Edith King (1896– February 24, 1973) was an American stage and film actress.

Biography

Edith King was born Edith Keck, daughter of John Keck, in White Haven, Pennsylvania in 1896. She first visited a theater when she was 14, and decided then to pursue an acting career. She moved to New York City at a young age and promptly arranged a meeting with David Belasco, who gave her a part in his current play, ''Marie Odile''. In later life, King lived in

Kendall Park, New Jersey Kendall Park is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located within South Brunswick Township, in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States.

, where she owned a small gift shop while continuing her acting career. In 1972 King moved from Riviera Beach to

Daytona Beach Daytona Beach, or simply Daytona, is a coastal resort-city in east-central Florida. Located on the eastern edge of Volusia County near the Atlantic coastline, its population was 72,647 at the 2020 census. Daytona Beach is approximately nort ...

, where she died on February 24, 1973.

Career

King was known as a stage and film actress, with a career spanning over 50 years (from roughly 1916 to 1964). Before her stage career took off, she was an artist's model, working with Howard Chandler Christy for several of his paintings and illustrations. She appeared in theatrical productions such as ''Bab'' (playing the older sister of

Helen Hayes Helen Hayes MacArthur ( Brown; October 10, 1900 – March 17, 1993) was an American actress whose career spanned 80 years. She eventually received the nickname "First Lady of American Theatre" and was the second person and first woman to have w ...

's main character) and ''Thank You'', and films such as '' Saratoga''. She worked with Alfred Lunt and his wife in several productions, including '' The Seagull'' (as Polina) and '' The Taming of the Shrew'' (as the minor characters Curtis and the widow). She played Bianca in Paul Robeson's 1943 production of ''

Othello ''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cypru ...

'' before taking over the role of Emilia in 1944 (replacing Margaret Webster).

Filmography

References

External links

* Photographs of Edith King in her role as "Mrs. Smith" in ''Calcutta''br>with monkey
an
without monkey
from the J. Willis Sayre Collection of Theatrical Photographs * Photographs of Edith King by th
White Studio
an
Billy Rose
digitized by the

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress ...

*
Hot Water Is Beauty's Aid, Says Edith King
(Bismarck Tribune, 1922) * Edith King'
IMDb listing
{{DEFAULTSORT:King, Edith 1896 births 1973 deaths 20th-century American actresses People from Luzerne County, Pennsylvania People from South Brunswick, New Jersey People from Riviera Beach, Florida People from Daytona Beach, Florida 20th-century American women 20th-century American people