Margot Stevenson

Margaret Helen Stevenson[1] (February 8, 1912 – January 2, 2011) was an American film, stage and radio actress, known for her role as Margo Lane in the radio adaptation of The Shadow, opposite Orson Welles in 1938.[2][3]

Margot Stevenson
Stevenson in the trailer for Calling Philo Vance (1940)
Born
Margaret Helen Stevenson

(1912-02-08)February 8, 1912
New York City, U.S.
DiedJanuary 2, 2011(2011-01-02) (aged 98)
New York City, U.S.
OccupationActress
Years active1934–1983
Spouses
  • Robert Russell (m. 1943; div. 19??)
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 1953; died 2009)​
Children1

Early life

Stevenson was born in Manhattan on February 8, 1912,[3] the daughter of Irish-born actor Charles Alexander Stevenson, who was 60 years old when she was born, and his second wife Frances Riley, who was 22 years old at the time.[3] She graduated from Brearley School in Manhattan.[3] Stevenson was about to enroll at Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania, when the Great Depression began.[3] She decided to pursue acting to earn an income instead of attending Bryn Mawr.[3]

Career

Stevenson made her Broadway debut in The Firebird in 1932.[2] Her other Broadway credits included The Royal Family (1975), Hostile Witness (1966), One by One (1964), Big Fish, Little Fish (1961), Triple Play (1959), The Young and Beautiful (1955), The Leading Lady (1948), The Rugged Path (1945), Little Women (1944), Golden Wings (1941), You Can't Take It With You (1936), Stage Door (1936), Call It a Day (1936), Truly Valiant (1936), Symphony (1935), The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1935), A Party (1933), and Evensong (1933).[4] She also acted in a West End production of The Seven Year Itch in London in the 1950s in addition to performing frequently in summer stock theatre and regional theater in the United States.[1]

In addition to her work on The Shadow, Stevenson acted on Aunt Jenny's Real Life Stories on old-time radio.[5] She also acted on television and for more than a decade did TV commercials.[6]

Personal life

Her second husband, Val Avery, whom she married in 1953,[7] died on December 12, 2009, at age eighty-five.[8]

By the late 1990s, Stevenson was blind as a result of macular degeneration.[1] She died at her home in Manhattan on January 2, 2011, at the age of 98.[2][3]

Filmography

Film
Year Title Role Notes
1934 Come to Dinner Miss Jurgen - Oliver's Daughter Short film
1939 Smashing the Money Ring Peggy
1939 Invisible Stripes Sue
1940 Calling Philo Vance Hilda Lake
1940 Granny Get Your Gun Julie Westcott
1940 Castle on the Hudson Ann Rockford
1940 Saturday's Children Mrs. MacReady (voice) Uncredited
1940 Flight Angels Rita
1967 Valley of the Dolls Anne's Mother Uncredited
1968 The Brotherhood Uncredited
1970 Rabbit, Run Mrs. Tothero
1979 Going in Style Store Cashier

Television
Year Title Role Notes
1954 Douglas Fairbanks Presents Myra Episode: "Myra and the Moneyman"
1954 Macbeth Lady Macduff Television film
1954–1955 The Philco Television Playhouse Mary Venner 2 episodes
1965 Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea Betty Episode: "Escape from Venice"
1983 How to Be a Perfect Person in Just Three Days Old Lady Television film

References
  1. Weber, Bruce (January 8, 2011). "Margo Stevenson, 98; was prolific actress on Broadway". The Boston Globe. Massachusetts, Boston. The New York Times. p. B 9. Retrieved October 20, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. "Actress Margot Stevenson dies at 98". Variety. January 5, 2011. Retrieved January 14, 2011.
  3. Weber, Bruce (January 7, 2011). "Margot Stevenson, Prolific Broadway Actress, Dies at 98". The New York Times. Retrieved January 14, 2011.
  4. "Margot Stevenson". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on October 20, 2019. Retrieved October 20, 2019.
  5. "Studio Notes". The Evening News. Pennsylvania, Harrisburg. January 10, 1938. p. 16. Retrieved October 20, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. Marino, Eugene (September 6, 1988). "Half-century on stage". Democrat and Chronicle. New York, Rochester. p. 1 C. Retrieved October 20, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. Lentz, Harris M., III (2014). Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2011. McFarland. ISBN 9780786491346. Retrieved October 20, 2019.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. Grimes, William (December 15, 2009). "Val Avery, Tough-Guy Actor in Movies, Is Dead at 85". The New York Times. Retrieved January 14, 2011.
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