Percy Haswell (April 30, 1871 – June 24, 1945), frequently billed as Miss Percy Haswell or Mrs. George Fawcett to clarify her gender, was an American stage and film actress. Percy Haswell 1

Percy Haswell was born in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

, the daughter of George Tyler Haswell, a politician and businessman, and Caroline Dalton.John Parker, ed., ''Who's Who in the Theatre'', 3rd Ed., London: Isaac Pitman & Sons, 1916, vol. 3, p. 293 She was educated in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, and while still a child she first appeared on the stage in March 1885. She appeared with the Lafayette Square Theatre in Washington and acted in New York City at

Augustin Daly John Augustin Daly (July 20, 1838June 7, 1899) was one of the most influential men in American theatre during his lifetime. Drama critic, theatre manager, playwright, and adapter, he became the first recognized stage director in America. He exer ...

's Theatre. Her stage career also included appearances in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, Buffalo,

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

and other locales, as well as New York, where she first appeared on

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 ...

in 1898, returning periodically through 1932. On June 2, 1895, at

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the List of cities by population in New England, fifth-most populous ...

, she married fellow actor

George Fawcett George Fawcett (August 25, 1860 – June 6, 1939) was an American stage and film actor of the silent era. Biography Born in Alexandria, Virginia, in 1860, Fawcett graduated from the University of Virginia. His initial inclination was to ...

. In 1901 at Baltimore she formed the Percy Haswell Stock Company but later took a secondary role to her husband, her company forming a constituent part of the George Fawcett Stock Company.Fulton Oursler, ''Behold this dreamer!: An autobiography'', Little Brown, 1964, pp. 39-40 For August of 1903, Haswell performed as the leading lady at Denver's

Elitch Theatre The Historic Elitch Theatre is located at the original Elitch Gardens site in northwest Denver, Colorado. Opened in 1890, it was centerpiece of the park that was the first zoo west of Chicago. The theatre was Denver's first professional theatre ...

in four weekly productions with leading man,

Robert Drouet Robert Drouet (March 27, 1870 – August 17, 1914) was an American actor and playwright. Robert Drouet (probably a stage name), was born in Clinton, Iowa. He married Mildred Loring, daughter of M. A. Loring, October 1897, and died in New Y ...

. In 1925, she directed the Broadway play, ''The Complex''. She also appeared in two

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...

s in 1919 and one in 1929.Evelyn Mack Truitt, ''Who Was Who on Screen'', 2nd ed., Bowker, 1977, p. 203 She died at age 74 in

Nantucket, Massachusetts Nantucket () is an island about south from Cape Cod. Together with the small islands of Tuckernuck and Muskeget, it constitutes the Town and County of Nantucket, a combined county/town government that is part of the U.S. state of Massachuse ...

, on June 14. 1945, the mother of one daughter.''

The Billboard The Billboard () is a massive granite monolith in the Sarnoff Mountains of the Ford Ranges of Marie Byrd Land, West Antarctica, standing just west of Mount Rea between Arthur Glacier and Boyd Glacier. It was discovered in November 1934 by a Secon ...

'', 23 Jun2 1945, p. 36 Writer

Fulton Oursler Charles Fulton Oursler (January 22, 1893 – May 24, 1952) was an American journalist, playwright, editor and writer. Writing as Anthony Abbot, he was an author of mysteries and detective fiction. His son was the journalist and author Will Ou ...

commented, in describing his infatuation with her, that she was "so blonde, so blue-eyed, with voice so throaty sweet. She was a lass from Austin, Texas, but to me she seemed to belong to some other world altogether. She was my first Rosalind, and Juliet, and Ophelia, and a dozen other heroines, sacred and profane."

References

External links

* *
1899 portrait; Percy HaswellPercy Haswell: ''North American Theatre Online''
(AlexanderStreet.com) {{DEFAULTSORT:Haswell, Percy 1871 births 1945 deaths 19th-century American actresses American stage actresses 20th-century American actresses American film actresses American silent film actresses