Nancy Welford
Nancy Welford | |
|---|---|
 Welford in 1923 | |
| Born | May 31, 1904 |
| Died | September 30, 1991 (aged 87) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1929–1933 |
| Spouse(s) | F. Heath Cobb (m. 1924; div. 19?) Henry C. Morris
(m. 1945) |
| Children | 5 |
Nancy Welford (May 31, 1904 – September 30, 1991), also known as Christine Welford, was a British-born American actress in the early sound film era.
Early life[edit]
The daughter of actress Ada Loftus[1] and actor Dallas Welford, she was born in London, England and came to the United States when she was six years old.[2]
Career[edit]
Welford's stage debut came as a member of the ensemble for Mimic World.[3] As early as 1921, she was active in vaudeville.[4] In 1922 she appeared at the Fulton Theatre on Broadway in the musical Orange Blossoms by Victor Herbert. In 1923, a caption of a photograph in the New York Daily News described her as the prima donna of a musical comedy and noted, "She has come up from the chorus and come to stay."[5] She next joined the Gallagher and Shean duo in their performances.[6] In 1926, Welford starred in Nancy, a musical for which she was the inspiration.[7] This was followed by the role of Mary Wheeler in the hit 1928 musical Rain or Shine.[8]
She acted in five films between 1929 and 1933. She is probably today mostly known for starring in the 1929 Warner Brothers musical Gold Diggers of Broadway.
Personal life[edit]
On October 24, 1924, Welford married film director F. Heath Cobb in Cleveland, Ohio. Her parents learned of the marriage about a month later, prompting her father to say, "I don't believe it", and putting her mother under a doctor's care at her home.[6] She married Henry C. Morris in 1945; he preceded her in death in 1985.[citation needed]
Death[edit]
Welford died in San Francisco, California.[9]
Filmography[edit]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1929 | Gold Diggers of Broadway | Jerry | Incomplete film, final two reels survive and Vitaphone soundtrack |
| The Phantom of the House | Dorothy Milburn | ||
| 1930 | The Jazz Cinderella | Patricia Murray | |
| 1931 | A Safe Affair | Mary Bolton | |
| 1933 | Yours Sincerely | Betty Braley |
References[edit]
- ^ "Nancy Welford in Role as Ingenue in 'In Dutch'". Dayton Daily News. Ohio, Dayton. October 9, 1924. p. 17. Retrieved July 7, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Star at Nixon Comes of Family of Actors". The Pittsburgh Press. Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh. December 24, 1922. p. 31. Retrieved July 7, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Theatre Notes". Daily News. New York, New York City. April 8, 1923. p. 93. Retrieved July 7, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Majestic Theatre advertisement". The Houston Post. Texas, Houston. November 19, 1921. p. 10. Retrieved July 7, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "(photo caption)". Daily News. New York, New York City. April 1, 1923. p. 28. Retrieved July 7, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Nancy Welford's Marriage Ends Career, Says Father". Daily News. New York, New York City. November 27, 1924. p. 3. Retrieved July 7, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "'Nanette' Star in New One". The Los Angeles Times. California, Los Angeles. May 23, 1926. p. 61. Retrieved July 7, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Rain or Shine". The Complete Book of 1920s Broadway Musicals. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. 2019. pp. 298–299, 447–448. ISBN 9781538112823.
- ^ Schermerhorn, James (October 4, 1991). "Ex-stage Star Nancy Welford Dies at 87". San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
External links[edit]
- Nancy Welford at the Internet Broadway Database
- Michael G. Morris, "She's Just a Baby" Gershwin 100 (March 25, 2021), a blog post about Welford
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- 1904 births
- 1991 deaths
- 20th-century American actresses
- 20th-century English actresses
- Actresses from London
- American film actresses
- American silent film actresses
- English emigrants to the United States
- English film actresses
- English silent film actresses
- English stage actresses
- American film actor, 1900s birth stubs
- American theatre actor, 20th-century birth stubs