Hazel Dawn
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Hazel Dawn (born Henrietta Hazel Tout; March 23, 1890 – August 28, 1988) was an American stage, film and television actress, and
violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...
ist. She was born to a
Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...
family in Utah, and studied music in Europe where her father was a missionary. Dawn rose to fame as a stage actress in
Ivan Caryll Félix Marie Henri Tilkin (12 May 1861 – 29 November 1921), better known by his pen name Ivan Caryll, was a Belgian-born composer of operettas and Edwardian musical comedies in the English language, who made his career in London and later ...
's 1911 Broadway production of '' The Pink Lady'', which ran for over 300 performances and earned Dawn the eponymous nickname. She performed extensively on Broadway and began work in film in 1914, appearing in a total of 13 feature films. Dawn died at age 98 in New York City.


Early life

Dawn was born Henrietta Hazel Tout in
Ogden, Utah Ogden is a city in and the county seat of Weber County, Utah, United States, approximately east of the Great Salt Lake and north of Salt Lake City. The population was 87,321 in 2020, according to the US Census Bureau, making it Utah's eighth ...
, in 1890. She went to Wales with her family at the age of eight when her father served as a Mormon missionary there. Dawn studied violin and voice in London, Paris, and Munich. She especially was impressed by the attentiveness of teachers she studied under in Paris. Her sister, Nancy Tout, was an opera singer who sang with the Opera Comique in Paris.


Career


Stage work

She met producer
Ivan Caryll Félix Marie Henri Tilkin (12 May 1861 – 29 November 1921), better known by his pen name Ivan Caryll, was a Belgian-born composer of operettas and Edwardian musical comedies in the English language, who made his career in London and later ...
at a party in London. Caryll suggested the name Hazel Dawn, considering Tout to be "impossible." Dawn met composer Paul Rubens who offered her a part in ''
Dear Little Denmark Dear(s) or The Dears may refer to: Organizations * Duearity – a Swedish medtech company which trades on Nasdaq First North under ticker symbol DEAR. Manga * ''Dear'' (manga), a 2002–2007 Japanese manga series by Cocoa Fujiwara * ''DearS'', ...
'' at the
Prince of Wales Theatre The Prince of Wales Theatre is a West End theatre in Coventry Street, near Leicester Square in London. It was established in 1884 and rebuilt in 1937, and extensively refurbished in 2004 by Sir Cameron Mackintosh, its current owner. The theatre ...
(1909), where she made her theatrical début. She then starred in ''
The Balkan Princess ''The Balkan Princess'' is a musical theater, musical in three acts by Frederick Lonsdale and Frank Curzon, with lyrics by Paul Rubens (composer), Paul Rubens and Arthur Wimperis, and music by Paul Rubens (composer), Paul Rubens. It opened at Lond ...
'' in 1910 as Olga. She achieved a great success with her performance in
Ivan Caryll Félix Marie Henri Tilkin (12 May 1861 – 29 November 1921), better known by his pen name Ivan Caryll, was a Belgian-born composer of operettas and Edwardian musical comedies in the English language, who made his career in London and later ...
's '' The Pink Lady'' (1911). The show ran a total of 316 performances on Broadway and then toured, making Dawn famous, even though she was not the leading lady. In the production, she introduced ''My Beautiful Lady'', which she sang and played on her violin. Subsequently she was known as "The Pink Lady" and the
cocktail A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink. Most commonly, cocktails are either a combination of spirits, or one or more spirits mixed with other ingredients such as tonic water, fruit juice, flavored syrup, or cream. Cocktails vary widely across ...
may have been named for her. ''The Little Cafe'' (1913) was produced by the
New Amsterdam Theatre The New Amsterdam Theatre is a Broadway theater on 214 West 42nd Street, at the southern end of Times Square, in the Theater District of Manhattan in New York City. One of the oldest surviving Broadway venues, the New Amsterdam was built from ...
and adapted from a book by C.M.S. McLellan. One reviewer found the play lacking when compared to ''The Pink Lady'', but he enjoyed the song ''Just Because It's You''. Dawn performed it in the third act. He wrote: "Dawn was radiantly beautiful and sang far better than did other members of the cast." The Little Cafe was a place in Paris where large crowds assembled to admire the renowned beauty of the owner's daughter. She starred in the
operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its s ...
''The Debutante'' (1914) at the National Theater in Washington, D.C. under the management of John C. Fisher. Harry B. Smith wrote the book and play adaptation. The setting of the operetta is in London and Paris, with Dawn's depicting a young American girl who is pursued by a nobleman, who desires her fortune. She plays the violin during a scene where she runs away to Paris and makes her musical debut before an appreciative audience. In December, she appeared in ''The Debutante'' at the Knickerbocker Theatre. The many shows she appeared in include ''The Great Temptations'', ''Getting Gertie's Garter'', and ''The Demi-Virgin'' as well as vaudeville. Her last appearance on Broadway was in ''Wonder Boy'' (1931). She emerged from retirement in June 1948 to appear on stage with her daughter Hazel Dawn Jr. in a revival of
Ruth Gordon Ruth Gordon Jones (October 30, 1896 – August 28, 1985) was an American actress, screenwriter, and playwright. She began her career performing on Broadway at age 19. Known for her nasal voice and distinctive personality, Gordon gained internati ...
’s play ''Years Ago ''at the Casino Theatre, Newport RI.


