Doris Dudley (July 17, 1917 - August 14, 1985) was an American actress who later became a real-estate developer.

Early years

Dudley was born in New York. She was the daughter of playwright and drama critic

Bide Dudley Walter Bronson Dudley, more commonly known as Bide Dudley (8 September 1877 - 4 January 1944) was an American drama critic and playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that ...

. Her brother, Bronson, was a dancer.

Career

Dudley's professional acting debut resulted from her visiting producer

Eddie Dowling Eddie Dowling (born Joseph Nelson Goucher; December 11, 1889Date and year of birth as per baptismal records of Precious Blood church, Woonsocket, Rhode Island, where Dowling was christened — February 18, 1976) was an American actor, director, ...

in his office and reading some lines for him. She left his office as the leading lady in ''Agatha Calling'', which made a pre-Broadway tour but never reached Broadway. Dudley's Broadway credits included ''The Season Changes'' (1936), ''End of Summer'', ''Stick-in-the-Mud'', ''Here Come the Clowns'' (1939), and ''My Dear Children'' (1940). In 1939, Dudley portrayed Cordelia in the New York opening of ''My Dear Children'', starring

John Barrymore John Barrymore (born John Sidney Blyth; February 14 or 15, 1882 – May 29, 1942) was an American actor on stage, screen, and radio. A member of the Drew and Barrymore theatrical families, he initially tried to avoid the stage, and briefly a ...

. She had stepped into that role of Barrymore's character's daughter in St. Louis when his wife, Elaine, left the show following a marital dispute. Two weeks after the New York opening, Elaine replaced Dudley as Cordelia. "Mrs. Barrymore wanted my role," Dudley said later about being fired for the first time. Later that month, Dudley had the female lead in ''

Margin for Error ''Margin for Error'' is a 1943 American drama film directed by Otto Preminger. The screenplay by Lillie Hayward and Samuel Fuller is based on the 1939 play of the same title by Clare Boothe Luce. Plot When police officer Moe Finkelstein (Mi ...

'' at the Plymouth Theatre in Boston. In 1936, Dudley received a five-year contract with RKO. Her films included ''The Moon and Sixpence'' (1942), ''The Secret Fury'' (1950), ''City without Men'' (1943), and ''A Woman Rebels'' (1935). On radio, Dudley portrayed the title character's daughter, Peggy, in ''Meet Mr. Meek''. After she left acting, Dudley became a real-estate developer.

Personal life

Dudley married engineer Theodore Kurrus in

Brewster, New York Brewster is a Administrative divisions of New York#Village, village and the principal settlement within the town (New York), town of Southeast, New York, Southeast in Putnam County, New York, Putnam County, New York (state), New York, United Sta ...

, on June 6, 1932, when she was 14 years old. An annulment became final on May 4, 1936. On April 29, 1936, Dudley shot herself in the chest with a .22 caliber rifle after an argument with her fiance, playwright

Sidney Kingsley Sidney Kingsley (October 22, 1906 – March 20, 1995) was an American dramatist. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play '' Men in White'' in 1934. Life and career Kingsley was born Sidney Kirschner in New York. He studied a ...

. New York City detectives ruled the incident an attempted suicide after they found a note indicating that she wanted to end her life because she "feared Mr. Kingsley's affection for her had waned." She was treated at York Hospital for "a superficial flesh wound". Later in 1936, Dudley married Jack. E. Jenkins, a restaurant operator from Beverly Hills, in

Yuma, Arizona Yuma is a city in and the county seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. The city's population was 95,548 at the 2020 census, up from the 2010 census population of 93,064. Yuma is the principal city of the Yuma, Arizona, Metropolitan ...

. They had two sons, one of whom was child actor

Butch Jenkins Butch may refer to: People * Butch (nickname), a list of people * Barbara Butch, French lesbian DJ and activist * Butch Patrick, American child actor Patrick Alan Lilley (born 1953), best known for his role as Eddie Munster in ''The Munsters'' * ...

. Dudley's personal interests included flying, and at one time she raised mink for fur.

Death

On August 14, 1985, Dudley died of bone cancer in

Greenville, Texas Greenville ( ) is the county seat of and the most populous city in Hunt County, Texas, United States, located in Northeast Texas approximately northeast of Dallas, Texas, Dallas and northwest of Canton, Texas, Canton. As of the 2020 United Stat ...

, aged 68. No service was held, and her ashes were buried at Mount Kisco, New York.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dudley, Doris 1917 births 1985 deaths 20th-century American actresses American film actresses American radio actresses American stage actresses Broadway theatre people