Phyllis Fraser
Encyclopedia
Phyllis Fraser Cerf Wagner (April 13, 1916 – November 25, 2006) was an American
actress, journalist, and children's book publisher, and the co-founder of Beginner Books
.
. Her mother was Verda Virginia Owens, daughter of Walter and Saphrona (Ball) Owens, who were of Welsh ancestry. Her two maternal aunts were Jean Owens, wife of radio actor Vinton Hayworth (uncle of Rita Hayworth
), and Lela (Owens) McMath, mother of Ginger Rogers
. Not long after her birth, her mother moved to Oklahoma City
, where Fraser resided until age 16.
, thought up her new name and introduced her to the Hollywood
scene. Between 1932 and 1939, Phyllis Fraser appeared in several movies, most notably Winds of the Wasteland
(1936
) with John Wayne
, and Little Men (1934
). In 1932 Fraser had a featured role, later deleted, in the RKO film Thirteen Women
, a cult classic starring Irene Dunne
and Myrna Loy
. Thirteen Women was the only film of Theater Guild actress Peg Entwistle
, whose suicide from the Hollywood Sign
in September of that year helped begin the Sign's transformation from realestate billboard to a world-famous landmark.
. Soon after her arrival, she was introduced by The New Yorker
editor Harold Ross
to publishing magnate and Random House
co-founder (and future What's My Line?
panelist) Bennett Cerf
, whom she married on September 17, 1940. They had two sons, Christopher Cerf
, an author and composer-lyricist who has contributed numerous songs to Sesame Street
, and Jonathan Cerf, the author of Big Bird's Red Book and the 1980 world champion of Othello
, the board game.
She wrote The ABC and Counting Book, a children's book, and co-founded Beginner Books
, which is the Random House imprint for young children, along with Ted Geisel
, more often known as Dr. Seuss, and his wife Helen Palmer Geisel.
After Cerf's death on August 27, 1971, she married the former New York City
mayor Robert F. Wagner, Jr.
on January 30, 1975. They remained married until Wagner died on February 12, 1991. She lived for the last half of the twentieth century, with each of her husbands, in a five-floor townhouse at 132 East 62nd Street. Despite an undistinguished façade, Denning & Fourcade
did the décor. "It’s cozy and grand at the same time, but not elaborately fussy."
Ginger Rogers
(née Virginia Katherine McMath) was the daughter of William Eddins McMath and Lela Emogene Owens (1891–1977). She was the maternal granddaughter of Walter Winfield Owens and Saphronia Ball. She was the maternal great-granddaughter of Clinton Manross Ball (1817–1893) and Cynthia T. Dale (1823–1900)
Lucille Ball
was the daughter of Henry Durrell Ball (1886–1915) and Desiree Evelyn Hunt (1892–1977). She was the granddaughter of Jasper Clinton Ball (1853–1933) and Nellie Durrell (1856-?). She was the maternal great-granddaughter of Clinton Manross Ball (1817–1893) and Cynthia T. Dale (1823–1900).
The common denominator for all three women was their great-grandparents Clinton Manross Ball and Cynthia T. Dale.
While not a direct relative, Ginger Rogers and Phyllis Fraser's maternal aunt Jean Owens, the daughter of Walter Winfield Owens and Saphronia Ball, married Vinton Hayworth. He was the uncle of Rita Hayworth
(1918–1987).
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actress, journalist, and children's book publisher, and the co-founder of Beginner Books
Beginner Books
Beginner Books is the Random House imprint for young children ages 4-8, co-founded by Phyllis Cerf with Ted Geisel, more often known as Dr. Seuss, and his wife Helen Palmer Geisel.Their first book was Dr. Seuss's The Cat in the Hat...
.
Early life
She was born as Helen Brown Nichols in Kansas City, MissouriKansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
. Her mother was Verda Virginia Owens, daughter of Walter and Saphrona (Ball) Owens, who were of Welsh ancestry. Her two maternal aunts were Jean Owens, wife of radio actor Vinton Hayworth (uncle of Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth was an American film actress and dancer who attained fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars...
