Blanche Ring
Encyclopedia
Blanche Ring was an American singer and actress in Broadway theatre
productions, musicals, and Hollywood motion pictures.
Blanche Ring was born in Boston, Massachusetts. In John Parker's Who's Who In The Theatre (eleventh edition) she listed 1877 as the year of her birth rather than 1871, which was correct. This was done for business reasons.
Blanche was a granddaughter of James H. Ring, a leading comedian of the Boston Museum company. Her great-great-grandfather, Charles Fisher, came to this country from England
. He journeyed with theatrical caravans as far west as the Mississippi River
. Her heritage was English-Irish-Scottish. Four generations of her ancestors were Shakespearean actors. Her great niece is conductor Jane Ring Frank
.
. Later she acted with Nat Goodwin and Chauncey Olcott. In 1902 she had great success with "In The Good Old Summertime", and followed this with another hit song, "The Belle of Avenue A", performed in Tommy Rot. Tommy Rot was staged at Mrs. Osborn's Playhouse in New York City
. "I've Got Rings On My Fingers
" was introduced when Blanche performed in The Midnight Sons in 1909. Her recording of the song for RCA Victor is listed as one of Billboard's top hits of that year, along with her recordings of "Yip-I-Addy-I-Aye" and "The Billiken Man." Will Rogers
spoke his first lines on stage in Ring's play The Wall Street Girl. In 1910 she recorded Come Josephine In My Flying Machine
after introducing it in a Broadway show and the song became one of her biggest hits.
Among her other songs of note include "Bedelia" and "I'd Leave My Happy Home For You". The former was featured in The Jersey Lilly. During World War I
the singer was popular with "They're All Out Of Step But Jim".
Blanche possessed a fine talent for mime
. This helped her advance in musical revues. Her impersonations were paired with those of Charles Winninger
in the Passing Show of 1919, performed at the Winter Garden
in New York City.
) with W.C. Fields in 1926. On the stage she appeared in The Great Necker, among others. She came back to make such musicals as Right This Way and Strike Up The Band.
Her final stage performance was in New York in 1938. She had a role in Madame Capet, which starred Eve La Galliene. She died in Santa Monica, California
.
All of the marriages ended in divorce; she bore no children. Ring left New York in 1959.
Her sister Frances Ring (July 4, 1882 - January 15, 1951), was married to the popular stage and later silent film actor Thomas Meighan
in 1909.
Her sister Julie Ring (1878-19??) was a stage actress and the mother of film director A. Edward Sutherland
.
Her younger brother, Cyril Ring
, was the first husband of actress Charlotte Greenwood
(1916–1922).
Her great niece is conductor Jane Ring Frank
.
picture, If I Had My Way (1940).
She went to live in Hollywood with her brother, Cyril. In May 1960 she attended a reunion of former Ziegfeld Follies
girls. Blanche was an honorary member of the Ziegfeld Club, though she never worked for Flo Ziegfeld.
Blanche Ring died in a nursing home in Santa Monica, California
in 1961, aged 89. She had been in poor health for two years following a stroke in 1958. Her interment was in Holy Cross Cemetery, following a rosary which was recited in the Church of the Good Shepherd, in Beverly Hills, California
.
In the film Somewhere in Time
(1980), Christopher Reeve plays a journalist who researches a fictional Edwardian actress in a hotel's library, and finds some theatrical photos. Reeve pulls out a photo of three little girls together. The girls are Blanche Ring and her sisters Julie and Frances. The same photo appears under Blanche Ring's biography in Daniel Blum's book Great Stars of the American Stage (1954).
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
productions, musicals, and Hollywood motion pictures.
Blanche Ring was born in Boston, Massachusetts. In John Parker's Who's Who In The Theatre (eleventh edition) she listed 1877 as the year of her birth rather than 1871, which was correct. This was done for business reasons.
Blanche was a granddaughter of James H. Ring, a leading comedian of the Boston Museum company. Her great-great-grandfather, Charles Fisher, came to this country from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. He journeyed with theatrical caravans as far west as the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. Her heritage was English-Irish-Scottish. Four generations of her ancestors were Shakespearean actors. Her great niece is conductor Jane Ring Frank
Jane Ring Frank
Jane Ring Frank is a female American Choral Conductor who leads music publisher E. G. Schirmer's Philovox Recording Chorus along with Boston Secession the professional chorus she founded.-Personal life:...
.
Singer In Theater
Miss Ring made her debut at sixteen in A Parisian Romance, with Richard MansfieldRichard Mansfield
Richard Mansfield was an English actor-manager best known for his performances in Shakespeare plays, Gilbert and Sullivan operas and for his portrayal of the dual title roles in Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
. Later she acted with Nat Goodwin and Chauncey Olcott. In 1902 she had great success with "In The Good Old Summertime", and followed this with another hit song, "The Belle of Avenue A", performed in Tommy Rot. Tommy Rot was staged at Mrs. Osborn's Playhouse in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. "I've Got Rings On My Fingers
I've Got Rings On My Fingers
I've Got Rings On My Fingers is a popular song written in 1909, words by Weston and Barnes, and music by Maurice Scott. It concerns an Irishman named Jim O'Shea, a castaway who finds himself on an island somewhere in the East Indies, whereupon he is made Chief Panjandrum by the natives because they...
