| Jessie Royce Landis | |
|---|---|
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| Born | Jessie Medbury November 25, 1896 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | February 2, 1972 (aged 75) Danbury, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Resting place | Branchville Cemetery, Ridgefield, Connecticut |
| Spouse(s) | Perry Lester Landis (1923-1935) Rex Smith (1937-1944) Maj. Gen. J.F.R. Seitz (1956-1972) |
Jessie Royce Landis (November 25, 1896 – February 2, 1972) was an American actress.
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Early life [edit]
Jesse Royce Landis was born Jessie Medbury in Chicago, Illinois.[1] to Paul, an orchestra musician, and Ella Medbury. As per Ancestry.com, "Royce" does not appear to have been her middle name by birth; her middle initial is cited as either "J." or "T".[2] Her acting surname "Landis" derives from her first husband, although she was married twice more.
Career [edit]
Landis was a stage actress for much of her career. In the 1950s, she began appearing in movies as a character actress, most notably in To Catch a Thief (1955), and North by Northwest (1959), both starring Cary Grant and directed by Alfred Hitchcock. In North by Northwest she played Grant's character's mother, and in To Catch a Thief and the The Swan, she played the mother of Grace Kelly's characters. Landis also made many television appearances.
Age Controversy [edit]
Landis's appearance in North by Northwest earned her publicity for portraying Cary Grant's mother despite claiming to be nearly a year younger. Landis listed 1904 as the year of her birth, a date now given by many printed biographies and online sources.[1][3] However, in the tradition of many actresses, she had actually shaved years off her age – in this instance, eight. She appears in the 1900 U.S. Census as a 3-year-old born in November 1896,[4] and so was actually seven years older than Grant.
Marriages [edit]
She was married three times. Her third husband and widower was Major General J.F.R. "Jeff" Seitz (died 1978).[5] Her autobiography, titled You Won't Be So Pretty (But You'll Know More), was published in 1954.
Death [edit]
Landis died of cancer in Danbury, Connecticut on February 2, 1972, aged 75.[1]
Selected filmography [edit]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1949 | Mr. Belvedere Goes to College | Mrs. Chase | |
| 1949 | It Happens Every Spring | Mrs. Greenleaf | |
| 1949 | My Foolish Heart | Martha Winters | |
| 1955 | To Catch a Thief | Jessie Stevens | |
| 1956 | Climax! | Olivia Chesney | Episode: "An Episode of Sparrows" |
| 1956 | The Swan | Princess Beatrix | |
| 1957 | My Man Godfrey | Angelica Bullock | |
| 1958 | I Married a Woman | Mrs. Blake, Janice's Mother | |
| 1959 | North by Northwest | Clara Thornhill | |
| 1960 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Claire Crane | Episode: "Mother, May I Go Out to Swim?" |
| 1960 | Thriller | Mrs. Killburn | Episode: "The Mark of the Hand" |
| 1961 | Goodbye Again | Mrs. Van der Besh | |
| 1962 | Boys' Night Out | Ethel Williams | |
| 1963 | Critic's Choice | Charlotte Orr aka Charlie | |
| 1963 | Gidget Goes to Rome | Albertina Blythe | |
| 1965 | The Man from U.N.C.L.E. | Madame Olga Nemirovitch | Episode: "The Adriatic Express Affair" |
| 1970 | Airport | Mrs. Harriet DuBarry Mossman | |
| 1971 | Columbo | Mrs. Chadwick | Episode: "Lady in Waiting" |
References [edit]
- ^ a b c Nissen, Axel (2006). Actresses of a Certain Character: Forty Familiar Hollywood Faces from the Thirties to the Fifties. McFarland. p. 95. ISBN 0-7864-2746-9.
- ^
Ancestry.com Source Citation
Year: 1900
Census Place: Chicago Ward 4, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 248; Page: 16A
Enumeration District: 0096; FHL microfilm: 1240248
Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.
Original data: United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Twelfth Census of the United States, 1900. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1900. T623, 1854 rolls. - ^ The New York Times Biographical Service 3. New York Times & Arno Press. 1972. p. 353.
- ^ Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com. Year: 1900; Census Place: Chicago Ward 4, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 248; Page: 16A; Enumeration District: 96; FHL microfilm: 1240248.
- ^ "US Army Officers 1939-1945". Retrieved February 22, 2011.
External links [edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jessie Royce Landis |
- Jessie Royce Landis at the Internet Broadway Database
- Jessie Royce Landis at the Internet Movie Database
- Jessie Royce Landis at the TCM Movie Database
- Jessie Royce Landis at Find a Grave
- Jessie Royce Landis from Great Character Actors
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