), and Lela (Owens) McMath, mother of Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers was an American actress, dancer, and singer who appeared in film, and on stage, radio, and television throughout much of the 20th century....
. Not long after her birth, her mother moved to Oklahoma City
Oklahoma city
Oklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma.Oklahoma City may also refer to:*Oklahoma City metropolitan area*Downtown Oklahoma City*Uptown Oklahoma City*Oklahoma City bombing*Oklahoma City National Memorial...
, where Fraser resided until age 16.
Hollywood
At 16, she went to live with her aunt, Lela, and first cousin, Ginger, in California. There, Ginger, who would later be known as actress Ginger RogersGinger Rogers
Ginger Rogers was an American actress, dancer, and singer who appeared in film, and on stage, radio, and television throughout much of the 20th century....
, thought up her new name and introduced her to the Hollywood
Cinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, also known as Hollywood, has had a profound effect on cinema across the world since the early 20th century. Its history is sometimes separated into four main periods: the silent film era, classical Hollywood cinema, New Hollywood, and the contemporary period...
scene. Between 1932 and 1939, Phyllis Fraser appeared in several movies, most notably Winds of the Wasteland
Winds of the Wasteland
Winds of the Wasteland is a western film, starring John Wayne and Phyllis Fraser. The film was directed by Mack V. Wright, and was released by Republic Pictures, not to be confused with Republic serials. The rights on this movie haven't been renewed, so this movie is legally free to watch on...
(1936
1936 in film
The year 1936 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*May 29 - Fritz Lang's first Hollywood film Fury, starring Spencer Tracy and Bruce Cabot, is released.*November 6 - first Porky Pig animated cartoon...
) with 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...
, and Little Men (1934
1934 in film
-Events:*January 26 - Samuel Goldwyn purchases the film rights to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz from the L. Frank Baum estate for $40,000.*February 19 - Bob Hope marries Dolores Reade...
). In 1932 Fraser had a featured role, later deleted, in the RKO film Thirteen Women
Thirteen Women
Thirteen Women is a psychological thriller film, produced by David O. Selznick and directed by George Archainbaud. It starred Myrna Loy, Irene Dunne, Ricardo Cortez, Florence Eldridge and Jill Esmond...
, a cult classic starring Irene Dunne
Irene Dunne
Irene Dunne was an American film actress and singer of the 1930s, 1940s and early 1950s. Dunne was nominated five times for the Academy Award for Best Actress, for her performances in Cimarron , Theodora Goes Wild , The Awful Truth , Love Affair and I Remember Mama...
and Myrna Loy
Myrna Loy
Myrna Loy was an American actress. Trained as a dancer, she devoted herself fully to an acting career following a few minor roles in silent films. Originally typecast in exotic roles, often as a vamp or a woman of Asian descent, her career prospects improved following her portrayal of Nora Charles...
. Thirteen Women was the only film of Theater Guild actress Peg Entwistle
Peg Entwistle
Peg Entwistle was an English stage and screen actress who gained notoriety after her suicide at the age of 24 by leaping off of the Hollywood Sign.-Early life:...
, whose suicide from the Hollywood Sign
Hollywood Sign
The Hollywood Sign is a landmark and American cultural icon in the Hollywood Hills area of Mount Lee, Santa Monica Mountains, in Los Angeles, California. The sign spells out the name of the area in and white letters. It was created as an advertisement in 1923, but garnered increasing recognition...
in September of that year helped begin the Sign's transformation from realestate billboard to a world-famous landmark.
New York
In 1939, she abandoned Hollywood for New York City to pursue a career in advertising at McCann EricksonMcCann Erickson
McCann Erickson is a global advertising agency network, with offices in more than 130 countries. McCann is a subsidiary of the Interpublic Group of Companies, one of the four large holding companies in the advertising industry....
. Soon after her arrival, she was introduced by The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
editor Harold Ross
Harold Ross
Harold Wallace Ross was an American journalist and founder of The New Yorker magazine, which he edited from the magazine's inception in 1925 to his death....
to publishing magnate and Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
co-founder (and future What's My Line?
What's My Line?
