Mary Clare Absalom (17 July 1892 – 29 August 1970) was a British actress of stage, film and television.

Biography

Daughter of George Alfred Absalom, Clare was educated at

Wood Green Wood Green is a suburban district in the borough of Haringey in London, England. Its postal district is N22, with parts in N8 or N15. The London Plan identifies it as one of the metropolitan centres in Greater London, and today it forms a m ...

secondary school, first worked in an office but a loan of £50 allowed her to train at a dramatic school and she began her thespian career on the London stage at the age of 18 in 1910, following which she spent two years touring the provinces to appear back in London in "A Posy on a Ring" at the Earl's Court Exhibition Theatre. She made her London West End debut in ''

Turandot ''Turandot'' (; see below) is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, posthumously completed by Franco Alfano in 1926, and set to a libretto in Italian by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni. ''Turandot'' best-known aria is " Nessun dorma", ...

'' at the

St James's Theatre The St James's Theatre was in King Street, St James's, London. It opened in 1835 and was demolished in 1957. The theatre was conceived by and built for a popular singer, John Braham; it lost money and after three seasons he retired. A succ ...

in 1913, following which she appeared in many West End productions. In the theatre, she became one of

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...

's "leading ladies" appearing in several of his plays, in particular, ''

Cavalcade A cavalcade is a procession or parade on horseback, or a mass trail ride by a company of riders. The focus of a cavalcade is participation rather than display. Often, the participants do not wear costumes or ride in formation. Often, a cava ...

'' in 1931. In September 1936 she played the leading role in the play ''Laura Garnett'', by Leslie and Sewell Stokes, at the Arts Theatre Club, London and played the lead role of the victim in

Agatha Christie Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fiction ...

's 1945 play ''

Appointment with Death ''Appointment with Death'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on 2 May 1938 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company later in the same year. The UK edition retai ...

''. In 1960, she appeared in

's 50th play '' Waiting in the Wings'' with

Sybil Thorndike Dame Agnes Sybil Thorndike, Lady Casson (24 October 18829 June 1976) was an English actress whose stage career lasted from 1904 to 1969. Trained in her youth as a concert pianist, Thorndike turned to the stage when a medical problem with her ...

. In films, she was mainly a character actress, in later life often portraying mature ladies who had strength of character or were autocratic. She appeared in several silent films including the film ''The Black Spider'' in 1920, and thereafter divided her time between the stage and the cinema. In April 1927, she appeared in ''Packing Up'', a short film produced in the DeForest

Phonofilm Phonofilm is an optical sound-on-film system developed by inventors Lee de Forest and Theodore Case in the early 1920s. Introduction In 1919 and 1920, Lee De Forest, inventor of the audion tube, filed his first patents on a sound-on-film proce ...

sound-on-film process; the short featured Malcolm Keen and was directed by

Miles Mander Miles Mander (born Lionel Henry Mander; 14 May 1888 – 8 February 1946), was an English character actor of the early Hollywood cinema, also a film director and producer, and a playwright and novelist. He was sometimes credited as Luther Mile ...

. Her first major sound film was in the 1931 Hindle Wakes, as Mrs Jeffcote; a role which she was to repeat in the 1952 remake. In 1938, she was featured opposite

Robert Donat Friedrich Robert Donat (18 March 1905 – 9 June 1958) was an English actor. He is best remembered for his roles in Alfred Hitchcock's '' The 39 Steps'' (1935) and ''Goodbye, Mr. Chips'' (1939), winning for the latter the Academy Award for ...

and

Rosalind Russell Catherine Rosalind Russell (June 4, 1907November 28, 1976) was an American actress, comedienne, screenwriter, and singer,Obituary '' Variety'', December 1, 1976, p. 79. known for her role as fast-talking newspaper reporter Hildy Johnson in the H ...

in ''

The Citadel The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, commonly known simply as The Citadel, is a public senior military college in Charleston, South Carolina. Established in 1842, it is one of six senior military colleges in the United States. ...

''. She appeared in two of the British-made

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

films, ''Young and Innocent'', (1937) playing a nightmare of an aunt who demands that everyone enjoy themselves at her young daughter's birthday party, and ''The Lady Vanishes'', (1938) in which she played a sinister baroness; two vastly different characters. She played the part of Linda Sanger in two different versions of '' The Constant Nymph'' and had previously been in the stage version. Whilst Mary Clare played many leading roles, her only "title" role was as the very eccentric detective Palmyra Pym in the 1940 film '' Mrs. Pym of Scotland Yard'' that also featured Nigel Patrick and

Irene Handl Irene Handl (27 December 1901 – 29 November 1987) was a British author and character actress who appeared in more than 100 British films. Life Irene Handl was born in Maida Vale, London, the younger of two daughters of an Austria-born father ...

. In 1956, she was in several TV episodes in British television.

Personal life

Clare lived at

Brunswick Square Brunswick Square is a public garden and ancillary streets along two of its sides in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden. It is overlooked by the School of Pharmacy and the Foundling Museum to the north; the Brunswick Centre to the w ...

Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions. Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest ...

. In 1915, she married Lieutenant Lionel Percival Mawhood, of the

Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers was an Irish line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1968. The regiment was formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 27th (Inniskilling) Regiment of Foot and the 108th Regiment o ...

; they had a son and a daughter. Their son,

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

Wing Commander David Vere George Mawhood, OBE, married Margaret Mary St John, a descendant of

John St John, 11th Baron St John of Bletso John St John, 11th Baron St John of Bletso (died 24 June 1757) was an English peer. The son of Andrew St John and his wife Jane Blois, daughter of William Blois of Cockfield Hall, Suffolk, he was a nephew of Paulet St John, 8th Baron St John of ...

. Daughter Rozanne was educated at

RADA The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the S ...

, and acted on stage before the Second World War as Anne Clare.Obituaries from the Times, ed. Frank C. Roberts, Newspaper Archive Developments Ltd (reprint), 2010 (original printing 1975), p. 149

Partial filmography

* ''

The Black Spider ''The Black Spider'' is a novella by the Swiss writer Jeremias Gotthelf written in 1842. Set in an idyllic frame story, old legends are worked into a Christian-humanist allegory about ideas of good and evil. Though the novel is initially divide ...

'' (1920) * ''

The Skin Game The Skin Game may refer to: * ''The Skin Game'' (play), a play by John Galsworthy * ''The Skin Game'' (1921 film), a 1921 Dutch film, based on the play * ''The Skin Game'' (1931 film), a 1931 film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, also based on the ...

'' (1921) * ''

A Gipsy Cavalier ''A Gipsy Cavalier'' is a 1922 British historical drama film directed by J. Stuart Blackton and starring Georges Carpentier, Flora le Breton and Rex McDougall. It was one of three films made in Britain during the early 1920s by the British-born ...

'' (1922) * '' Lights of London'' (1923) as Hetty Preene * '' The Constant Nymph'' (1928) as Linda Sanger * ''

The Feather ''The Feather'' is a 1929 British romantic drama film directed by Leslie S. Hiscott, based on the 1927 novel of the same name by Charlotte Mary Matheson, and starring Jameson Thomas, Véra Flory, Randle Ayrton and Mary Clare. It was made as ...

'' (1929) * '' Hindle Wakes'' (1931) as Mrs. Jeffcote * ''

Many Waters ''Many Waters'' is a 1986 novel by Madeleine L'Engle, part of the author's Time Quintet (also known as the Time Quartet). The title is taken from the Song of Solomon 8:7: "Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it. If a ...

'' (1931) * ''

Keepers of Youth ''Keepers of Youth'' is a 1932 British drama film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Garry Marsh, Ann Todd and Robin Irvine. It was based on the 1929 play ''Keepers of Youth'' by Arnold Ridley, and marked the film debut of Ann Todd. It w ...

'' (1931) * '' Bill's Legacy'' (1931) * '' The Outsider'' (1931) * ''

Shadows A shadow is a dark area where light from a light source is blocked by an opaque object. It occupies all of the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross section of a shadow is a two-dimensional silhouette, ...

'' (1931) * ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the ...

'' (1931) * '' The Constant Nymph'' (1933) as Linda Sanger * '' Say It with Flowers'' (1934) as Kate Bishop * ''

Lorna Doone ''Lorna Doone: A Romance of Exmoor'' is a novel by English author Richard Doddridge Blackmore, published in 1869. It is a romance based on a group of historical characters and set in the late 17th century in Devon and Somerset, particularly ar ...

'' (1934) Mistress Sara Ridd * '' The Night Club Queen'' (1934* '' The Clairvoyant'' (''The Evil Mind'') (1935) as Mother * '' The Guv'nor'' (1935) * ''

A Real Bloke ''A Real Bloke'' is a 1935 British drama film directed by John Baxter and starring George Carney, Mary Clare and Diana Beaumont. It was made at Cricklewood Studios as a quota quickie for release by MGM.Chibnall p.285 Cast * George Carney as Bil ...

'' (1935) * '' The Passing of the Third Floor Back'' (1935) * ''

The Mill on the Floss ''The Mill on the Floss'' is a novel by George Eliot, first published in three volumes in 1860 by William Blackwood. The first American edition was published by Harper & Brothers, Publishers, New York. Plot summary Spanning a period of 10 to ...

'' (1937) * '' Young and Innocent'' (1937) as Aunt Margaret * '' ''The Lady Vanishes'''' (1938) as Isabel Nisatona * '' Climbing High'' (1938) as Lady Emily Westaker * '' Mrs. Pym of Scotland Yard'' (1939) as Mrs. Pym * ''

On the Night of the Fire ''On the Night of the Fire'', released in the United States as ''The Fugitive'', is a 1939 British thriller film, directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and starring Ralph Richardson and Diana Wynyard. The film is based on the novel of the same nam ...

'' (1939) as Lizzie Crane * ''

There Ain't No Justice ''There Ain't No Justice'' is a 1939 British sports drama film directed by Pen Tennyson and starring Jimmy Hanley, Edward Chapman and Edward Rigby. The film is based on the 1937 novel of the same name by James Curtis. Plot summary Tommy Mut ...

