Adeline De Walt Reynolds (September 19, 1862 – August 13, 1961) was an American character actress who made her film debut at the age of 78 playing the grandmother of

James Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military aviator. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morali ...

in '' Come Live with Me'' (1941). She continued to act in films and numerous television series until her death.

Early life

Adeline De Walt was born in

Vinton, Iowa Vinton is a city in Benton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 4,938 in the 2020 census, a decrease from 5,102 in 2000. It is also part of the Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Statistical Area. Vinton is the county seat of Benton County. ...

, one of 10 children during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. One of her earliest memories was of Union soldiers returning from the war. She had wanted to be an actress since she was five years old, but her father - Jonathan DeWalt, a farmer - was opposed. As an 18 year old she claimed to be 20 to get a hometown teaching job. It was a difficult teaching assignment, and had been refused by several other teachers, but she eventually gained the support of the children and their families. After learning that her male colleagues earned more money than she did, and the school board refused to pay her the same rate, she left.

Raising a family

She married Vinton native Frank Reynolds, with whom she had four children, after leaving teaching. They initially lived in, their hometown, but moved to

Arcadia, Nebraska Arcadia is a village in Valley County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 311 at the 2010 census. History Arcadia was platted in 1885 when it was certain that the railroad would soon be extended to that point. The name was apparently ...

, after a year, and the birth of their first child, Mary in 1885. Reynolds' parents had moved to Arcadia a short time before, and they offered him his father's lumber business. They remained in Arcadia for five years, and had another child, William. After 5 years, the family moved to Boston, and De Walt Reynolds attended and graduated from the Boston Conservatory of Speech. While in Boston, according to some accounts, in 1892, Sir

Henry Irving Sir Henry Irving (6 February 1838 – 13 October 1905), christened John Henry Brodribb, sometimes known as J. H. Irving, was an English stage actor in the Victorian era, known as an actor-manager because he took complete responsibility ( ...

offered De Walt Reynolds a spot in his touring company. She is said to have turned Irving's offer down to raise her children. The family moved to Philadelphia, and several other cities, before eventually moving to San Francisco, where the couple had their final two children, Franklin and Lela. After Reynolds' untimely death in 1905, she was forced to earn a living to raise her four children. She began studies at a San Francisco secretarial school, prematurely ended by the 1906 earthquake and fire, which she experienced. She continued to struggle to support her family.

College

When her youngest daughter, Lela, entered college at the

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...

, De Walt Reynolds once again focused on her own goals. Encouraged by her daughter, De Walt Reynolds entered

Berkeley Berkeley most often refers to: *Berkeley, California, a city in the United States **University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California *George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher Berkeley may also refer to ...

at the age of 64. She majored in French and graduated with honors at 68.

Acting career

Upon graduation, De Walt Reynolds took acting courses at the university, under the tutelage of Professor von Neumeyer. While she was cast as Hecuba in a school production of ''

The Trojan Women ''The Trojan Women'' (, lit. "The Female Trojans") is a tragedy by the Ancient Greece, Greek playwright Euripides, produced in 415 BCE. Also translated as ''The Women of Troy,'' or as its transliterated Greek title ''Troades, The Trojan Women'' ...

'', she made contact with celebrated stage actress Blanche Yurka, who had played the same role in a radio production of the play. The following year, she traveled to Los Angeles and contacted Yurka, asking her advice on beginning a career in film. Yurka found an agent willing to take on an older client, and De Walt Reynolds was cast in a role in an Assistance League production of ''Landslide''.

Clarence Brown Clarence Leon Brown (May 10, 1890 – August 17, 1987) was an American film director. Early life Born in Clinton, Massachusetts, to Larkin Harry Brown, a cotton manufacturer, and Katherine Ann Brown (née Gaw), Brown moved to Tennessee when h ...

saw her in the production and cast her in his upcoming film.

In film

De Walt Reynolds made her film debut with a supporting role in '' Come Live with Me'' (1941), playing the grandmother of

. When asked if she was tired at the end of her first day on the set, she answered, "If you had waited 70 years to do something, you wouldn't be tired." She received praise for that role.

called her a "potential star". Although never achieving true film stardom, she played in about two dozen films until 1955, appearing as the mother of

Charles Laughton Charles Laughton (; 1 July 1899 – 15 December 1962) was a British and American actor. He was trained in London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and first appeared professionally on the stage in 1926. In 1927, he was cast in a play wi ...

in '' The Tuttles of Tahiti'' (1942) and as the mysterious Madame Zimba in

Robert Siodmak Robert Siodmak (; 8 August 1900 – 10 March 1973) was a German Jewish film director. His career spanned some 40 years, working extensively in the United States and France, as well as in his native country. Though he worked in many genres, he was ...

