Charles Blevins Davis (1903-July 16, 1971) was an American playwright and theatrical producer.

Early life

Charles Blevins Davis, the only son of Charles A. Davis and his wife, grew up in Independence, Missouri. Davis grew up next to the Harry S. Truman family and was a lifelong friend and White House visitor of Harry, Bess and

Margaret Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian. Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular througho ...

. He shortened his name to C. Blevins Davis.

Education

Davis attended old

Kansas City Junior College Metropolitan Community College (MCC) is a public community college system in the U.S. state of Missouri. The system consists of five separate campuses in Kansas City, Independence, and Lee's Summit. The campuses had a total enrollment of 15,770 in ...

and, for a short time in the class of 1925 at Princeton University. He graduated from the University of Missouri in 1925. After teaching in Independence, Davis studied at Yale University..

Career

Davis returned to Independence and taught at the William Chrisman High School. He later worked at NBC in New York as the educational programs supervisor. By 1949, Davis was president of the Ballet Theater of New York. He was also a member of the American National Theater Association's board of directors. Davis produced '' Hamlet'' at the Elsinore Castle in Denmark. It was the first American production of the play in Denmark. He produced the 1952 touring revival of '' Porgy and Bess'', which starred

Cab Calloway Cabell Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, conductor and dancer. He was associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he was a regular performer and became a popular vocalist ...

, William Warfield, and Leontyne Price. The State Department sponsored the production in Madrid and Moscow. Davis became owner of a weekly Cripple Creek, Colorado, newspaper in 1951. The

Cripple Creek District Museum The Cripple Creek District Museum is a museum located in Cripple Creek, Colorado. Founded in 1953 by Blevins Davis and Richard Wayne Johnson, the Museum has five historic buildings: The 1894 Colorado Trading & Transfer Company building, the 1895 M ...

in Colorado was founded by Blevins Davis and Margaret Giddings in 1953. Due to financial obligations of more than $400,00, Davis sold his Glendale Farm in 1959.

Personal life

In 1946, Davis married Marguerite Sawyer Hill, the widow of James N. Hill. Margaret was an art patron, socialite, and heiress to a railroad fortune. She owned Big Tree Farm in Glen Head, New York, on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

. Margaret died at St. Luke's Hospital in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

, on March 18, 1948, of a heart attack. Davis received her nine-million-dollar fortune upon her death. He rebuilt and renovated his Glendale Farm in Independence. In 1949, Davis purchased the Claremont Estate in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The mansion, which he renamed Trianon, was sold to the Sisters of St. Francis Seraph in 1952.

Woodmen Sanatorium The town of Colorado Springs, Colorado played an important role in the history of tuberculosis in the era before antituberculosis drugs and vaccines. Tuberculosis management before this era was difficult and often of limited effect. In the 19th ce ...

, also in Colorado Springs, was purchased by Davis in July 1950. His wife, Marguerite Davis, a railroad heiress died in 1948 and wished to have her fortune used for charitable purposes. The Modern Woodmen Sanatorium property and Trianon were sold to the Poor Sisters of St. Francis (

Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration The Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration is a papal congregation of the Roman Catholic Church, founded on July 20, 1863, by Mother Maria Theresia Bonzel in Olpe, Germany (sometimes known from the place of their foundation as the Olpe Siste ...

) for $1 in 1952. The combined fortune that they received was worth $2,325,000 (). In the 1950s, Davis moved to Lima, Peru. While in London on a business trip, Davis died of a heart attack on July 16, 1971. He had no surviving children. His Princeton obituary stated that he lived a "colorful career" and spent $10 million during his "high-living days".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Blevins 1903 births 1971 deaths 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American theatre managers and producers 20th-century American businesspeople People from Independence, Missouri People from Cripple Creek, Colorado