'' (1939) * ''

Miss Grant Goes to the Door ''Miss Grant Goes to the Door'' was a short propaganda film made for the British Ministry of Information in 1940. It was directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and starred Mary Clare and Martita Hunt as two sisters, Caroline and Edith Grant, who have to ...

'' (1940) as Caroline Grant * '' Old Bill and Son'' (1941) as Maggie * ''

This Man Is Dangerous ''This Man Is Dangerous'' (U.S. title: ''The Patient Vanishes'') is a 1941 British thriller film, directed by Lawrence Huntington and starring James Mason and Gordon McLeod. The film is based on the 1934 novel ''They Called Him Death'' by Dav ...

'' (1941) as Matron * ''

The Next of Kin ''The Next of Kin'', also known as ''Next of Kin'', is a 1942 Second World War propaganda film produced by Ealing Studios. The film was originally commissioned by the British War Office as a training film to promote the government message tha ...

'' (1942) as Mrs. Webster * ''

The Night Has Eyes ''The Night Has Eyes'', released in the United States as ''Terror House'' by Producers Releasing Corporation and re-released in the US by Cosmopolitan Pictures in 1949 as ''Moonlight Madness'', is a 1942 British thriller film directed by Leslie A ...

'' (1942) * ''

The Hundred Pound Window ''The Hundred Pound Window'' is a 1944 British crime film directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and starring Anne Crawford, David Farrar, Frederick Leister and Richard Attenborough. The film follows an accountant who has to take a second job work ...

'' (1944) * '' Fiddlers Three'' (1944) as Volumnia * '' London Town'' (1946) as Mrs. Gates * '' Mrs. Fitzherbert'' (1947) * ''

The Three Weird Sisters ''The Three Weird Sisters'' is a 1948 British melodrama film directed by Daniel Birt and starring Nancy Price, Mary Clare, Mary Merrall, Nova Pilbeam and Raymond Lovell. The film has Gothic influences. The screenplay was adapted by Dylan Tho ...

'' (1948) as Maude Morgan-Vaughan * '' ''Oliver Twist'''' (1948) as Mrs. Corney * ''

Esther Waters ''Esther Waters'' is a novel by George Moore first published in 1894. Overview Set in England from the early 1870s onward, the novel is about a pious young woman from a poor working-class family who, while working as a kitchen maid, is seduced ...

(1948) as Mrs Latch * '' Portrait of Clare'' (1950) * '' The Black Rose'' (1950) as Eloner of Lensford * ''

Moulin Rouge Moulin Rouge (, ; ) is a cabaret in Paris, on Boulevard de Clichy, at Place Blanche, the intersection of, and terminus of Rue Blanche. In 1889, the Moulin Rouge was co-founded by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, who also owned the Paris Ol ...

'' (1952) as Madame Louet * '' ''The Beggar's Opera'''' (1953) as Mrs. Peachum * '' The Price of Silence'' (1960) as Mrs. West

Selected stage credits

* '' The Likes of Her'' by

Charles McEvoy Charles McEvoy (1879–1929) was a British playwright and stage director. He was originally a journalist before switching to creative writing in 1907, becoming known for his realism. His 1923 play ''The Likes of Her'' was adapted into a 1931 fil ...

(1923) * '' The Return of the Soldier'' by

John Van Druten John William Van Druten (1 June 190119 December 1957) was an English playwright and theatre director. He began his career in London, and later moved to America, becoming a U.S. citizen. He was known for his plays of witty and urbane observation ...

(1928)

References

* 1901 UK Census Record - Source Citation: Class: RG13; Piece: 1247; Folio: 132; Page: 7. * A Historical Dictionary of British Women By Cathy Hartley - First published in 1983 as "The Europa Biographical Dictionary of British Women" (note: the birth year given in this publication is incorrectly stated as 1894). * England & Wales, Birth Index: 1837-1983 > 1892 > Q3-Jul-Aug-Sep > Page 319; Mary Clare Absalom * England & Wales, Marriage Index: 1837-1983 > 1915 > Q3-Jul-Aug-Sep > Page 1171; Mary Clare Absalom & Lionel P. Mawhood * England & Wales, Death Index: 1837-1983 > 1970 > Q3-Jul-Aug-Sep > Entry reads; "MAWHOOD Mary Clare b 17th Jy 1892 Harrow 5b 1903" * England & Wales, Birth Index: 1837-1983 > 1888 > Q3-Jul-Aug-Sep > Page 225; Lionel P. Mawhood * England & Wales, Death Index: 1837-1983 > 1935 > Q3-Jul-Aug-Sep > Entry reads; "Mawhood, Lionel P. 47 ''(confirms age at death)'' E.Ashford 2a 1061" * "Halliwell's Who's Who in the Movies" - edited by John Walker - Published by Harper-Collins -

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Clare, Mary 1892 births 1970 deaths Actresses from London English film actresses English stage actresses English television actresses People from Lambeth 20th-century English actresses