: ''For the American activist and former

Hadassah Hadassah () means myrtle in Hebrew. It is given as the Hebrew name of Esther in the Hebrew Bible. Hadassah may also refer to: * Hadassah (dancer) (1909–1992), Jerusalem-born American dancer and choreographer * Hadassah Lieberman (born 1948) ...

leader, see

June Walker (Hadassah) June Walker (June 19, 1934 – July 29, 2008) was the Chairperson of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, and a member of AIPAC's Executive Committee. Until July 2007, she was the national president of Hadassah. ...

'' June Walker (June 14, 1900 – February 3, 1966) was an American stage and film actress.

Early years

Walker was born in New York City on June 14, 1900, and was orphaned when she was 14. She worked as a millinery clerk before becoming an actress.

Stage career

Walker performed as a member of the chorus of a Globe Theater production of '' Hitchy-Koo'' when she was 16 years old. She appeared on Broadway in such plays as ''

Green Grow the Lilacs Green Grow the Lilacs is a folk song of Irish origin that was popular in the United States during the mid-19th century. The song title is the source of a folk etymology for the word '' gringo'' that states that the Mexicans misheard U.S. troops si ...

'', ''

The Farmer Takes a Wife ''The Farmer Takes a Wife'' is a 1934 play by Frank B. Elser and Marc Connelly based on the 1929 novel '' Rome Haul'' by Walter D. Edmonds. It was well-received upon its opening night on Broadway on October 30, 1934, at the 46th Street Theatre ...

'', and '' Twelfth Night''. She was the first actress to portray the character of Lorelei Lee, in the 1926 Broadway production of '' Gentlemen Prefer Blondes''. Her obituary in '' The New York Times'' said the role "was as much her creation as that of Anita Loos who wrote the book that became the comedy ..." The success of the play launched Walker's career, and she had further Broadway successes. She played Linda Loman to Thomas Mitchell's Willy in the 1949 touring company of '' Death of a Salesman''. She toured as Vinnie in '' Life with Father''

Film career

Walker acted in silent films for

Essanay Studios The Essanay Film Manufacturing Company was an early American motion picture studio. The studio was founded in 1907 in Chicago, and later developed an additional film lot in Niles Canyon, California. Its various stars included Francis X. Bushman, ...

and in sound films, including ''A Child Is Waiting'', ''Through Different Eyes'', ''The Unforgiven'', and ''War Nurse''.

Personal life

In 1926, she married British actor

Geoffrey Kerr Geoffrey Kerr (born Geoffrey Kemble Grinham Keen; 26 January 1895 – 1 July 1971) was a British stage and film actor and writer during the middle of the 20th century. Early life Geoffrey Kemble Grinham Keen was born on 26 January 1895, in Lond ...

. The couple divorced in 1943; their son was actor John Kerr. She appeared with her son in a 1954 episode of NBC's '' Justice''. It was his first acting engagement.

Death

On February 3, 1966, aged 65, Walker died of undisclosed causes at her son's home in Los Angeles. She was interred in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles.

Filmography

References

External links

* * * 1900 births 1966 deaths American stage actresses American film actresses American television actresses Actresses from Chicago Burials at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American singers {{US-screen-actor-1900s-stub