Donna Damerel (July 8, 1912 – February 15, 1941) was an American actress.

Early years

Damerel was born on July 8, 1912, in Chicago, the daughter of vaudeville performers George Damerel and Myrtle Vail Damerel. She had one brother. When she was 15, she left home to join the chorus of a musical comedy. Later she joined her parents' vaudeville team.

Career

After vaudeville's decline ended the Damerels' performing team, the family lived comfortably until "our savings were wiped out, and we were destitute." Damerel and her mother began to work on radio. They debuted the '' Myrt and Marge'' radio program in Chicago on November 2, 1931, with Damerel portraying the daughter, Marge, and Vail portraying the mother, Myrt. A 1932 poll conducted by a radio magazine named Damerel radio's "it girl". The recognition included looks, microphone personality, and voice as 15,704 listeners participated in the survey. Damerel and Vail also starred in the

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a t ...

film '' Myrt and Marge'' (1933), which was based on the radio program. In 1938,they performed in ''Yes, My Darling Daughter'' in

Yonkers, New York Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City and Buffalo. The population of Yonkers was 211,569 as enu ...

, at the Warburton Theatre.

Personal life and death

Damerel was divorced from singer William J. Kretsinger on December 22, 1939. At the time of her death She was married to Peter J. Fick. She had two sons by previous marriages. One of her sons was director and screenwriter

Charles B. Griffith Charles Byron Griffith (September 23, 1930 – September 28, 2007) was an American screenwriter, actor and film director, son of Donna Dameral, radio star of ''Myrt and Marge'', along with Charles' grandmother, Myrtle Vail, and was best known ...

. She died on February 15, 1941, shortly after giving birth to a son in

Englewood Hospital Englewood Health is an acute care 289-bed teaching hospital in Englewood, New Jersey. In 2021 it was given a grade A by the Leapfrog patient safety organization. History It was incorporated in 1888 as a "non-profit, non-sectarian voluntary health ...

Englewood, New Jersey Englewood is a city in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, which at the 2020 United States census had a population of 29,308. Englewood was incorporated as a city by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from por ...

. She was 28 years old. The baby survived. Doctors said that her health appeared to be good when she entered the hospital.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Damerel, Donna 1912 births 1941 deaths 20th-century American actresses Actresses from Chicago American child actresses American film actresses American radio actresses American stage actresses Broadway theatre people Deaths in childbirth Vaudeville performers