's horror film '' Son of Dracula'' (1943). She was also memorable in the last scene of ''

Going My Way ''Going My Way'' is a 1944 American musical comedy drama film directed by Leo McCarey and starring Bing Crosby and Barry Fitzgerald. Written by Frank Butler and Frank Cavett, based on a story by McCarey, the film is about a new young priest ...

'' (1944) as Mother Fitzgibbon, who travels from Ireland to the United States to see her son. Her last film was '' The Ten Commandments'' (1956) where she portrayed a frail old woman in danger.

Television

She also appeared in numerous television series between 1950 and 1960. She played her last role at the age of 98 and was the oldest member of the

Screen Actors Guild The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) was an American labor union which represented over 100,000 film and television principal and background performers worldwide. On March 30, 2012, the union leadership announced that the SAG membership voted to m ...

at the time. She also made publicity stories and photos which showed her practicing her

fencing Fencing is a combat sport that features sword fighting. It consists of three primary disciplines: Foil (fencing), foil, épée, and Sabre (fencing), sabre (also spelled ''saber''), each with its own blade and set of rules. Most competitive fe ...

or doing

calisthenics Calisthenics (American English) or callisthenics (British English) () is a form of strength training that utilizes an individual's body weight as resistance to perform multi-joint, compound movements with little or no equipment. Calisthenics sol ...

Death

De Walt Reynolds died on August 13,1961, at age 98. She is buried in Westwood Memorial Park, Los Angeles.

Partial filmography

Reynolds made guest appearances on television between 1950 and 1960. The programs include ''

Have Gun – Will Travel ''Have Gun – Will Travel'' is an American Westerns on television, Western television series that was produced and originally broadcast by CBS on both television and radio from 1957 through 1963. The television version of the series starring Ri ...

'', ''

Shirley Temple's Storybook ''Shirley Temple's Storybook'' is a 1958–61 American children's anthology series hosted and narrated by actress Shirley Temple. The series features adaptations of fairy tales like Mother Goose and other family-oriented stories performed by we ...

'', '' Zane Grey Theatre'', and ''

Peter Gunn ''Peter Gunn'' is an American detective fiction, private eye television series, starring Craig Stevens (actor), Craig Stevens as Peter Gunn with Lola Albright as his girlfriend, lounge singer Edie Hart. The series was broadcast by NBC from Sept ...

'' * '' Come Live with Me'' (1941) - Grandma * '' Shadow of the Thin Man'' (1941) - Barrow's Landlady (uncredited) * '' The Tuttles of Tahiti'' (1942) - Mama Ruau * '' Tales of Manhattan'' (1942) - Elsa's Old Mother (Laughton sequence) * ''

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

'' (1942) - Grandma (uncredited) * '' Street of Chance'' (1942) - Grandma Diedrich * '' The Human Comedy'' (1943) - Librarian * '' Behind the Rising Sun'' (1943) - Grandmother * '' Son of Dracula'' (1943) - Madame Zimba * '' Happy Land'' (1943) - Mrs. Schneider * ''

'' (1944) - Mrs. Molly Fitzgibbon (uncredited) * '' Since You Went Away'' (1944) - Elderly Woman on Train (uncredited) * '' A Tree Grows in Brooklyn'' (1945) - Mrs. Waters (uncredited) * ''

The Corn Is Green ''The Corn Is Green'' is a 1938 semi-autobiographical play by Welsh dramatist and actor Emlyn Williams. The play premiered in London at the Duchess Theatre in September 1938; with Sybil Thorndike as Miss Moffat and Williams himself portraying Mo ...

'' (1945) - Old Woman Reading (uncredited) * ''

Counter-Attack A counterattack is a tactic employed in response to an attack, with the term originating in " war games". The general objective is to negate or thwart the advantage gained by the enemy during attack, while the specific objectives typically seek ...

'' (1945) - Old Woman (uncredited) * '' Messenger of Peace'' (1947) - Grandma Frommel * '' The Girl from Manhattan'' (1948) - Old woman * '' The Sickle or the Cross'' (1949) - Mrs. Burnside * '' Stars in My Crown'' (1950) - Granny Gailbraith (uncredited) * '' Kim'' (1950) - Old Maharanee (uncredited) * '' The Du Pont Story'' (1950) - Old Lady in Window (uncredited) * '' Here Comes the Groom'' (1951) - Aunt Amy (uncredited) * '' Lydia Bailey'' (1952) - Mme. Antoinette d'Autremont * '' Pony Soldier'' (1952) - White Moon * '' Witness to Murder'' (1954) - The Old Lady - Mental Patient * '' The Ten Commandments'' (1956) - Frail Old Lady (uncredited)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:De Walt Reynolds, Adeline 1862 births 1961 deaths 20th-century American actresses Actresses from Iowa People from Vinton, Iowa Screen Actors Guild University of California, Berkeley alumni American television actresses Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract players