Betty Compton (born Violet Halling Compton; May 13, 1906 – July 12, 1944), was an English actress and singer, who married New York City mayor Jimmy Walker in 1933. Compton was born Violet Halling Compton in Sandown,

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...

. She moved to Canada with her parents when she was seven years old. She studied singing in New York City with Estelle Liebling. A member of the

Ziegfeld Follies The ''Ziegfeld Follies'' were a series of elaborate theatrical revue productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 to 1931, with renewals in 1934, 1936, 1943, and 1957. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as '' The Ziegfeld Foll ...

, she appeared in the original stage production of '' Funny Face'' (1927) alongside

Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz, May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, actor, singer, musician, choreographer, and presenter, whose career in stage, film, and television spanned 76 years. He is widely regarded as the "g ...

and Adele Astaire, as well as '' Oh, Kay!'' in 1926. Compton married film dialog director Edward D. Dowling on February 16, 1931, in Cuernavaca, Mexico, and they were divorced in that city on March 20, 1931. She had received a divorce from a previous marriage in 1923. She married Walker on April 18, 1933, in Cannes, France. She and Walker adopted a son, James J. Walker II, and a daughter, Mary Ann Walker. In 1940, Compton began divorce action against Walker. The divorce would become official on March 15, 1941 in

Key West Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it con ...

. On May 11, 1942, Compton married West Point graduate and consulting engineer Theodore Knappen in Jersey City. That was her fourth wedding. She and Knappen had a son, Theodore Compton Knappen. This would be the only child Compton would give birth to. According to Knappen, Compton had been ill since the birth of their son on January 19, 1944. On July 12, 1944, Compton died in Doctors Hospital, New York, aged 38.

References

Sources

''Isle of Wight Family History Society''

External links

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portrait
archived)
Betty Compton
and Jimmy Walker appear in court during adoption process(archived) *three portraits of Betty Compton
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1904 births 1944 deaths 20th-century English actresses English musical theatre actresses English film actresses English women singers Deaths from breast cancer in New York (state) People from Sandown English emigrants to the United States 20th-century English singers 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American singers {{US-singer-stub