Chrystal Herne
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Katherine Chrystal Herne (June 16, 1883 – September 19, 1950) was an American stage actress. She was the daughter of actor/playwright James A. Herne and the younger sister of actress and Hollywood talent scout Julie Herne. Her stage credits include creating the title role in the original Broadway production of George Kelly's Pulitzer Prize–winning play, '' Craig's Wife'' (1925).


Biography

Katherine Chrystal Herne, the middle daughter of James A. Herne and Katherine Corcoran, was born in
Dorchester, Massachusetts Dorchester () is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood comprising more than in the city of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Originally, Dorchester was a separate town, founded by Puritans who emigrated in 1630 from Dorchester, Dorset, E ...
, on June 16, 1883. She made her stage debut in Washington D.C., at the age of 16 as Sue Hardy in her father's play, ''The Reverend Griffith Davenport''. Over the following two seasons she played Jane Cauldwell in '' Sag Harbor'', her father's last play. ''Sag Harbor'' was a family affair, with Herne and his daughters Julie and Chrystal playing principal roles. James Herne died a short while later in early June 1901. After her father's death, Chrystal played a third season in ''Sag Harbor'', although this time assuming her sister's role as the heroine Martha Reese. Later that same season she played Helen Berry in one of her father's best-known plays, ''Shore Acres''. She joined E. H. Sothern in 1903 playing Huguette in ''
If I Were King ''If I Were King'' is a 1938 American biographical and historical film starring Ronald Colman as medieval poet François Villon, and featuring Basil Rathbone and Frances Dee. It is based on the 1901 play and novel, both of the same name, by ...
'' and as Gertrude in ''
Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...
''. She scored a major success in early 1905 in special matinees performances of ''Richter's Wife'', in which she played the jealous wife of a famous conductor upset over his interest in a young protégé played by her sister, Julie Herne, who also wrote the piece. Chrystal was remembered for playing the title role in Arnold Daly's production of Shaw's " Candida" during the 1905–06 season. and as Vera Revendal opposite Walker Whiteside in Israel Zangwill's '' The Melting Pot'' that debuted in 1908 at the Columbia Theatre in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
She was well received playing Diana opposite Dustin Farnum in a 1911 revival of '' The Squaw Man'' at the
Broadway Theatre Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, American and British English spelling differences), many of the List of ...
and later in her career playing the title role in '' Craig's Wife'' opposite
Charles Trowbridge Charles Silas Richard Trowbridge (January 10, 1882 – October 30, 1967) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 230 films from 1915 to 1958 principally playing patrician authority figures. Biography Trowbridge was born in Verac ...
produced at the
Morosco Theatre The Morosco Theatre was a Broadway theatre near Times Square in New York City from 1917 to 1982. It housed many notable productions and its demolition, along with four adjacent theaters, was controversial. History Located at 217 West 45th Stre ...
in 1925. She appeared in almost 40 Broadway productions over her career. Her last performance was as Beatrice Crandall in ''A Room in Red and White'', staged at the
46th Street Theatre The Richard Rodgers Theatre (formerly Chanin's 46th Street Theatre and the 46th Street Theatre) is a Broadway theater at 226 West 46th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Opened in 1925, it was ...
in January and February 1936.


Death

Chrystal Herne died 14 years later, on September 19, 1950, after a month's illness at the Phillips House, a private care facility at
Massachusetts General Hospital Massachusetts General Hospital (Mass General or MGH) is a teaching hospital located in the West End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is the original and largest clinical education and research facility of Harvard Medical School/Harvar ...
in Boston. She was cremated. She was survived by her husband, Harold S. Pollard (1878-1953), a former chief editorial writer for the ''
New York World The ''New York World'' was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 to 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers as a leading national voice of the Democratic Party. From 1883 to 1911 under publisher Jo ...
''.


Family

Besides by her husband, she left behind her sister, Julie, and a younger brother, John Temple Herne (1894–1966). John Herne appeared on stage in his youth, served as an ensign with the U.S. Navy during
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, and later worked for
Charles Scribner's Sons Charles Scribner's Sons, or simply Scribner's or Scribner, is an American publisher based in New York City that has published several notable American authors, including Henry James, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Kurt Vonnegut, Marjori ...
. He is interred at the Long Island National Cemetery in Farmingdale, N.Y. Her younger sister, Dorothy Lucille Herne preceded her in death in 1921. Dorothy, who had appeared on stage for a time, married Montrose Jonas Moses, a dramatic critic, playwright, and children's book author. Chrystal Herne also had an older sister, Alma, who died young.James A. Herne profile
rootsweb.ancestry.com; accessed September 23, 2015.
Her mother, Katherine Corcoran Herne, was originally an actress whom her father met while performing in San Francisco. Chrystal's name came from her mother's role in '' Hearts of Oak'', written in 1879 by James Herne and David Belasco.Notable American Women: a Biographical Dictionary By Edward T. James, Janet Wilson James; 1974, pg. 168
/ref> Katherine Corcoran Herne died at age 86 in 1943.


References


External links

*
Chrystal Herne: Broadway Photographs
Wayback) {{DEFAULTSORT:Herne, Chrystal 1883 births 1950 deaths 19th-century American actresses American stage actresses 20th-century American actresses Actresses from Boston People from Dorchester, Boston