Irene Rich
Encyclopedia
Irene Rich was an American actress who worked in both silent film
s and talkies
.
, Rich worked for Will Rogers
, who used her in eight pictures, including Water Water Everywhere (1920), The Strange Boarder (1920), Jes' Call Me Jim (1920), Boys Will Be Boys (1921) and The Ropin' Fool (1921). She often portrayed society women, such as in the 1925 adaptation of Lady Windermere's Fan
and also in Queen of the Yukon
(1940).
In two of her last films she played a frontier wife and mother. She was the mother of Gail Russell
's character 'Penelope Worth', in John Wayne
's Angel and the Badman
as well as in John Ford
's cavalry story Fort Apache
in which she portrayed Mrs. O'Rourke, the wife of Sergeant O'Rourke (Ward Bond
).
, who later played Lucille Ball
's apoplectic boss "Mr. Mooney" on TV. Rich also appeared in stage productions, including Seven Keys to Baldpate (1935) which starred George M. Cohan
and As the Girls Go
in 1948.
Rich was married four times. She had two daughters—one of whom, Frances Rich
, was a stage and film actress in the 1930s before becoming a sculptor.
On April 22, 1988, Rich died at age 96 of heart failure in Hope Ranch, California
.
Rich has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
, one for her contribution to the motion picture industry at 6225 Hollywood Boulevard
and one for her contributions to the radio industry at 6150 Hollywood Boulevard.
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
s and talkies
Sound film
A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades would pass before sound motion pictures were made commercially...
.
Career
Born Irene Luther in Buffalo, New YorkBuffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, Rich worked for 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....
, who used her in eight pictures, including Water Water Everywhere (1920), The Strange Boarder (1920), Jes' Call Me Jim (1920), Boys Will Be Boys (1921) and The Ropin' Fool (1921). She often portrayed society women, such as in the 1925 adaptation of Lady Windermere's Fan
Lady Windermere's Fan
Lady Windermere's Fan, A Play About a Good Woman is a four act comedy by Oscar Wilde, first produced 22 February 1892 at the St James's Theatre in London. The play was first published in 1893...
and also in Queen of the Yukon
Queen of the Yukon
Queen Of The Yukon is a 1940 American western film. The film is an adaptation of Jack London's story. Filming took place in Big Bear Lake, California.-Plot:...
(1940).
In two of her last films she played a frontier wife and mother. She was the mother of Gail Russell
Gail Russell
Gail Russell was an American film and television actress.-Career:She was born Elizabeth L. Russell to George and Gladys Russell in Chicago, Illinois, and then moved to the Los Angeles, California, area when she was a teenager. Russell's extraordinary beauty brought her to the attention of...
's character 'Penelope Worth', in John Wayne
John Wayne
Marion Mitchell Morrison , better known by his stage name John Wayne, was an American film actor, director and producer. He epitomized rugged masculinity and became an enduring American icon. He is famous for his distinctive calm voice, walk, and height...
's Angel and the Badman
Angel and the Badman
Angel and the Badman is a 1947 black-and-white Western film, starring John Wayne, Gail Russell, Harry Carey and Bruce Cabot which examines the ability of a gunman to renounce violence. This film, which was the first one Wayne produced as well as starred in, was a departure for this genre at the...
as well as in John Ford
John Ford
John Ford was an American film director. He was famous for both his westerns such as Stagecoach, The Searchers, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and adaptations of such classic 20th-century American novels as The Grapes of Wrath...
's cavalry story Fort Apache
Fort Apache (film)
Fort Apache is a 1948 Western film directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne and Henry Fonda. The film was the first of the director's "cavalry trilogy" and was followed by She Wore a Yellow Ribbon and Rio Grande , both also starring Wayne...
in which she portrayed Mrs. O'Rourke, the wife of Sergeant O'Rourke (Ward Bond
Ward Bond
Wardell Edwin "Ward" Bond was an American film actor whose rugged appearance and easygoing charm were featured in over 200 movies and the television series Wagon Train.-Early life:...
