Genevieve Tobin
Encyclopedia
Genevieve Tobin was an American actress.
The daughter of a vaudeville
performer, Tobin made her film debut in 1910 in Uncle Tom's Cabin
as Eva. She appeared in a few films as child, and formed a double act with her sister Vivian. Their brother, George, also had a brief acting career. Following her education in Paris and New York, Tobin concentrated on a stage career in New York.
Although she was seen most often in comedies, she also played the role of Cordelia in a Broadway production of King Lear
in 1923. Popular with audiences, she was often praised by critics for her appearance and style rather than for her talent, however in 1929 she achieved a significant success in the play Fifty Million Frenchmen
. She introduced and popularized the Cole Porter
song "You Do Something to Me" and the success of the role led her back to Hollywood, where she performed regularly in comedy films from the early 1930s.
She played prominent supporting roles opposite such performers as Jeanette MacDonald
, Nelson Eddy
, Cary Grant
, Barbara Stanwyck
, Claudette Colbert
, Joan Blondell
and Kay Francis
, but occasionally played starring roles, in films such as Golden Harvest (1933) and Easy to Love (1934). She played secretary Della Street
to Warren William
's Perry Mason
in The Case of the Lucky Legs
(1935). One of her most successful performances was as a bored housewife in the drama The Petrified Forest
(1936) opposite Leslie Howard
, Bette Davis
, and Humphrey Bogart
.
She married the director William Keighley
in 1938 and made only a couple more films; her final film before her retirement was No Time for Comedy
(1940) with James Stewart
and Rosalind Russell
.
The daughter of a vaudeville
Vaudeville
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...
performer, Tobin made her film debut in 1910 in Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin (film)
A number of film adaptations of Uncle Tom's Cabin have been made over the years. Most of these movies were created during the silent film era...
as Eva. She appeared in a few films as child, and formed a double act with her sister Vivian. Their brother, George, also had a brief acting career. Following her education in Paris and New York, Tobin concentrated on a stage career in New York.
Although she was seen most often in comedies, she also played the role of Cordelia in a Broadway production of King Lear
King Lear
King Lear is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. The title character descends into madness after foolishly disposing of his estate between two of his three daughters based on their flattery, bringing tragic consequences for all. The play is based on the legend of Leir of Britain, a mythological...
in 1923. Popular with audiences, she was often praised by critics for her appearance and style rather than for her talent, however in 1929 she achieved a significant success in the play Fifty Million Frenchmen
Fifty Million Frenchmen
Fifty Million Frenchmen is a musical comedy with a book by Herbert Fields and music and lyrics by Cole Porter. It opened on Broadway in 1929 and was adapted for a film two years later...
. She introduced and popularized the Cole Porter
Cole Porter
Cole Albert Porter was an American composer and songwriter. Born to a wealthy family in Indiana, he defied the wishes of his domineering grandfather and took up music as a profession. Classically trained, he was drawn towards musical theatre...
song "You Do Something to Me" and the success of the role led her back to Hollywood, where she performed regularly in comedy films from the early 1930s.
She played prominent supporting roles opposite such performers as Jeanette MacDonald
Jeanette MacDonald
Jeanette MacDonald was an American singer and actress best remembered for her musical films of the 1930s with Maurice Chevalier and Nelson Eddy...
, Nelson Eddy
Nelson Eddy
Nelson Ackerman Eddy was an American singer and actor who appeared in 19 musical films during the 1930s and 1940s, as well as in opera and on the concert stage, radio, television, and in nightclubs. A classically trained baritone, he is best remembered for the eight films in which he costarred...
, Cary Grant
Cary Grant
Archibald Alexander Leach , better known by his stage name Cary Grant, was an English actor who later took U.S. citizenship...
, Barbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck was an American actress. She was a film and television star, known during her 60-year career as a consummate and versatile professional with a strong screen presence, and a favorite of directors including Cecil B. DeMille, Fritz Lang and Frank Capra...
, Claudette Colbert
Claudette Colbert
Claudette Colbert was a French-born American-based actress of stage and film.Born in Paris, France and raised in New York City, Colbert began her career in Broadway productions during the 1920s, progressing to film with the advent of talking pictures...
