Florence Reed (January 10, 1883 – November 21, 1967) was an American stage and film actress. She is remembered for several outstanding stage productions, including ''The Shanghai Gesture'', ''The Lullaby'', '' The Yellow Ticket'' and ''The Wanderer''. Her best remembered movie role was as Miss Havisham in the 1934 production of ''

Great Expectations ''Great Expectations'' is the thirteenth novel by English author Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed novel. The novel is a bildungsroman and depicts the education of an orphan nicknamed Pip. It is Dickens' second novel, after ''Dav ...

''. In this version, however, Miss Havisham was changed from a completely insane woman to an eccentric, who did not wear her wedding veil constantly, and who dies peacefully rather than as a result of suffering burns in a fire. In the 1950s, Reed performed in several early television shows, such as ''

The Philco Television Playhouse ''The Philco Television Playhouse'' is an American television anthology series that was broadcast live on NBC from 1948 to 1955. Produced by Fred Coe, the series was sponsored by Philco. It was one of the most respected dramatic shows of the ...

'', ''

Kraft Television Theatre ''Kraft Television Theatre'' is an American anthology drama television series running from 1947 to 1958. It began May 7, 1947, on NBC, airing at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday evenings until December of that year. It first promoted MacLaren's Impe ...

'' and ''

The United States Steel Hour ''The United States Steel Hour'' is an anthology series which brought hour-long dramas to television from 1953 to 1963. The television series and the radio program that preceded it were both sponsored by the United States Steel Corporation (U.S. ...

''. She is a member of the

American Theater Hall of Fame The American Theater Hall of Fame was founded in 1972 in New York City. The first head of its executive committee was Earl Blackwell. In an announcement in 1972, he said that the new ''Theater Hall of Fame'' would be located in the Uris Theatre, ...

Early life and career

Reed was born in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, to comedy actor Roland Lewis Reed and his wife, Johanna (née Sommer) Reed. Her grandfather was John "Pop" Reed, a longtime stagehand of the old

Walnut Street Theatre Walnut Street Theatre, founded in 1808 at 825 Walnut Street, on the corner of S. 9th Street in the Washington Square West neighborhood of Philadelphia, is the oldest operating theatre in the United States. The venue is operated by Walnut Str ...

, who donated his skull to be performed in future theatrical versions of ''

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 ...

''. Her father died in 1901 when Florence was 17 years old. Afterward she and her mother came to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

to seek a career in the theater. She made her first appearance on the stage at Proctor's

Fifth Avenue Theatre The Fifth Avenue Theatre was a Broadway theatre in Manhattan, New York City, United States, at 31 West 28th Street and Broadway (1185 Broadway). It was demolished in 1939. Built in 1868, it was managed by Augustin Daly in the mid-1870s. In ...

in New York in 1904 where she gave a monologue by

George M. Cohan George Michael Cohan (July 3, 1878November 5, 1942) was an American entertainer, playwright, composer, lyricist, actor, singer, dancer and theatrical producer. Cohan began his career as a child, performing with his parents and sister in a vaudev ...

. She stayed with the Fifth Avenue Theater for years honing her craft. She also trouped the country with

May Irwin May Irwin (born Georgina May Campbell; June 27, 1862 – October 22, 1938) was an actress, singer and star of vaudeville. Originally from Canada, she and her sister Flo Irwin found theater work after their father died. She was known for her pe ...

in ''The Widow Jones'' and played Ophelia to E. H. Sothern's Hamlet. Reed appeared with

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 ...

in ''The Yellow Ticket'' (1914) which proved a popular play of the season. In 1943 she created the role of The Fortune Teller in '' The Skin of Our Teeth '' by

Thornton Wilder Thornton Niven Wilder (April 17, 1897 – December 7, 1975) was an American playwright and novelist. He won three Pulitzer Prizes, for the novel ''The Bridge of San Luis Rey'' and for the plays ''Our Town'' and ''The Skin of Our Teeth'', and a U. ...

, reprising it in a 1955 Broadway revival.

Movies

Reed started making movies in the silent era around 1915. She was a stage star by then and her first movie was '' The Dancing Girl'' for

Adolph Zukor Adolph Zukor (; ; January 7, 1873 – June 10, 1976) was a Hungarian-American film producer best known as one of the three founders of Paramount Pictures.Obituary ''Variety Obituaries, Variety'' (June 16, 1976), p. 76. He produced one of Ameri ...

