May Irene McAvoy (September 8, 1899 – April 26, 1984) was an American actress who worked mainly during the

silent-film A silent film is a film without 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 ...

era. Some of her major roles are Laura Pennington in '' The Enchanted Cottage'', Esther in ''

Ben-Hur Ben-Hur or Ben Hur may refer to: Fiction *'' Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ'', an 1880 novel by American general and author Lew Wallace ** ''Ben-Hur'' (play), a play that debuted on Broadway in 1899 ** ''Ben Hur'' (1907 film), a one-reel silent ...

'', and Mary Dale in ''

The Jazz Singer ''The Jazz Singer'' is a 1927 American part-talkie musical drama film directed by Alan Crosland and produced by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is the first feature-length motion picture with both synchronized recorded music and lip-synchronous ...

''.

Life and career

May Irene McAvoy was born on September 8, 1899, in New York City to Julia Agnes McAvoy (née Reilly) and James Patrick McAvoy, who were both first generation Irish-Americans. The 1910 census lists her as living with her maternal grandparents in

Sussex, New Jersey Sussex is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Sussex County, New Jersey, Sussex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 2,024, a decrease of 106 (−5.0%) from the 2010 United Sta ...

. McAvoy debuted as an extra in the film ''Hate'' in 1917. After appearing in more than three dozen films, she co-starred with Ramón Novarro and Francis X. Bushman in director

Fred Niblo Fred Niblo (born Frederick Liedtke; January 6, 1874 – November 11, 1948) was an American pioneer film actor, director and producer. Biography He was born Frederick Liedtke (several sources give "Frederico Nobile", apparently erroneously) in Yo ...

's 1925 production of ''

'' released by

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

. She also portrayed Lady Windermere in

Ernst Lubitsch Ernst Lubitsch (; ; January 29, 1892November 30, 1947) was a German-born American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His urbane comedies of manners gave him the reputation of being Hollywood's most elegant and sophisticated director; a ...

's ''

Lady Windermere's Fan ''Lady Windermere's Fan, A Play About a Good Woman'' is a four-act comedy by Oscar Wilde, first performed on Saturday, 20 February 1892, at the St James's Theatre in London. The story concerns Lady Windermere, who suspects that her husband is ...

'' (1925). In addition to acting in ''The Jazz Singer'', McAvoy coached Al Jolson as he made his film debut. Although her voice was not heard in ''The Jazz Singer'', she spoke in several other films, including the second sound film released by

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

, ''

The Terror The Reign of Terror (French: ''La Terreur'', literally "The Terror") was a period of the French Revolution when, following the creation of the First Republic, a series of massacres and numerous public executions took place in response to ...

'', which was directed by

Roy Del Ruth Roy Del Ruth (October 18, 1893 – April 27, 1961) was an American filmmaker. Early career Beginning his Hollywood career as a writer for Mack Sennett in 1915, Del Ruth later directed his first short film ''Hungry Lions'' (1919) for the pr ...

and co-starred

Conrad Nagel John Conrad Nagel (March 16, 1897 – February 24, 1970) was an American film, stage, television and radio actor. He was considered a famous matinée idol and leading man of the 1920s and 1930s. He was given an Honorary Academy Award in 1940, a ...

. For years, a rumor circulated that McAvoy retired from the screen at the transition to sound films because of a lisp or speech impediment. In truth, she married the treasurer of

United Artists United Artists (UA) is an American film production and film distribution, distribution company owned by Amazon MGM Studios. In its original operating period, it was founded in February 1919 by Charlie Chaplin, D. W. Griffith, Mary Pickford an ...

, who asked her not to work. Later, she returned to films and played small, uncredited roles during the 1940s and 1950s, making her final film appearance in a small part of the 1959 version of ''

''. Most of her later uncredited work was performed for

. McAvoy was the Rose Queen in the

Rose Parade The Rose Parade, also known as the Tournament of Roses Parade (or simply the Tournament of Roses), is an annual parade held mostly along Colorado Boulevard in Pasadena, California, United States, on New Year's Day (or on Monday, January 2 if New ...

in 1923.

Personal life

McAvoy married banker Maurice Cleary on June 26, 1929, with whom she had a son named Patrick, and divorced him in 1940. They remarried on December 10, 1971. She was a registered Republican. McAvoy was a lifelong

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Death

On April 26, 1984, McAvoy died at the age of 84 from the after effects of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

suffered the previous year. She is interred in the Holy Cross Cemetery in

Culver City, California Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. It is mostly surrounded by Los Angeles, but also shares a border with the unincorporated area of Ladera Heights, Californi ...

. For her contribution to the motion picture industry, May McAvoy has a star on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...

at 1731 Vine Street.

Filmography

;1917-1929 May McAvoy Stars of the Photoplay

;1940-1959

References

External links

*
Photography and bibliographyMay McAvoy
portrait gallery NY Public Library (Billy Rose collection) {{DEFAULTSORT:McAvoy, May 1899 births 1984 deaths Actresses from New York City American film actresses American silent film actresses Burials at Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City 20th-century American actresses American Roman Catholics New York (state) Republicans California Republicans