, Joan Blondell
Joan Blondell
Rose Joan Blondell was an American actress who performed in movies and on television for five decades as Joan Blondell.After winning a beauty pageant, Blondell embarked upon a film career...
and Kay Francis
Kay Francis
Kay Francis was an American stage and film actress. After a brief period on Broadway in the late 1920s, she moved to film and achieved her greatest success between 1930 and 1936, when she was the number one female star at the Warner Brothers studio, and the highest paid American film actress...
, but occasionally played starring roles, in films such as Golden Harvest (1933) and Easy to Love (1934). She played secretary Della Street
Della Street
Della Street was the fictional secretary of Perry Mason in the long-running series of novels, films, and radio and television programs featuring the fictional defense attorney created by Erle Stanley Gardner.-Description:...
to Warren William
Warren William
Warren William was a Broadway and Hollywood actor, popular during the early 1930s, who was later nicknamed the "king of Pre-Code". He was born Warren William Krech in Aitkin, Minnesota to parents Freeman E. and Frances Krech. He had a certain physical resemblance to John Barrymore. He attended the...
's Perry Mason
Perry Mason
Perry Mason is a fictional character, a defense attorney who was the main character in works of detective fiction authored by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason was featured in more than 80 novels and short stories, most of which had a plot involving his client's murder trial...
in The Case of the Lucky Legs
The Case of the Lucky Legs
The Case of the Lucky Legs is a 1935 mystery film, the third in a series of Perry Mason films starring Warren William as the famed lawyer.-Plot:A woman wins a contest, but has trouble collecting her prize when the promoter turns up dead.-Cast:...
(1935). One of her most successful performances was as a bored housewife in the drama The Petrified Forest
The Petrified Forest
The Petrified Forest is a 1936 American film, starring Leslie Howard, Bette Davis, and Humphrey Bogart. A precursor of film noir, it was adapted from Robert E. Sherwood's 1936 stage play of the same name...
(1936) opposite Leslie Howard
Leslie Howard (actor)
Leslie Howard was an English stage and film actor, director, and producer. Among his best-known roles was Ashley Wilkes in Gone with the Wind and roles in Berkeley Square , Of Human Bondage , The Scarlet Pimpernel , The Petrified Forest , Pygmalion , Intermezzo , Pimpernel Smith...
, Bette Davis
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
, and Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor. He is widely regarded as a cultural icon.The American Film Institute ranked Bogart as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema....
.
She married the director William Keighley
William Keighley
William Jackson Keighley was an American stage actor and Hollywood film director....
in 1938 and made only a couple more films; her final film before her retirement was No Time for Comedy
No Time for Comedy
No Time for Comedy is a 1940 comedy-drama film based on the play of the same name by S. N. Behrman, starring James Stewart, Rosalind Russell, Genevieve Tobin and Charles Ruggles.-Plot summary:...
(1940) with James Stewart
James Stewart (actor)
James Maitland Stewart was an American film and stage actor, known for his distinctive voice and his everyman persona. Over the course of his career, he starred in many films widely considered classics and was nominated for five Academy Awards, winning one in competition and receiving one Lifetime...
and Rosalind Russell
Rosalind Russell
Rosalind Russell was an American actress of stage and screen, perhaps best known for her role as a fast-talking newspaper reporter in the Howard Hawks screwball comedy His Girl Friday, as well as the role of Mame Dennis in the film Auntie Mame...
.
Selected filmography
- Man in the MirrorMan in the Mirror (film)Man in the Mirror is a 1936 British comedy film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Edward Everett Horton, Genevieve Tobin and Ursula Jeans. A withdrawn, mild mannered man is surprised when his reflection in the mirror comes to life. The reflection then begins to live the wild life that the man...
(1936) - Kate Plus TenKate Plus Ten (film)Kate Plus Ten is a 1938 British thriller film directed by Reginald Denham and starring Jack Hulbert, Genevieve Tobin and Noel Madison. It was adapted from the Edgar Wallace novel Kate Plus Ten. It was also released as Queen of Crime. Kate, the leader of a gang of criminals, works as secretary to an...
(1938)