Transition to film

She made her screen debut as Kate Shipley in ''
One of Our Girls ''One of Our Girls'' is a lost 1914 silent film drama directed by Thomas N. Heffron and starring Hazel Dawn. It was adapted from the play of the same name by Bronson Howard and was produced by Famous Players Film Company and Daniel Frohman. Cas ...
'' (1914). Her association with
Famous Players-Lasky Famous Players-Lasky Corporation was an American motion picture and distribution company formed on June 28, 1916, from the merger of Adolph Zukor's Famous Players Film Company—originally formed by Zukor as Famous Players in Famous Plays—and ...
film company dated from this movie. Dawn followed this role with others in ''
Niobe In Greek mythology, Niobe (; grc-gre, Νιόβη ) was a daughter of Tantalus and of either Dione, the most frequently cited, or of Eurythemista or Euryanassa, the wife of Amphion and the sister of Pelops and Broteas. Her father was the ru ...
'' (1915), ''Clarissa'' (1915), and ''
The Masqueraders ''The Masqueraders'' is a 1928 novel written by Georgette Heyer. It is set in Britain at a time shortly after the 1745 Jacobite rising and is concerned with a family of adventurers and escaped Jacobites. Plot summary To escape exposure as a ...
'' (1915). ''Niobe'' is the screen version of a play written by Harry and Edward S. Paulton. She made ''
The Fatal Card ''The Fatal Card'' is a 1915 American drama silent film directed by James Kirkwood, Sr., adapted from the 1884 London play of the same name by Charles Haddon Chambers and B. C. Stephenson. The film stars John Mason, Hazel Dawn, Russell Bassett ...
'' (1915) with
Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
. In ''
My Lady Incog ''My Lady Incog'' is a 1916 American silent film produced by Famous Players Film Company and distributed by Paramount. It was directed by Sidney Olcott with Hazel Dawn in the leading role. Cast *Hazel Dawn - Nell Carroll * George Majeroni - ...
'' (1916), Dawn played a female detective in a movie that is a
mystery film A mystery film is a genre of film that revolves around the solution of a problem or a crime. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur Detective, sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of an issue by means ...
, comedy, and a romance. Playing the character Nell Carroll, she co-starred with George Majeroni. In ''
The Lone Wolf The Lone Wolf may refer to: * ''The Lone Wolf'', a 1914 novel by Louis Joseph Vance Louis Joseph Vance (September 19, 1879 – December 16, 1933) was an American novelist, screenwriter and film producer. He created the popular character M ...
'' (1917), she acts with
Bert Lytell Bertram Lytell (February 24, 1885 – September 28, 1954) was an American actor in theater and film during the silent film era and early talkies. He starred in romantic, melodrama, and adventure films. Background Born in New York City, Lyt ...
in an adaptation of a novel by
Louis Joseph Vance Louis Joseph Vance (September 19, 1879 – December 16, 1933) was an American novelist, screenwriter and film producer. He created the popular character Michael Lanyard, a criminal-turned-detective known as The Lone Wolf. Biography Louis J ...
. Producer
Herbert Brenon Herbert Brenon (born Alexander Herbert Reginald St. John Brenon; 13 January 1880 – 21 June 1958) was an Irish-born U.S. film director, actor and screenwriter during the era of silent films through the 1930s. Brenon was among the early film ...
was responsible for adaptation to film from the book. Her last film credit was ''
Devotion Devotion or Devotions may refer to: Religion * Faith, confidence or trust in a person, thing, or concept * Anglican devotions, private prayers and practices used by Anglican Christians * Buddhist devotion, commitment to religious observance * Cat ...
'' (1921).