Famous Players Famous Players Limited Partnership was a Canadian-based subsidiary of Cineplex Entertainment. As an independent company, it existed as a film exhibitor and cable television service provider. Famous Players operated numerous film, movie theatre ...

studio built around her talents. She also made films for several different production companies such as Popular Plays & Players, Astra, Arrow, Tribune, and

Pathé Pathé SAS (; styled as PATHÉ!) is a French major film production and distribution company, owning a number of cinema chains through its subsidiary Pathé Cinémas and television networks across Europe. It is the name of a network of Fren ...

. In all, Reed made 15 silent pictures, the last being '' The Black Panther's Cub'' (1921). After 13 years she made her first talking film in ''

'' (1934). She made two more films but preferred the theater.

Personal life

Reed was married to actor Malcolm Williams from February 1908 until his death in 1937. They often appeared in stage productions together. They had no children. She died on November 21, 1967. She was interred in the same burial plot with her good friend, actress

Blanche Yurka Blanche Yurka (born Blanch Jurka; June 19, 1887 – June 6, 1974) was an American stage and film actress and director. She was an opera singer with minor roles at the Metropolitan Opera and later became a stage actress, making her Broadway deb ...

, in the Actors Fund of America section of Kensico Cemetery,

Valhalla, New York Valhalla ( ) is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) within the town of Mount Pleasant, in Westchester County, New York, United States, in the New York City metropolitan area. Its population was 3,162 at the 2010 U.S. Census. The name wa ...

Filmography

Silent films *''Our Mutual Girl'' (1914) as herself (episode 20) *'' The Dancing Girl'' (1915) as Drusilla Ives *'' Her Own Way'' (1915) as Georgiana Carley *'' The Cowardly Way'' (1915) as Eunice Fielding *''

At Bay ''At Bay'' is a 1915 American silent drama film directed by George Fitzmaurice and starring Florence Reed. It is based on a 1913 Broadway play, ''At Bay'', by George Scarborough and produced by the Shuberts. On stage, Reed's starring part was ...

'' (1915) as Aline Graham *''

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

'' (1916) as Nora Nelson, later Mrs. King *'' The Woman's Law'' (1916) as Gail Orcutt *'' The Eternal Sin'' (1917) as Lucretia Borgia *''

To-Day ''To-Day'' is a 1917 silent film drama directed by Ralph Ince, who is also credited as the film's writer, and starring Florence Reed. A story about prostitution, this film is based on a 1913 stage play ''Today'' by George Broadhurst and Abra ...

'' (1917) as Lily Morton *'' The Struggle Everlasting'' (1918) as Body, aka Lois *'' Wives of Men'' (1918) as Lucille Emerson *'' Her Code of Honor'' (1919; *BFI Natl. Film & TV archive, London) as Helen / Alice *'' The Woman Under Oath'' (1919; *copy: BFI Natl. Film & TV archive, London) as Grace Norton *'' Her Game'' (1919) as Carol Raymond *'' The Eternal Mother'' (1920) as Laura West *'' The Black Panther's Cub'' (1921) as The Black Panther / Mary Maudsley / Faustine Sound films *''

'' (1934) as Miss Havisham *'' Frankie and Johnny'' (1936) as Lou *''

Stage Door ''Stage Door'' is a 1937 American Tragicomedy, tragicomedy film directed by Gregory La Cava, and starring Katharine Hepburn, Ginger Rogers, Adolphe Menjou, Gail Patrick, Constance Collier, Andrea Leeds, Samuel S. Hinds, and Lucille Ball. Adapt ...

'' (1937) (uncredited)

References

External links

* *
Florence Reed
gallery at NY Public Library(Billy Rose Collection)
Florence Reed in November 1922 Vanity Fair
photographed by

Nickolas Muray Nickolas Muray (born Miklós Mandl; 15 February 1892 – 2 November 1965) was a Hungarian-born American photographer and Olympic saber fencer. Early and personal life Muray was born in Szeged, Hungary, and was Jewish. His father Samu Mandl was ...

Broadway Photographs - Florence Reed
Wayback)
University of Washington Digital Collections - Florence Reed

Florence Reed blogspotFlorence Reed
kinotv)
Reed with Barrymore
in ''The Yellow Ticket'' play, 1914 {{DEFAULTSORT:Reed, Florence 1883 births 1967 deaths American film actresses American stage actresses 20th-century American actresses Actresses from Philadelphia Burials at Kensico Cemetery