Jane Winton (October 10, 1905 – September 22, 1959) was an American film actress, dancer, opera soprano, writer, and painter.

Early years

Winton was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1905. The deaths of her father when she was four years old and her mother when she was six led to Winton's being "swapped back and forth among relatives, none of whom had proper funds to support her and therefore offered her more resentment than affection." Eventually, an elderly doctor who was a family friend adopted her and raised her in a strict environment. After she graduated from a finishing school in Connecticut, she ran away rather than enter Bryn Mawr College and become a doctor, which was her guardian's desire for her. She went to stay with a friend in New York City and was discovered there by producers Adolph Zukor and Jesse Lasky.

Actress

During the 1920s, she began her stage career as a dancer with the

Ziegfeld Follies The ''Ziegfeld Follies'' was a series of elaborate theatrical revue productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 to 1931, with renewals in 1934 and 1936. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as ''The Ziegfeld Follies of the Ai ...

. After coming to the West Coast, Winton became known as "the green-eyed goddess of Hollywood". Her film appearances include roles in '' Tomorrow's Love'' (1925), '' Why Girls Go Back Home'' (1926), '' Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans'' (1927), ''The Crystal Cup'' (1927), '' The Fair Co-Ed'' (1927), ''

Burning Daylight ''Burning Daylight'' is a novel by Jack London, published in 1910, one of the best-selling books of that year and London's best-selling book in his lifetime. The novel has been adapted for film. Plot The first part of the novel takes place in ...

'' (1928), '' Melody of Love'' (1928), and '' The Patsy'' (1928), ''Scandal'' (1929), ''

Show Girl in Hollywood ''Showgirl in Hollywood'' is a 1930 American pre-Code all-talking musical film with Technicolor sequences, produced and distributed by First National Pictures, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. The film stars Alice White, Jack Mulhall and Blanche ...

'' (1929), ''The Furies'' (1930), and '' Hell's Angels'' (1930). Winton played Donna Isobel in ''

Don Juan Don Juan (), also known as Don Giovanni ( Italian), is a legendary, fictional Spanish libertine who devotes his life to seducing women. Famous versions of the story include a 17th-century play, ''El burlador de Sevilla y convidado de piedra'' ...

'' (1926). The film starred

John Barrymore John Barrymore (born John Sidney Blyth; February 14 or 15, 1882 – May 29, 1942) was an American actor on stage, screen and radio. A member of the Drew and Barrymore theatrical families, he initially tried to avoid the stage, and briefly att ...

and

Mary Astor Mary Astor (born Lucile Vasconcellos Langhanke; May 3, 1906 – September 25, 1987) was an American actress. Although her career spanned several decades, she may be best remembered for her performance as Brigid O'Shaughnessy in '' The Maltese ...

. The movie was billed as the first film made in

Vitaphone Vitaphone was a sound film system used for feature films and nearly 1,000 short subjects made by Warner Bros. and its sister studio First National from 1926 to 1931. Vitaphone was the last major analog sound-on-disc system and the only one ...

, an invention that synchronized sound with motion pictures. Modern sound pictures began with the Vitaphone.

Opera and radio

After leaving Hollywood, Winton performed various operatic roles both in the United States and abroad. Her operatic debut came in 1933 when she performed as Nedda in the Brooklyn Academy of Music's production of ''Pagliacci''. In 1933, she was with the National Grand Opera Company for its production of '' I Pagliacci''. She sang ''Nedda''. She starred in the operetta ''Caviar''. In England, she became noted for her singing and for working in radio.

Novelist

In 1951 Winton's novel ''Park Avenue Doctor'' was published. ''Passion Is the Gale'' was her second novel.

Marriage

Winton married three times. In 1927, she wed Hollywood screenwriter Charles Kenyon. On July 17, 1930, she married broker Horace Gumble in Jersey City, New Jersey. Her last husband was Michael T. Gottlieb, a stockbroker, tournament

contract bridge Contract bridge, or simply bridge, is a trick-taking card game using a standard 52-card deck. In its basic format, it is played by four players in two competing partnerships, with partners sitting opposite each other around a table. Millions ...

player, and Arizona property owner. They wed in 1935.

Death

Winton died in 1959 at the

Pierre Hotel The Pierre is a luxury hotel located at 2 East 61st Street, at the intersection of that street with Fifth Avenue, in Manhattan, New York City, facing Central Park. Designed by Schultze & Weaver, the hotel opened in 1930 with 100+ employees, ...

in New York City from undisclosed causes. Her body was cremated, and her ashes were interred in the Riesner-Gottlieb Mausoleum in Temple Israel Cemetery, Hastings-on-Hudson, New York.