Personal life

Dawn married Charles Edward Gruwell, a mining engineer from Montana, in 1927. At the time, Gruwell was purported to be one of the "richest men in the West." The couple had two children, Dawn Gruwell and Charles E. Gruwell. Her daughter had a career as an actor and singer on film, television and Broadway under the name Hazel Dawn Jr. Many public records confuse the two. Following Gruwell's death in 1941, Dawn worked in the casting department of J. Walter Thompson advertising agency. She retired in 1963. Dawn made a claim for $4,643 against the London Theatre Company, which filed for bankruptcy in August 1915. The company, which produced and staged plays, was located at 1476 Broadway. Dawn was once the mascot of both the U.S. Military Academy and the U.S. Naval Academy at one of their annual football games. At one point,
West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...
cadets tossed their hats onto the stage, one of them belonging to future U.S. President
Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...
.


Death

Hazel Dawn died at the home of her daughter in Manhattan in 1988 at age 98.


Legacy

Actress
Ruth Gordon Ruth Gordon Jones (October 30, 1896 – August 28, 1985) was an American actress, screenwriter, and playwright. She began her career performing on Broadway at age 19. Known for her nasal voice and distinctive personality, Gordon gained internati ...
cited Dawn as her own inspiration for becoming an actress. Gordon, who was five years younger, predeceased Dawn, dying in 1985. A 14-year-old Adele Astaire, sister of Fred, saw Dawn's performance in ''The Pink Lady'' and idolized her, thinking her to be "the most lovely, graceful creature" she had seen. In 1953, Dawn was portrayed by
Kay Williams Kathleen Gretchen "Kay" Williams Gable (August 7, 1916 – May 25, 1983) was an American actress. She appeared in numerous uncredited bit parts throughout the 1940s before playing Hazel Dawn in George Cukor's ''The Actress'' (1953). Career Will ...
in the film ''
The Actress ''The Actress'' is a 1953 American comedy-drama film based on Ruth Gordon's autobiographical play ''Years Ago''. Gordon herself wrote the screenplay. The film was directed by George Cukor and stars Jean Simmons, Spencer Tracy, and Teresa Wrigh ...
''.


Filmography


References


Works cited

* *


Further reading

* * * * * * * *


External links

* *
Hazel Dawn
photo gallery NY Public Library Billy Rose Collection {{DEFAULTSORT:Dawn, Hazel Latter Day Saints from Utah American musical theatre actresses American silent film actresses American stage actresses American television actresses People from Ogden, Utah Vaudeville performers 1890 births 1988 deaths 20th-century American actresses Actresses from Utah 20th-century American violinists Ziegfeld girls American expatriates in England American expatriates in Germany American expatriates in France 20th-century American women singers Latter Day Saints from New York (state) 20th-century American singers