Queenie Vassar (born Cecilia McMahon, 28 October 1870 – 11 September 1960) was a Scottish-born actress on stage and in films.

Early life

Queenie Vassar was born Cecilia McMahon in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

. She was performing from childhood, and moved to the United States at age 13 as the protegee of impresario

Tony Pastor Antonio Pastor (May 28, 1837 – August 26, 1908) was an American impresario, variety performer and theatre owner who became one of the founding forces behind American vaudeville in the mid- to late-nineteenth century. He was sometimes referr ...

."Former Stage Star, Queenie Vassar, 89, Dies"
''Los Angeles Times'' (September 13, 1960): B3. via

Newspapers.com Ancestry.com LLC is an American genealogy company based in Lehi, Utah. The largest for-profit genealogy company in the world, it operates a network of genealogical, historical records, and related genetic genealogy websites. In November 2018, ...

Career

Vassar appeared on the Broadway stage in shows including ''The Passing Show'' (1894), ''Sister Mary'' (1900), ''Belle of Bridgeport'' (1900), ''The Ladies Paradise'' (1901), ''The Toreador'' (1902), ''The Slim Princess'' (1911), ''The Lady of the Slipper'' (1912-1913), ''The Girl from Utah'' (1914-1915). Vassar's photo was used on cigarette cards and candy boxes, and in advertisements. She claimed to have been the first actress to ride a bicycle on the Broadway stage.Frederick C. Othman
"Miss Vassar's Legs were First Used in Ads"
''Milwaukee Journal'' (December 6, 1939): 21. Vassar emerged from retirement in 1939 to play older women in three films of the 1940s: '' Primrose Path'' (1940), ''

Lady in a Jam ''Lady in a Jam'' is a 1942 film comedy directed by Gregory La Cava and starring Irene Dunne, Patric Knowles, Ralph Bellamy, and Eugene Pallette. It was made and distributed by Universal Pictures. The film's sets were designed by the art director ...

'' (1942), '' None but the Lonely Heart'' (1944). Her work as

Ginger Rogers Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starri ...

's grandmother in ''Primrose Path'' is considered by one film scholar "one of the most stunningly naturalistic performances by any character actress on record... a wicked joy to behold."Axel Nissen
''Mothers, Mammies and Old Maids: Twenty-Five Character Actresses of Golden Age Hollywood''
(McFarland 2012): 185-186.

Personal life

Queenie Vassar married three times. She married first to comedian Harry A. Kernell in 1887, when she was seventeen; she was widowed in 1893, with two young sons, Harry and William. She married again in 1893, to William Lynch; they had a daughter and divorced in 1900. Her third and longest marriage was to

Joseph Cawthorn Joseph Bridger Cawthorn (March 29, 1868 – January 21, 1949) was an American stage and film comic actor. Biography Born on March 29, 1868, in New York City to a minstrel-show family, Cawthorn started out in show business as a child, debu ...

, a fellow actor, beginning in 1902. She was widowed in 1949, and died in 1960, aged 89 years. Her gravesite is in the Hollywood Forever cemetery."Queenie Vassar, 89, Dies: Musical Comedy Star of the Nineties, Seen in Films" ''New York Times'' (September 13, 1960): 37. via ProQuest

References

External links

*
Queenie Vassar's listing at IBDB.

A cigarette card featuring Queenie Vassar
in the collection of the Wisconsin Historical Society.
Another cigarette card featuring Queenie Vassar
in the George Arents Collection, New York Public Library Digital Collections. {{authority control
Queen Vassar's gravesite, on Find a Grave.
1870 births 1960 deaths Scottish actresses