Kathleen Howard (July 27, 1884 – April 15, 1956) was a Canadian-born American opera singer,

magazine editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, orga ...

, and

character actress A character actor is a supporting actor who plays unusual, interesting, or eccentric characters.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014, "..a breed of actor who has the ability to be ...

from the mid-1930s through the 1940s.

Biography

Howard was born in Clifton Hill, Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada on July 27, 1884. In 1906, Howard began her career in opera in Germany. Following eight years of singing in Berlin, she performed concerts in Belgium, England, Germany, Holland, and Scandinavia. She arrived in America in 1913 and joined the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

in 1916. She remained a leading Met artist through 1928, taking major and secondary roles. Howard created the role of Zita in

Giacomo Puccini Giacomo Puccini (Lucca, 22 December 1858Bruxelles, 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he was descended from a long li ...

's ''

Gianni Schicchi () is a comic opera in one act by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Giovacchino Forzano, composed in 1917–18. The libretto is based on an incident mentioned in Dante's ''Divine Comedy''. The work is the third and final part of Puccin ...

'' at the

in 1918. Until

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Howard was part of the repertory system in the opera houses of Metz and Darmstadt. Beginning in 1918, for four years, Howard was the fashion editor of ''

Harper's Bazaar ''Harper's Bazaar'' is an American monthly women's fashion magazine. It was first published in New York City on November 2, 1867, as the weekly ''Harper's Bazar''. ''Harper's Bazaar'' is published by Hearst and considers itself to be the st ...

'' magazine and while in that post was also president of

Fashion Group International The Fashion Group International (FGI) is a global, non-profit, professional organization founded in 1930 in New York City to benefit the fashion industry. FGI currently has over 5000 members in the fashion industry including apparel, accessories, b ...

. She resigned to begin acting in films. Her film debut came in ''

Death Takes a Holiday ''Death Takes a Holiday'' is a 1934 American pre-Code romantic drama starring Fredric March, Evelyn Venable and Guy Standing. It is based on the 1924 Italian play ''La morte in vacanza'' by Alberto Casella (1891–1957), as adapted in English ...

'' (1934). She played Amelia, the nagging, shrewish wife of

W.C. Fields WC or wc may refer to: * Water closet or flush toilet Arts and entertainment * ''W.C.'' (film), an Irish feature film * WC (band), a Polish punk rock band * WC (rapper), a rapper from Los Angeles, California * Westside Connection, former hi ...

in ''

It's a Gift ''It's a Gift'' is a 1934 American comedy film starring W.C. Fields. It was Fields's 16th sound film, and his fifth in 1934 alone. It was directed by Norman McLeod, who had directed Fields in his cameo as Humpty Dumpty in ''Alice in Wonderlan ...

'' (1934), and appeared in two other Fields films: ''

You're Telling Me! ''You're Telling Me!'' is a 1934 pre-Code comedy film directed by Erle C. Kenton and starring W.C. Fields. It is a remake of the silent film ''So's Your Old Man'' (1926), also starring Fields. Both films are adapted from the story ''Mr. Bisbee� ...

'' (1934) and ''

Man on the Flying Trapeze ''Man on the Flying Trapeze'' (UK title: ''The Memory Expert'') is a 1935 comedy film starring W. C. Fields as a henpecked husband who experiences a series of misadventures while taking a day off from work to attend a wrestling match. As with his ...

'' (1935). Howard died on April 15, 1956, aged 71, in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...

after a long illness. She was buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, New York.

Legacy

Howard did not make as many opera recordings during the acoustical era as did her contemporaries

Geraldine Farrar Alice Geraldine Farrar (February 28, 1882 – March 11, 1967) was an American lyric soprano who could also sing dramatic roles. She was noted for her beauty, acting ability, and "the intimate timbre of her voice." She had a large following a ...

and

Mary Garden A Mary garden is a small sacred garden enclosing a statue or shrine of the Virgin Mary, who is known to many Christians as the Blessed Virgin, Our Lady, or the Mother of God. In the New Testament, Mary is the mother of Jesus of Nazareth. Mary ...

, and thus was not as well known. Her few recordings were vertical-cut discs for

Edison Records Edison Records was one of the early record labels that pioneered sound recording and reproduction, and was an important player in the early recording industry. The first phonograph cylinders were manufactured in 1888, followed by Edison's founda ...

, playable only on Edison Disc Phonographs; and for the American branch of

Pathé Frères Pathé or Pathé Frères (, styled as PATHÉ!) is the name of various French businesses that were founded and originally run by the Pathé Brothers of France starting in 1896. In the early 1900s, Pathé became the world's largest film equipme ...

in 1918, which received limited distribution. Among them are

Harry Burleigh Henry Thacker ("Harry") Burleigh (December 2, 1866 – September 12, 1949) was an American classical composer, arranger, and professional singer known for his baritone voice. The first black composer who was instrumental in developing cha ...

's arrangement of the spiritual "Deep River", arias from

Charles Gounod Charles-François Gounod (; ; 17 June 181818 October 1893), usually known as Charles Gounod, was a French composer. He wrote twelve operas, of which the most popular has always been ''Faust (opera), Faust'' (1859); his ''Roméo et Juliette'' (18 ...

's ''

Faust Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust ( 1480–1540). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroads ...

'' and

Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

's ''

Il Trovatore ''Il trovatore'' ('The Troubadour') is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto largely written by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play ''El trovador'' (1836) by Antonio García Gutiérrez. It was García Gutiérrez's mos ...

'' (in English), and the "Barcarolle" from

Jacques Offenbach Jacques Offenbach (, also , , ; 20 June 18195 October 1880) was a German-born French composer, cellist and impresario of the Romantic period. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s to the 1870s, and his uncompleted opera '' ...

's ''

Les contes d'Hoffmann ''The Tales of Hoffmann'' (French: ) is an by Jacques Offenbach. The French libretto was written by Jules Barbier, based on three short stories by E. T. A. Hoffmann, who is the protagonist of the story. It was Offenbach's final work; he died ...

'' with

Claudia Muzio Claudia Muzio (7 February 1889 – 24 May 1936) was an Italian operatic soprano who enjoyed an international career during the early 20th century. Early years Claudina Emilia Maria Muzzio was born in Pavia, the daughter of Carlo Muzio, an operat ...

(in French).

Filmography

References

External links

*
C''onfessions of an Opera Singer''
freely available at gutenberg.org in many formats. * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Howard, Kathleen 1884 births 1956 deaths Burials at Forest Lawn Cemetery (Buffalo) American film actresses American magazine editors American television actresses Canadian film actresses Canadian magazine editors 20th-century Canadian women opera singers Canadian television actresses Actresses from Ontario Actresses from Buffalo, New York 20th-century American actresses 20th-century Canadian actresses Women magazine editors Canadian emigrants to the United States 20th-century American women opera singers