Margaret Helen Stevenson (February 8, 1912 – January 2, 2011) was an American film, stage and radio actress, known for her role as

Margo Lane Margo Lane is a fictional character in ''The Shadow'' stories. Margo is a friend and companion to Lamont Cranston, and an agent for his alter ego, The Shadow, in the wealthy set. Her first appearance was in 1937 in ''The Shadow'' radio drama. ...

in the radio adaptation of ''

The Shadow The Shadow is a fictional character created by magazine publishers Street & Smith and writer Walter B. Gibson. Originally created to be a mysterious radio show narrator, and developed into a distinct literary character in 1931 by writer Walter ...

'', opposite

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...

in 1938.

Early life

She was born in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

on February 8, 1912, the daughter of

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

-born actor Charles Alexander Stevenson, who was 60 years old when she was born, and his second wife Frances Riley, who was 22 years old at the time. She graduated from

Brearley School The Brearley School is an all-girls private school in New York City, located on the Upper East Side neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan. The school is divided into lower (kindergarten – grade 4), middle (grades 5–8) and upper (grades 9– ...

in Manhattan. Stevenson was about to enroll at

Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh: ) is a women's liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Founded as a Quaker institution in 1885, Bryn Mawr is one of the Seven Sister colleges, a group of elite, historically women's colleges in the United St ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, when the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

began. She decided to pursue acting to earn an income instead of attending Bryn Mawr.

Career

Stevenson made her Broadway debut in ''

The Firebird ''The Firebird'' (french: L'Oiseau de feu, link=no; russian: Жар-птица, Zhar-ptitsa, link=no) is a ballet and orchestral concert work by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. It was written for the 1910 Paris season of Sergei Diaghilev's ...

'' in 1932. Her other Broadway credits included ''The Royal Family'' (1975), ''Hostile Witness'' (1966), ''One by One'' (1964), ''Big Fish, Little Fish'' (1961), ''Triple Play'' (1959), ''The Young and Beautiful'' (1955), ''The Leading Lady'' (1948), ''The Rugged Path'' (1945), ''Little Women'' (1944), ''Golden Wings'' (1941), ''You Can't Take It With You'' (1936), ''Stage Door'' (1936), ''Call It a Day'' (1936), ''Truly Valiant'' (1936), ''Symphony'' (1935), ''The Barretts of Wimpole Street'' (1935), ''A Party'' (1933), and ''Evensong'' (1933). She also acted in a West End production of ''The Seven Year Itch'' in London in the 1950s in addition to performing frequently in

summer stock theatre In American theater, summer-stock theater is a theater that presents stage productions only in the summer. The name combines the season with the tradition of staging shows by a resident company, reusing stock scenery and costumes. Summer stock the ...

and regional theater in the United States. In addition to her work on ''The Shadow'', Stevenson acted on ''

Aunt Jenny's Real Life Stories ''Aunt Jenny's Real Life Stories'' is a 15-minute radio drama that aired January 18, 1937, to November 16, 1956, on CBS, sponsored by Spry shortening. The program was heard weekdays at 11:45 a.m. until 1946, when it moved to 12:15 p.m. ...

'' on

old-time radio The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the early ...

. She also acted on television and for more than a decade did TV commercials.

Personal life

Her second husband,

Val Avery Val may refer to: Val-a Film * ''Val'' (film), an American documentary about Val Kilmer, directed by Leo Scott and Ting Poo Military equipment * Aichi D3A, a Japanese World War II dive bomber codenamed "Val" by the Allies * AS Val, a Sov ...

, whom she married in 1953, died on December 12, 2009 at age eighty-five. By the late 1990s, Stevenson was blind as a result of

macular degeneration Macular degeneration, also known as age-related macular degeneration (AMD or ARMD), is a medical condition which may result in blurred or no vision in the center of the visual field. Early on there are often no symptoms. Over time, however, som ...

Death

She died at her home in Manhattan on January 2, 2011 at age 98. Her ashes were given to her daughter, actress Margot Avery.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stevenson, Margot 1912 births 2011 deaths American stage actresses American radio actresses People from Manhattan 20th-century American actresses Actresses from New York City Brearley School alumni American film actresses 21st-century American women