).
The Irene Rich Show
In the 1930s, Rich did much work in radio. From 1933 to 1944, she hosted a nationwide anthology program of serialized mini-dramas, Dear John (aka The Irene Rich Show). Her leading man was actor Gale GordonGale Gordon
Gale Gordon was an American character actor perhaps best remembered as Lucille Ball's longtime television foil—and particularly as cantankerously combustible, tightfisted bank executive Theodore J. Mooney, on Ball's second television situation comedy, The Lucy Show...
, who later played Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
's apoplectic boss "Mr. Mooney" on TV. Rich also appeared in stage productions, including Seven Keys to Baldpate (1935) which starred George M. Cohan
George M. Cohan
George Michael Cohan , known professionally as George M. Cohan, was a major American entertainer, playwright, composer, lyricist, actor, singer, dancer, and producer....
and As the Girls Go
As the Girls Go
As the Girls Go is a musical with music by Jimmy McHugh, lyrics by Harold Adamson and a book by William Roos.After an out-of-town tryout at the Opera House in Boston in October 1948, the original Broadway production of As the Girls Go opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on November 13, 1948,...
in 1948.
Rich was married four times. She had two daughters—one of whom, Frances Rich
Frances Rich
Frances Rich was an American actress and sculptor. She was the adopted daughter of Charles Rich and silent screen actress Irene Rich.-Acting career:...
, was a stage and film actress in the 1930s before becoming a sculptor.
On April 22, 1988, Rich died at age 96 of heart failure in Hope Ranch, California
Hope Ranch, California
Hope Ranch is an unincorporated suburb of Santa Barbara, California, located in Santa Barbara County. As of the 2000 census, the area had an approximate population of 2,200. The ZIP codes are 93105 and 93110, and the community is in area code 805.-History:...
.
Rich has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
, one for her contribution to the motion picture industry at 6225 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood Boulevard
-Revitalization:In recent years successful efforts have been made at cleaning up Hollywood Blvd., as the street had gained a reputation for crime and seediness. Central to these efforts was the construction of the Hollywood and Highland shopping center and adjacent Kodak Theatre in 2001...
and one for her contributions to the radio industry at 6150 Hollywood Boulevard.
Selected filmography
| Film | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 1918 | A Law Unto Herself | Stephanie | |
| 1919 | The Spite Bride | Eileen Moore | |
| 1920 | Stop Thief | Madge Carr | |
| 1921 | Sunset Jones | Marion Rand | |
| 1922 | The Yosemite Trail | Eve Marsham | |
| 1923 | Rosita Rosita (film) Rosita is a 1923 silent film directed by Ernst Lubitsch. The film is based upon a 1872 opera Don César de Bazan.-Synopsis:The film takes place in Seville, in a period where the city has sunk into the depths of depravity and sin... |
The Queen | |
| 1924 | Beau Brummel Beau Brummel (1924 film) Beau Brummel is a 1924 American silent film historical drama. The film stars John Barrymore and was directed by Harry Beaumont. The film is based on Clyde Fitch's historical play which had been performed by Richard Mansfield.... |
Charlotte, Duchess of York | |
| Behold This Woman | Louise Maurel | ||
| Cytherea Cytherea (1924 film) Cytherea is an American drama film which featured two dream sequences filmed in an early version of the Technicolor color film process.-Production background:... |
Fanny Randon | ||
| 1925 | The Man Without a Conscience | Shirley Graves | |
| 1926 | Silken Shackles | Denise Lake | |
| 1927 | Dearie | Sylvia Darling/aka "Dearie" | |
| The Desired Woman The Desired Woman The Desired Woman is a 1927 silent era drama motion picture directed by Michael Curtiz.-Cast:*Irene Rich as Diana Maxwell*William Russell as Captain Maxwell*William Collier Jr. as Lieutenant Larry Trent*Douglas Gerrard as Fitzroy... |
