Beverly Roberts
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Beverly Louise Roberts (May 19, 1914 – July 13, 2009) was an American film and stage actress of the 1930s, as well as a singer and painter. She worked as a business executive in the entertainment industry through the 1970s.[1]
Career
Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Born in Brooklyn, New York, she was first spotted by a Warner Bros. talent scout while singing in a nightclub in 1935. Having performed as a stage actress prior to that, she was signed to a contract with Warner Brothers, starring in her first film in 1936, titled The Singing Kid, in which she appeared opposite Al Jolson. That same year she starred opposite Humphrey Bogart in Two Against the World. In 1937, she starred in God's Country and the Woman, Warners' first Technicolor film, in which she starred opposite George Brent. From 1937 to 1939, she starred in sixteen films. She and Errol Flynn signed with Warner Bros. on exactly the same day, but she reportedly quit films after losing key parts to other actresses including Bette Davis and Olivia de Havilland.[2]
By 1940, she had returned to singing and stage acting. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, she was showcased in numerous radio and television appearances.
In 1954, Roberts returned to New York City and took up a new career as administrator of the "Theater Authority", whose members comprised the five entertainment unions. The organization exercised jurisdiction over performers appearing at charity functions and telethons. Roberts retired in 1977, and moved to Laguna Niguel, California, where she lived out the remainder of her life.
Personal life
Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Actress Wynne Gibson, whom she had known since they worked together on the 1938 feature Flirting with Fate, followed her to New York; the two shared homes together on both coasts (West Babylon, Long Island, New York,[3] and Laguna Niguel, California) until Gibson's death in 1987.
In 2000, Roberts was featured in the documentary I Used to Be in Pictures, which revisited Hollywood's early years and featured interviews with former actresses and actors of the day.
In 2002, Roberts was honored by the "Del Mar Theater" in Santa Cruz, California, and her 1936 film, China Clipper, was shown at its grand opening. That same year she was honored at the "Cinecon Film Festival" in Hollywood.
In one of her last public appearances, on October 18, 2006, she was a guest of honor at the 84th Anniversary of the opening of the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood with Sybil Jason, where she answered questions from the audience after a screening of her debut film from 1936, The Singing Kid, which starred Al Jolson.[4]
Death
Roberts died in her sleep on July 13, 2009, at age 95, in her home in Laguna Niguel from natural causes. Longtime companion of actress Wynne Gibson, Roberts never married or had children.[5]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1936 | Two Against the World | Alma Ross | |
| The Singing Kid | Ruth Haines | ||
| Sons o' Guns | Mary Harper | ||
| Hot Money | Grace Lane | ||
| China Clipper | Jean "Skippy" Logan | ||
| 1937 | God's Country and the Woman | Jo Barton | |
| Her Husband's Secretary | Diane Ware | ||
| The Perfect Specimen | Alicia Brackett | ||
| West of Shanghai | Jane Creed | ||
| Expensive Husbands | Laurine Lynne | ||
| 1938 | Daredevil Drivers | Jerry Neeley | |
| Making the Headlines | Jeane Sandford | ||
| Call of the Yukon | Jean Williams | ||
| Tenth Avenue Kid | Susan Holland | ||
| Flirting with Fate | Patricia Lane | ||
| The Strange Case of Dr. Meade | Bonnie | ||
| 1939 | I Was a Convict | Judy Harrison | |
| First Offenders | Susan Kent | ||
| Tropic Fury | Judith Adams | ||
| Main Street Lawyer | Flossie | ||
| Buried Alive | Joan Wright |
References
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- ↑ Obituary for Beverly Roberts, Los Angeles Times, July 20, 2009.
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Hollywood Players, The Thirties by Parish and Leonard, Arlington House Publishers (1976), p. 252
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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External links
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- Template:Trim/ Template:PAGENAMEBASE at IMDbTemplate:EditAtWikidataScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- Template:First word Template:PAGENAMEBASE at the Internet Broadway DatabaseTemplate:EditAtWikidataTemplate:WikidataCheck
- Fresno Bee obituary
- Beverly Roberts - Daily Telegraph obituary
- Template:PAGENAMEBASE at Find a GraveTemplate:EditAtWikidata
- Pages with script errors
- IBDB name template using Wikidata
- 1914 births
- 2009 deaths
- American film actresses
- American stage actresses
- American television actresses
- Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)
- American LGBTQ actresses
- Actresses from Brooklyn
- People from Laguna Niguel, California
- 20th-century American actresses
- 20th-century American LGBTQ people
- 21st-century American LGBTQ people
- American lesbian actresses
- 21st-century American women