What's My Line? is a panel game show which originally ran in the United States on the CBS Television Network from 1950 to 1967, with several international versions and subsequent U.S. revivals. The game tasked celebrity panelists with questioning contestants in order to determine their occupations....
panelist) Bennett Cerf
Bennett Cerf
Bennett Alfred Cerf was a publisher and co-founder of Random House. Cerf was also known for his own compilations of jokes and puns, for regular personal appearances lecturing across the United States, and for his television appearances in the panel game show What's My Line?.-Biography:Bennett Cerf...
, whom she married on September 17, 1940. They had two sons, Christopher Cerf
Christopher Cerf
Christopher Cerf is a U.S. author, composer-lyricist, voice actor, and record and television producer. He is known for his musical contributions to Sesame Street, for co-creating and co-producing the award-winning PBS literacy education television program Between the Lions, and for his humorous...
, an author and composer-lyricist who has contributed numerous songs to Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
, and Jonathan Cerf, the author of Big Bird's Red Book and the 1980 world champion of Othello
Reversi
Reversi is a board game involving abstract strategy and played by two players on a board with 8 rows and 8 columns and a set of distinct pieces for each side. Pieces typically are disks with a light and a dark face, each face belonging to one player...
, the board game.
She wrote The ABC and Counting Book, a children's book, and co-founded Beginner Books
Beginner Books
Beginner Books is the Random House imprint for young children ages 4-8, co-founded by Phyllis Cerf with Ted Geisel, more often known as Dr. Seuss, and his wife Helen Palmer Geisel.Their first book was Dr. Seuss's The Cat in the Hat...
, which is the Random House imprint for young children, along with Ted Geisel
Dr. Seuss
Theodor Seuss Geisel was an American writer, poet, and cartoonist most widely known for his children's books written under the pen names Dr. Seuss, Theo LeSieg and, in one case, Rosetta Stone....
, more often known as Dr. Seuss, and his wife Helen Palmer Geisel.
After Cerf's death on August 27, 1971, she married the former 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...
mayor Robert F. Wagner, Jr.
Robert F. Wagner, Jr.
Robert Ferdinand Wagner II, usually known as Robert F. Wagner, Jr. served three terms as the mayor of New York City, from 1954 through 1965.-Biography:...
on January 30, 1975. They remained married until Wagner died on February 12, 1991. She lived for the last half of the twentieth century, with each of her husbands, in a five-floor townhouse at 132 East 62nd Street. Despite an undistinguished façade, Denning & Fourcade
Denning & Fourcade, Inc.
Robert Denning & Vincent Fourcade, Inc. was an interior design firm which for over forty years was a leader in opulent interiors with offices in New York City and Paris...
did the décor. "It’s cozy and grand at the same time, but not elaborately fussy."
Genealogical relationship to notables
Phyllis Fraser was the daughter of Verda Virginia, née Owens. She was the maternal granddaughter of Walter Winfield Owens and Saphronia Ball. She was the maternal great-granddaughter of Clinton Manross Ball (1817–1893) and Cynthia T. Dale (1823–1900).Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers was an American actress, dancer, and singer who appeared in film, and on stage, radio, and television throughout much of the 20th century....
(née Virginia Katherine McMath) was the daughter of William Eddins McMath and Lela Emogene Owens (1891–1977). She was the maternal granddaughter of Walter Winfield Owens and Saphronia Ball. She was the maternal great-granddaughter of Clinton Manross Ball (1817–1893) and Cynthia T. Dale (1823–1900)
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...
was the daughter of Henry Durrell Ball (1886–1915) and Desiree Evelyn Hunt (1892–1977). She was the granddaughter of Jasper Clinton Ball (1853–1933) and Nellie Durrell (1856-?). She was the maternal great-granddaughter of Clinton Manross Ball (1817–1893) and Cynthia T. Dale (1823–1900).
The common denominator for all three women was their great-grandparents Clinton Manross Ball and Cynthia T. Dale.
While not a direct relative, Ginger Rogers and Phyllis Fraser's maternal aunt Jean Owens, the daughter of Walter Winfield Owens and Saphronia Ball, married Vinton Hayworth. He was the uncle of Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth was an American film actress and dancer who attained fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars...
(1918–1987).