Helen Avis Drexel (November 19, 1911 – November 20, 1974) was an American

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, wh ...

actress and heiress. She rose to prominence through her appearance in the

John Berendt John Berendt (born December 5, 1939) is an American author, known for writing the best-selling non-fiction book ''Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil'', which was a finalist for the 1995 Pulitzer Prize in General Nonfiction. Biography Ber ...

non-fictional novel ''

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil ''Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil'' is a non-fiction novel by John Berendt. The book, Berendt's first, was published in 1994 and follows the story of an antiques dealer on trial for the murder of a male prostitute. Subtitled ''A Savannah S ...

'' (1994), in which she was a composite character named Serena Dawes.

Life and career

Helen Avis Howard was born on November 19, 1911, in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, the only child of Clinton Chappell Howard and Belle Allen Barber. She attended Washington Seminary in Atlanta and the

Finch School Finch College was an undergraduate women's college in Manhattan, New York City. The Finch School opened as a private secondary school for girls in 1900 and became a liberal arts college in 1952. It closed in 1976. Founding Finch was founded in 1 ...

in New York City. On August 19, 1933, Howard married Anthony Joseph Drexel III, son of Anthony Joseph Drexel II, whom she met in

Nassau, Bahamas Nassau ( ) is the capital and largest city of the Bahamas. With a population of 274,400 as of 2016, or just over 70% of the entire population of the Bahamas, Nassau is commonly defined as a primate city, dwarfing all other towns in the country. ...

. He died on January 14, 1948, at his Wappaoola Plantation, in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

, after a souvenir pistol accidentally discharged. He was struck in an artery in his right shoulder. He was 34. The couple had three children: Anthony J. Drexel IV (1934–2020), Clinton Howard Drexel and Helen Diana Drexel. Anthony IV went on to become a major in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

. He gave his sister away in her marriage to Gerald Raibourn in 1961. Their brother was an usher. Anthony IV died in 2020, aged 85. In 1964, Drexel moved to Savannah, where she spent the rest of her life. She was often seen having a drink at

The Olde Pink House The Olde Pink House (also known as The Pink House and, formerly, Habersham House) is a restaurant and tavern in Savannah, Georgia, United States. Located on Abercorn Street, in the northwestern trust lot of Reynolds Square, the building dates f ...

, and lived at 17 West Gordon Street in

Monterey Square Monterey Square is one of the 22 squares of Savannah, Georgia, United States. It is located in the southernmost row of the city's five rows of squares, on Bull Street and Wayne Street, and was laid out in 1847. It is south of Madison Square, wes ...

, adjacent to Jim Williams' Mercer House.

Cecil Beaton Sir Cecil Walter Hardy Beaton, (14 January 1904 – 18 January 1980) was a British fashion, portrait and war photographer, diarist, painter, and interior designer, as well as an Oscar–winning stage and costume designer for films and the theat ...

called Drexel "one of the most perfect natural beauties I've ever photographed."

''Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil''

In 1994, John Berendt included a composite version of Drexel, whom he named Serena Dawes, in his cast of characters in his bestselling non-fiction novel ''Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.'' Berendt's interactions with her were fictitious, however, as she died over a decade before he moved to Savannah.

Dorothy Loudon Dorothy Loudon (September 17, 1925 – November 15, 2003) was an American actress and singer. She won the Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a Musical in 1977 for her performance as Miss Hannigan in ''Annie''. Loudon was also nominated for To ...

portrayed her in

Clint Eastwood Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western TV series '' Rawhide'', he rose to international fame with his role as the "Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's "''Doll ...

's 1997

film adaptation A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dial ...

. (Prentiss Crowe's lines about Danny Hansford being "a good time not yet had by all" were instead spoken by Dawes in the film.)

Death

Drexel died on November 20, 1974, aged 63. She is buried beside her husband in Bluffton Cemetery,

Bluffton, South Carolina Bluffton is a town in southern Beaufort County, South Carolina, Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. The population as of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census was 27,716, an increase of over 120% since 2010, making it one of the fa ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Drexel, Helen Avis 1911 births 1974 deaths Actresses from Atlanta