazette. Kansas, Emporia. p. 2. Retrieved August 1, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. ^ "Coddles Awakes at Last to Find Herself Famous; After Thirteen Years of Watchful Waiting, Maude Eburne Comes into Her Own". The New York Times. March 29, 1914. Retrieved February 2, 2008.
  4. ^ "Tumbling Into Fame" Theatre Magazine (October 1914): 171-172.
  5. ^ "Maude Eburne". Northern Stars. Screenarts Incorporated. Archived from the original on February 2, 2007. Retrieved February 3, 2008.
  6. ^ Nissen, Axel (August 12, 2016). Accustomed to Her Face: Thirty-Five Character Actresses of Golden Age Hollywood. McFarland. ISBN 9780786497324 – via Google Books.

Sources

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