" was introduced when Blanche performed in The Midnight Sons in 1909. Her recording of the song for RCA Victor is listed as one of Billboard's top hits of that year, along with her recordings of "Yip-I-Addy-I-Aye" and "The Billiken Man." Will Rogers
Will Rogers
William "Will" Penn Adair Rogers was an American cowboy, comedian, humorist, social commentator, vaudeville performer, film actor, and one of the world's best-known celebrities in the 1920s and 1930s....
spoke his first lines on stage in Ring's play The Wall Street Girl. In 1910 she recorded Come Josephine In My Flying Machine
Come Josephine in My Flying Machine
"Come Josephine In My Flying Machine" is a popular song.The music was written by Fred Fisher, the lyrics by Alfred Bryan. The song was published in 1910. It was originally recorded by Blanche Ring in 1910 and was, for a while, her signature song...
after introducing it in a Broadway show and the song became one of her biggest hits.
Among her other songs of note include "Bedelia" and "I'd Leave My Happy Home For You". The former was featured in The Jersey Lilly. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
the singer was popular with "They're All Out Of Step But Jim".
Blanche possessed a fine talent for mime
Mime
The word mime is used to refer to a mime artist who uses a theatrical medium or performance art involving the acting out of a story through body motions without use of speech.Mime may also refer to:* Mime, an alternative word for lip sync...
. This helped her advance in musical revues. Her impersonations were paired with those of Charles Winninger
Charles Winninger
Charles Winninger was an American stage and film actor, most often cast in comedies or musicals, but equally at home in drama.-Biography:He began as a vaudeville actor...
in the Passing Show of 1919, performed at the Winter Garden
Winter Garden
Winter Garden may refer to:* A winter garden, winter-hardy plants grown for winter interest and decoration, or to be harvested for food between winter and early spring.-Places:* Winter Garden, California, former community in Kern County...
in New York City.
Silent Film Performer
Miss Ring came to Hollywood in 1916 to star in the silent film The Yankee Girl. She played dramatic roles for some time. She acted in the motion picture It's The Old Army Game,(directed by her nephew Eddie SutherlandA. Edward Sutherland
A. Edward Sutherland aka Eddie Sutherland was a film director and actor. Born Albert Edward Sutherland in London, he was from a theatrical family. His father, Al Sutherland, was a theatre manager and producer and his mother, Julie Ring, was a vaudeville performer...
) with W.C. Fields in 1926. On the stage she appeared in The Great Necker, among others. She came back to make such musicals as Right This Way and Strike Up The Band.
Her final stage performance was in New York in 1938. She had a role in Madame Capet, which starred Eve La Galliene. She died in Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
.
Personal life
The singer was married four times- Walter F. MacNichol
- James Walker Jr.
- Frederick Edward McKay, theatrical manager
- Charles WinningerCharles WinningerCharles Winninger was an American stage and film actor, most often cast in comedies or musicals, but equally at home in drama.-Biography:He began as a vaudeville actor...
All of the marriages ended in divorce; she bore no children. Ring left New York in 1959.
Her sister Frances Ring (July 4, 1882 - January 15, 1951), was married to the popular stage and later silent film actor Thomas Meighan
Thomas Meighan
Thomas Meighan was an American actor of silent films and early talkies. He played several leading man roles opposite popular actresses of the day including Mary Pickford and Gloria Swanson. At one point he commanded $10,000 a week....
in 1909.
Her sister Julie Ring (1878-19??) was a stage actress and the mother of film director A. Edward Sutherland
A. Edward Sutherland
A. Edward Sutherland aka Eddie Sutherland was a film director and actor. Born Albert Edward Sutherland in London, he was from a theatrical family. His father, Al Sutherland, was a theatre manager and producer and his mother, Julie Ring, was a vaudeville performer...
.
Her younger brother, Cyril Ring
Cyril Ring
Cyril Ring was an American film actor. He began his career in silent films in 1921. By the time of his final performance in 1951, he had appeared in over 350 films, almost all in small and/or uncredited parts...
, was the first husband of actress Charlotte Greenwood
Charlotte Greenwood
Frances Charlotte Greenwood was an American actress and dancer. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Greenwood started in vaudeville, and eventually starred on Broadway, movies and radio. Standing around six feet tall, she was best known for her long legs and high kicks...
(1916–1922).
Her great niece is conductor Jane Ring Frank
Jane Ring Frank
Jane Ring Frank is a female American Choral Conductor who leads music publisher E. G. Schirmer's Philovox Recording Chorus along with Boston Secession the professional chorus she founded.-Personal life:...
.
Hollywood
In 1940, she was one of the featured vaudeville greats in the Bing CrosbyBing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
picture, If I Had My Way (1940).
She went to live in Hollywood with her brother, Cyril. In May 1960 she attended a reunion of former Ziegfeld Follies
Ziegfeld Follies
The Ziegfeld Follies were a series of elaborate theatrical productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 through 1931. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air....
girls. Blanche was an honorary member of the Ziegfeld Club, though she never worked for Flo Ziegfeld.
Blanche Ring died in a nursing home in Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
in 1961, aged 89. She had been in poor health for two years following a stroke in 1958. Her interment was in Holy Cross Cemetery, following a rosary which was recited in the Church of the Good Shepherd, in Beverly Hills, California
Beverly Hills, California
Beverly Hills is an affluent city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. With a population of 34,109 at the 2010 census, up from 33,784 as of the 2000 census, it is home to numerous Hollywood celebrities. Beverly Hills and the neighboring city of West Hollywood are together...
.
In the film Somewhere in Time
Somewhere in Time (film)
Somewhere in Time is a 1980 romantic science fiction film directed by Jeannot Szwarc. It is a film adaptation of the 1975 novel Bid Time Return by Richard Matheson, who also wrote the screenplay...
(1980), Christopher Reeve plays a journalist who researches a fictional Edwardian actress in a hotel's library, and finds some theatrical photos. Reeve pulls out a photo of three little girls together. The girls are Blanche Ring and her sisters Julie and Frances. The same photo appears under Blanche Ring's biography in Daniel Blum's book Great Stars of the American Stage (1954).
