Constance Carpenter
Encyclopedia
Constance Emmeline Carpenter (April 19, 1904 - December 26, 1992) was an English
-born American
film and musical theatre actress.
and began performing at an early age.
She achieved success appearing in West End
revue
s produced by impresario
André Charlot
, and made her Broadway
debut in his André Charlot's Revue of 1924. She was featured in Charlot Revue in 1925, followed by an appearance in George
and Ira Gershwin
's Oh, Kay!
in 1926 and as the ingenue lead in the Richard Rodgers
/Lorenz Hart
/Herbert Fields
musical A Connecticut Yankee in 1927.
During World War II
, Carpenter entertained troops throughout Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. After returning to the United States in 1950, she became a naturalized
American citizen.
Carpenter's most notable Broadway credit was The King and I
, first as understudy
to Gertrude Lawrence
and then as the leading lady when Lawrence died midway through the run. Her final Broadway appearance was in the Jerome Lawrence
and Robert E. Lee play The Incomparable Max
(1971), based on stories by Max Beerbohm
.
Her film credits were limited to Just for a Song (1929), Two Worlds (1930), and Brown Sugar (1931).
, and twice to songwriter Jimmy Kennedy.
She died of a stroke
in Lenox Hill Hospital
in Manhattan
, aged 88.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film and musical theatre actress.
Biography
Born in Bath, Somerset, Carpenter was the daughter of vaudevilliansVaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
and began performing at an early age.
She achieved success appearing in West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
revue
Revue
A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century American popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own during its golden years from 1916 to 1932...
s produced by impresario
Impresario
An impresario is a person who organizes and often finances concerts, plays or operas; analogous to a film producer in filmmaking, television production and an angel investor in business...
André Charlot
André Charlot
André Eugene Maurice Charlot was a French impresario known primarily for the highly successful musical revues he staged in London between 1912 and 1937...
, and made her Broadway
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...
debut in his André Charlot's Revue of 1924. She was featured in Charlot Revue in 1925, followed by an appearance in George
George Gershwin
George Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. Gershwin's compositions spanned both popular and classical genres, and his most popular melodies are widely known...
and Ira Gershwin
Ira Gershwin
Ira Gershwin was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs of the 20th century....
's Oh, Kay!
Oh, Kay!
Oh, Kay! is a musical with music by George Gershwin, lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and a book by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse. It is based on the play La Presidente by Maurice Hanniquin and Pierre Veber. The plot revolves around the adventures of the Duke of Durham and his sister, Lady Kay, English...
in 1926 and as the ingenue lead in the Richard Rodgers
Richard Rodgers
Richard Charles Rodgers was an American composer of music for more than 900 songs and for 43 Broadway musicals. He also composed music for films and television. He is best known for his songwriting partnerships with the lyricists Lorenz Hart and Oscar Hammerstein II...
/Lorenz Hart
Lorenz Hart
Lorenz "Larry" Milton Hart was the lyricist half of the famed Broadway songwriting team Rodgers and Hart...
/Herbert Fields
Herbert Fields
Herbert Fields was an American librettist and screenwriter.Born in New York City, Fields began his career as an actor, then graduated to choreography and stage direction before turning to writing. From 1925 until his death, he contributed to the libretti of many Broadway musicals...
musical A Connecticut Yankee in 1927.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Carpenter entertained troops throughout Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. After returning to the United States in 1950, she became a naturalized
Naturalization
Naturalization is the acquisition of citizenship and nationality by somebody who was not a citizen of that country at the time of birth....
American citizen.
Carpenter's most notable Broadway credit was The King and I
The King and I
The King and I is a stage musical, the fifth by the team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. The work is based on the 1944 novel Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon and derives from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, who became governess to the children of King Mongkut of Siam in...
, first as understudy
Understudy
In theater, an understudy is a performer who learns the lines and blocking/choreography of a regular actor or actress in a play. Should the regular actor or actress be unable to appear on stage because of illness or emergencies, the understudy takes over the part...
to Gertrude Lawrence
Gertrude Lawrence
Gertrude Lawrence was an English actress, singer and musical comedy performer known for her stage appearances in the West End theatre district of London and on Broadway.-Early life:...
and then as the leading lady when Lawrence died midway through the run. Her final Broadway appearance was in the Jerome Lawrence
Jerome Lawrence
Jerome Lawrence was an American playwright and author.-Life and career:Lawrence was born Jerome Lawrence Schwartz in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of Sarah , a poet, and Samuel Schwartz, a printer. He worked for several small newspapers as a reporter/editor before moving into radio as a writer for CBS....
and Robert E. Lee play The Incomparable Max
The Incomparable Max
The Incomparable Max is a play by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee. It is based on the stories Enoch Soames and A.V. Laider in Seven Men by Max Beerbohm....
(1971), based on stories by Max Beerbohm
Max Beerbohm
Sir Henry Maximilian "Max" Beerbohm was an English essayist, parodist and caricaturist best known today for his 1911 novel Zuleika Dobson.-Early life:...
.
Her film credits were limited to Just for a Song (1929), Two Worlds (1930), and Brown Sugar (1931).
Personal life
Carpenter was married four times times, to J.H.S. Lord Lucas-Scudamore, actor Eric BerryEric Berry (actor)
- Biography :Eric Berry was born in London on 9 January 1913 to parents Frederick William Berry and Anna Lovisa Danielson. He attended the City of London School and trained for the stage at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Berry was briefly married to actress Constance Carpenter...
, and twice to songwriter Jimmy Kennedy.
She died of a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
in Lenox Hill Hospital
Lenox Hill Hospital
Lenox Hill Hospital, on Manhattan's Upper East Side in New York City, is a 652-bed, acute care hospital and a major teaching affiliate of New York University Medical Center. Founded in 1857 as the German Dispensary, today's 10-building Lenox Hill Hospital complex has occupied its present site since...
in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, aged 88.