Leueen MacGrath (3 July 1914 – 27 March 1992) was an English
actress
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), 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 ...
and
playwright
A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays.
Etymology
The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...
and the second wife of
George S. Kaufman,
from 1949 until their
divorce
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
in 1957.
Early years
Born in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, MacGrath was a graduate of the
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Sen ...
.
Career
MacGrath (pronounced mac-GRAW) began her acting career with a small role in the 1936 British film ''Whom the Gods Love'', a
biopic
A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docudra ...
about
Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...
and his wife Constanze. She followed this with ''
Pygmalion
Pygmalion or Pigmalion may refer to:
Mythology
* Pygmalion (mythology), a sculptor who fell in love with his statue
Stage
* ''Pigmalion'' (opera), a 1745 opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau
* ''Pygmalion'' (Rousseau), a 1762 melodrama by Jean-Jacques ...
'' and a series of
B-movie
A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double featur ...
s, including ''All Hands'', ''Meet Maxwell Archer'', and ''
The Saint's Vacation
''The Saint's Vacation'' is a 1941 adventure film produced by the British arm of RKO Pictures. The film stars Hugh Sinclair as Simon Templar, also known as "The Saint", a world-roving crimefighter who walks the fine edge of the law. This was th ...
''.
MacGrath made her
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
debut in 1948 in the play ''
Edward, My Son
''Edward, My Son'' is a 1949 British drama film directed by George Cukor for MGM-British Studios that stars Spencer Tracy and Deborah Kerr. The screenplay by Donald Ogden Stewart is based on the 1947 play of the same title by Noel Langley and Ro ...
'' (1948);
[ she reprised her role (which she also had in the play's London production) in the film adaptation the following year. During this time she began a relationship with playwright and director George S. Kaufman. They married on 26 May 1949. Kaufman directed her in ]Jean Giraudoux
Hippolyte Jean Giraudoux (; 29 October 1882 – 31 January 1944) was a French novelist, essayist, diplomat and playwright. He is considered among the most important French dramatists of the period between World War I and World War II.
His work ...
's The Enchanted at the Lyceum, which closed after 45 performances.[.] In 1951 she collaborated with Kaufman and Heywood Hale Broun
Heywood Hale Broun (; March 10, 1918 – September 5, 2001) was an American author, sportswriter, commentator and actor. He was born and reared in New York City, the son of writer and activist Ruth Hale and newspaper columnist Heywood Broun.
...
on the writing of ''The Small Hours'', which closed after 20 performances. The following year she and her husband scripted the even less successful play about reincarnation, ''Fancy Meeting You Again'' in which she starred with a young Walter Matthau
Walter Matthau (; born Walter John Matthow; October 1, 1920 – July 1, 2000) was an American actor, comedian and film director.
He is best known for his film roles in '' A Face in the Crowd'' (1957), ''King Creole'' (1958) and as a coach of a ...
and which ran for only 8 performances. The couple finally achieved a hit in 1955 with '' Silk Stockings'', the Cole Porter
Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film.
Born to ...
musical
Musical is the adjective of music.
Musical may also refer to:
* Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance
* Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...
for which they co-wrote the book with Abe Burrows
Abe Burrows (born Abram Solman Borowitz; December 18, 1910 – May 17, 1985) was an American humorist, author, and director for radio and the stage. He won a Tony Award and was selected for two Pulitzer Prizes, only one of which was awarded.
Ear ...
. She returned to acting for Giraudoux's ''Tiger at the Gates
''The Trojan War Will Not Take Place'' (french: La guerre de Troie n'aura pas lieu) is a play written in 1935 by French dramatist Jean Giraudoux. In 1955 it was translated into English by Christopher Fry with the title ''Tiger at the Gates''. The ...
'' and ''The Potting Shed
''The Potting Shed'' is a 1957 play by Graham Greene in three acts. The psychological drama centers on a secret held by the Callifer family for nearly thirty years.
The patriarch of the family is dying and James, his estranged son, appears une ...
''.
Having settled in the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
following her marriage to Kaufman, MacGrath appeared in a number of American anthology
In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors.
In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...
television series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...
popular in the 1950s, including ''The Philco Television Playhouse
''The Philco Television Playhouse'' is an American television anthology series that was broadcast live on NBC from 1948 to 1955. Produced by Fred Coe, the series was sponsored by Philco. It was one of the most respected dramatic shows of the Golde ...
'', '' Studio One'', ''Lux Video Theatre
''Lux Video Theatre'' is an American television anthology series that was produced from 1950 until 1957. The series presented both comedy and drama in original teleplays, as well as abridged adaptations of films and plays.
Overview
The ''Lux Vid ...
'', ''The United States Steel Hour
''The United States Steel Hour'' is an anthology series which brought hour long dramas to television from 1953 to 1963. The television series and the radio program that preceded it were both sponsored by the U.S. Steel, United States Steel Corpor ...
'', ''The Alcoa Hour
''The Alcoa Hour'' is an American anthology television series that was aired live on NBC from 1955 to 1957. The series was sponsored by Alcoa.
Overview
Like the ''Philco Television Playhouse'' and ''Goodyear Television Playhouse'' that had prec ...
'', and ''Hallmark Hall of Fame
''Hallmark Hall of Fame'', originally called ''Hallmark Television Playhouse'', is an anthology program on American television, sponsored by Hallmark Cards, a Kansas City-based greeting card company. The longest-running prime-time series in t ...
''.
Personal life
MacGrath married Kaufman on 26 May 1949, at Kaufman's home in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.[
]
Death
On 27 March 1992, MacGrath died of complications from a stroke
A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...
at her home in London at the age of 77. She was survived by a sister and a stepdaughter.
Filmography
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macgrath, Leueen
1914 births
1992 deaths
British stage actresses
British film actresses
British television actresses
British women dramatists and playwrights
Actresses from London
20th-century British actresses
20th-century British dramatists and playwrights
Writers from London
20th-century British women writers
20th-century English women
20th-century English people