Edith Wynne Matthison (November 23, 1875 – September 23, 1955) was an

Anglo-American Anglo-Americans are people who are English-speaking inhabitants of Anglo-America. It typically refers to the nations and ethnic groups in the Americas that speak English as a native language, making up the majority of people in the world who spe ...

stage actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), lite ...

who also appeared in two silent films.

Biography

She was born on November 23, 1875, in England, the daughter of Kate Wynne Matthison and Henry Matthison. Her aunt was Welsh singer Sarah Edith Wynne. Matthison was educated in King Edward's Grammar School and Midland Institute, England, and began at age 21 to appear in musical comedy, later joining

Ben Greet Sir Philip Barling Greet (24 September 1857 – 17 May 1936), known professionally as Ben Greet, was a Shakespearean actor, director, impresario and actor-manager. Early life The younger son of Captain William Greet RN and his wife, Sarah Ba ...

's company, playing leading parts in ''The Three Musketeers'' and ''Money''. She specialized in Shakespeare and classic drama almost from the start of her career. She was acting in the same play, ''

The Merchant of Venice ''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although classified as ...

'', with Sir

Henry Irving Sir Henry Irving (6 February 1838 – 13 October 1905), christened John Henry Brodribb, sometimes known as J. H. Irving, was an English stage actor in the Victorian era, known as an actor-manager because he took complete responsibility ( ...

the night he died. Irving nearly died in Matthison's arms. She appeared in Greek and mystery plays, old English comedies, and modern plays. In the United States in 1904 she appeared in Goldsmith's ''

She Stoops to Conquer ''She Stoops to Conquer'' is a comedy by Oliver Goldsmith, first performed in London in 1773. The play is a favourite for study by English literature and theatre classes in the English-speaking world. It is one of the few plays from the 18th ...

''. Matthison married the playwright

Charles Rann Kennedy Charles Rann Kennedy (1808 – 17 December 1867) was an English lawyer and classicist, best remembered for his involvement in the Swinfen will case and the issues of contingency fee agreements and legal ethics that it involved. Life Kennedy ...

in 1898, acted in many of his plays, and advised him during their development. A happy couple who enjoyed a long marriage of 50 years, they had no children. They both taught at Bennett Junior College in

Millbrook, New York Millbrook is a village in Dutchess County, New York, United States. Millbrook is located in the Hudson Valley, on the east side of the Hudson River, north of New York City. Millbrook is near the center of the town of Washington, of which it is a ...

. At one time her niece, Gladys Edith Wynne, was married to the stage and silent film star

Milton Sills Milton George Gustavus Sills (January 12, 1882 – September 15, 1930) was an American stage and film actor of the early twentieth century. Biography Sills was born in Chicago, Illinois, into a wealthy family. He was the son of William Henr ...

. Matthison died of a stroke in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

on September 23, 1955.Edith Wynne Matthison
page at ''North American Theatre Online''

Filmography

References

External links

* *
Portraits of Matthison in the Digital Gallery
Billy Rose Theatre Division,

New York Public Library for the Performing Arts The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center, at 40 Lincoln Center Plaza, is located in Manhattan, New York City, at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on the Upper West Side, between the Metro ...

selected portraits of Edith Wynne Matthison
Wayback Machine)
Edith Wynne Matthison
at ''North American Theatre Online'' *
Press Photo 1919
{{DEFAULTSORT:Matthison, Edith Wynne 1875 births 1955 deaths 19th-century British actresses 20th-century British actresses British emigrants to the United States British stage actresses People from Birmingham, West Midlands