Partial filmography

* '' Three Women'' (1924) * '' Tomorrow's Love'' (1925) * '' His Supreme Moment'' (1925) * '' The Love Toy'' (1926) * '' Why Girls Go Back Home'' (1926) * '' My Old Dutch'' (1926) * ''

Footloose Widows ''Footloose Widows'' is a 1926 silent film feature comedy produced and distributed by Warner Bros., directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring Louise Fazenda and Jacqueline Logan. A print is preserved in the Library of Congress collection. A 16mm ...

'' (1926) * ''

'' (1926) * '' The Honeymoon Express'' (1926) * ''

Across the Pacific ''Across the Pacific'' is a 1942 American spy film set on the eve of the entry of the United States into World War II. It was directed first by John Huston, then by Vincent Sherman after Huston joined the United States Army Signal Corps. It sta ...

'' (1926) * ''

The Gay Old Bird ''The Gay Old Bird'' is a 1927 American comedy film directed by Herman C. Raymaker and written by C. Graham Baker and Edward Clark. The film stars Louise Fazenda, John T. Murray, Jane Winton, William Demarest, John Steppling and Frances Ray ...

'' (1927) * '' Upstream'' (1927) * '' The Monkey Talks'' (1927) * ''

The Beloved Rogue ''The Beloved Rogue'' is a 1927 American silent romantic adventure film, loosely based on the life of the 15th century French poet, François Villon. The film was directed by Alan Crosland for United Artists. François Villon is played by J ...

'' (1927) * '' Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans'' (1927) * ''

Lonesome Ladies ''Lonesome Ladies'' is a 1927 American comedy film directed by Joseph Henabery and written by Winifred Dunn. The film stars Lewis Stone, Anna Q. Nilsson, Jane Winton, Doris Lloyd, Edward Martindel and Fritzi Ridgeway. The film was released on ...

'' (1927) * ''

Perch of the Devil ''Perch of the Devil'' is a 1927 American silent drama film directed by King Baggot and starring Mae Busch, Pat O'Malley, and Jane Winton. It is based on the 1914 novel of the same title by Gertrude Atherton. Plot As described in a film magazi ...

'' (1927) * '' The Fair Co-Ed'' (1927) * ''

The Poor Nut ''The Poor Nut'' is a 1927 American comedy film directed by Richard Wallace and written by Paul Schofield. It is based on the 1925 play ''The Poor Nut'' by J. C. Nugent and Elliott Nugent. The film stars Jack Mulhall, Charles Murray, Jean Art ...

'' (1927) * '' Bare Knees'' (1928) * ''

Honeymoon Flats ''Honeymoon Flats'' is a 1928 American silent comedy film directed by Millard Webb and starring George J. Lewis, Dorothy Gulliver and Kathlyn Williams.Munden p.361 Synopsis Disappointed that her daughter has not married into money, a mother at ...

'' (1928) * ''

Nothing to Wear ''Nothing to Wear'' is a lost 1928 American comedy film directed by Erle C. Kenton and starring Jacqueline Logan, Theodore von Eltz and Bryant Washburn.Monaco p.559 Cast * Jacqueline Logan as Jackie Standish * Theodore von Eltz as Phil Stannd ...

'' (1928) * ''

'' (1928) * '' The Patsy'' (1928) * '' Yellow Lily'' (1928) * '' Melody of Love'' (1928) * '' Captain Lash'' (1929) * ''

Scandal A scandal can be broadly defined as the strong social reactions of outrage, anger, or surprise, when accusations or rumours circulate or appear for some reason, regarding a person or persons who are perceived to have transgressed in some way. Th ...

'' (1929) * ''

The Bridge of San Luis Rey ''The Bridge of San Luis Rey'' is American author Thornton Wilder's second novel. It was first published in 1927 to worldwide acclaim. The novel won the Pulitzer Prize in 1928, and was the best-selling work of fiction that year. Premise ''The Bri ...

'' (1929) * ''

'' (1930) * '' A Notorious Affair'' (1930) * '' Hell's Angels'' (1930) * '' Hired Wife'' (1934) * '' Limelight'' (1936)

References

Obituary
''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', September 23, 1959, p. 35.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Winton Jane American film actresses American silent film actresses American sopranos American female dancers Dancers from Pennsylvania 19th-century American painters Actresses from Philadelphia 1905 births 1959 deaths 20th-century American actresses People from Katonah, New York 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American dancers 19th-century American women Ziegfeld girls