Alison Skipworth

Alison Skipworth
File:Alison Skipworth in The Casino Murder Case trailer.jpg from the trailer for The Casino Murder Case (1935)
Born	Alison Mary Elliott Margaret Groom (1863-07-25)25 July 1863 London, England, UK
Died	New York City, New York, US
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1894–1938
Spouse(s)	Frank Markham Skipworth (1882–1929)

Alison Skipworth (25 July 1863 – 5 July 1952) was an English stage and screen actress. She was born Alison Mary Elliott Margaret Groom in London.

Life and Career

Alison Skipworth made her first stage appearance at Daly's Theatre in London in 1894, in A Gaiety Girl. Her first American performance came the following year at the Broadway Theatre in New York City. She sang in light opera in An Artist's Model. In this production she served as understudy to Marie Tempest. After performing in two London plays, Skipworth returned to the United States, and made it her home. She joined the company of Daniel Frohman at the Lyceum. There she made her debut as Mrs. Ware in The Princess and the Butterfly in 1897.

In 1905 and 1906 Skipworth toured with Viola Allen in three productions of Shakespeare, Cymbeline, Twelfth Night, and As You Like It. In the following years she played with James K. Hackett and John Drew, Jr., among other theatre celebrities. Productions in which she was featured are The Swan, The Enchanted April, The Grand Duchess and the Waiter, Mrs. Dane's Defence and Marseilles.

Skipworth appeared in her first film in 1912, A Mardi Gras Mix-Up. The same year she performed in The Pilgrimage, Into the Jungle, and A Political Kidnapping. She excelled in the new sound medium in films which arrived at the close of the 1920s. In 1930 she made her first talkie, Strictly Unconventional. Skipworth appeared opposite W. C. Fields as his foil in four films: If I Had a Million (1932), Tillie and Gus (1933), Alice in Wonderland (1933), and Six of a Kind (1934). Her film career continued until 1938 with many major supporting roles. Her later screen credits include The Casino Murder Case, The Girl from 10th Avenue, King of the Newsboys, Wide Open Faces, and Ladies in Distress.

Nicknamed "Skippy", Skipworth resided in an ordinary Hollywood flat, drove a Ford, and drank tea daily in her own garden each afternoon when she was not working. Alison Skipworth died of natural causes in 1952 at her home in New York City, three weeks short of her 89th birthday.

Filmography

• A Mardi Gras Mix-Up (1912) short
• The Pilgrimage (1912) short
• Into the Jungle (1912) short
• A Political Kidnapping (1912)short
• 39 East (1920)
• Handcuffs or Kisses (1921)
• Strictly Unconventional (1930)
• Raffles (1930)
• Outward Bound (1930)
• Du Barry, Woman of Passion (1930)
• Oh, For a Man! (1930)
• The Virtuous Husband (1931)
• The Night Angel (1931)
• Devotion (1931)
• The Road to Singapore (1931)
• Tonight or Never (1931)
• The Unexpected Father (1932)
• High Pressure (1932) uncredited
• Sinners in the Sun (1932)
• Madame Racketeer (1932)
• Night After Night (1932)
• If I Had a Million (1932)
• Tonight Is Ours (1933)
• He Learned About Women (1933)
• A Lady's Profession (1933)
• The Song of Songs (1933)
• Midnight Club (1933)
• Tillie and Gus (1933)
• Alice in Wonderland (1933)
• Six of a Kind (1934)
• Coming Out Party (1934)
• Wharf Angel (1934)
• Shoot the Works (1934)
• The Notorious Sophie Lang (1934)
• The Captain Hates the Sea (1934)
• Here is My Heart (1934)
• The Casino Murder Case (1935)
• The Devil Is a Woman (1935)
• The Girl from 10th Avenue (1935)
• Becky Sharp (1935)
• Doubting Thomas (1935)
• Shanghai (1935)
• Dangerous (1935)
• Hitch Hike Lady (1935)
• The Princess Comes Across (1936)
• Satan Met a Lady (1936)
• The Gorgeous Hussy (1936)
• Two in a Crowd (1936)
• White Hunter (1936)
• Stolen Holiday (1937)
• Two Wise Maids (1937)
• King of the Newsboys (1938)
• Wide Open Faces (1938)
• Ladies in Distress (1938)

Sources

• The Times-News (Burlington, North Carolina), "Hollywood Gossip", 19 December 1933, page 7.
• The New York Times, "Alison Skipworth, Actress, Dies At 88", 7 July 1952, page 21.
• Winnipeg Free Press, "Lyceum", 23 January 1936, page 24.

External links

• Alison Skipworth at the Internet Broadway Database
• Alison Skipworth at the Internet Movie Database
• Alison Skipworth(Aveleyman)
• a younger Skipworth, in the Victorian era