Diana Maxwell | ||
| 1928 | Ned McCobb's Daughter | Carol | |
| 1929 | The Exalted Flapper | Queen Charlotte of Capra | |
| They Had to See Paris They Had to See Paris They Had to See Paris is a 1929 American comedy film directed by Frank Borzage and starring Will Rogers, Irene Rich and Marguerite Churchill. A wealthy American oil tycoon travels to Paris with his family at his wife's request, despite the fact he hates the French.Rogers starred in a similar film... |
Idy Peters | ||
| 1930 | Check and Double Check Check and Double Check Check and Double Check is a 1930 comedy film made and released by RKO Pictures based on the then-popular Amos 'n' Andy radio show. The title was derived from a catchphrase associated with the show.-Production:... |
Mrs. Blair | |
| So This Is London So This Is London (1930 film) So This Is London is a 1930 American comedy film directed by John G. Blystone and starring Will Rogers, Irene Rich, Frank Albertson and Lumsden Hare. It was based on a play by Arthur Goodrich, which was adapted again in 1939. An American and an Englishman clash over which country is the greater,... |
Mrs. Draper | ||
| 1931 | Five and Ten Five and Ten (film) Five and Ten is a 1931 romantic drama film starring Marion Davies as an heiress and Leslie Howard as the man she loves, though he marries someone else. It is based on the Fannie Hurst novel of the same name.-Cast:*Marion Davies as Jennifer Rarick... |
Jenny Rarick | |
| The Champ The Champ The Champ is a 1931 American film written by Frances Marion, Leonard Praskins and Wanda Tuchock, and directed by King Vidor. The movie stars Wallace Beery and Jackie Cooper , and tells the story of a washed up alcoholic boxer who tries to put his life together for the sake of his young son.The... |
Linda | ||
| 1932 | Manhattan Tower Manhattan Tower (film) Manhattan Tower is a 1932 film directed by Frank R. Strayer starring Mary Brian and James Hall. Manhattan Tower is currently available via the Internet Archive.- Plot summary :... |
Ann Burns | |
| 1934 | Spitfire Spitfire (1934 film) Spitfire is a 1934 drama film based on the play Trigger by Lula Vollmer. It was directed by John Cromwell and starred Katharine Hepburn, Robert Young and Ralph Bellamy.-Plot summary:... |
Woman | Uncredited |
| 1938 | That Certain Age That Certain Age That Certain Age is a 1938 Universal musical film directed by Edward Ludwig and written by Billy Wilder.-Plot:Alice Fullerton is the 15-year-old daughter of newspaper publisher Bill. She becomes involved with a group of boy scouts, who is led by Ken Warren. Ken wants to put on a show to raise money... |
Dorothy Fullerton | |
| 1939 | Everybody's Hobby | Mrs. Myra Leslie | |
| 1940 | The Mortal Storm The Mortal Storm The Mortal Storm is a drama film from MGM starring Margaret Sullavan and James Stewart, and directed by Frank Borzage.-Production background:... |
Amelie Roth | |
| 1941 | Three Sons o' Guns | Mrs. Margaret Patterson | |
| 1942 | This Time for Keeps | Mrs. Bryant | Alternative title: Over the Waves |
| 1947 | Calendar Girl Calendar Girl (1947 film) Calendar Girl is a 1947 American musical comedy film directed by Allan Dwan. The film is also known as Star Dust and Sweet Music... |
Lulu Varden | Alternative title: Star Dust and Sweet Music |
| 1948 | Joan of Arc Joan of Arc (1948 film) Joan of Arc is a 1948 Technicolor film directed by Victor Fleming; starring Ingrid Bergman as the French religious icon and war heroine. It was produced by Walter Wanger. It is based on Maxwell Anderson's successful Broadway play Joan of Lorraine, which also starred Bergman, and was adapted for the... |
Catherine le Royer | |
| Television | |||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1949 | The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre | 1 episode | |