Frances Dewey Wormser (June 23, 1903 – January 28, 2008) was an American stage actress, entertainer and vaudeville performer.

Personal life

Frances Dewey was born in

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 ...

on June 23, 1903, the daughter of Alfred James Dewey (1874–1958), a

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

artist who was considered the " dean" of an early

art colony Art colonies are organic congregations of artists in towns, villages and rural areas, who are often drawn to areas of natural beauty, the prior existence of other artists, art schools there, or a lower cost of living. They are typically mission ...

Sierra Madre, California Sierra Madre (Spanish language, Spanish for "mother range") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, with a population of 11,268 at the time of the 2020 U.S. Census. The city is in the foothills of the San Gabriel Valley below the southern ...

. She later took up

painting Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

herself. Dewey married her first husband, Orin Zoline, in the later 1930s, approximately the same time that she retired from

entertaining Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but it is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have developed over thousands ...

. Zoline died in the 1950s. She married her second husband, Morton Wormser, during the same decade. They lived in

Sarasota, Florida Sarasota () is a city in and the county seat of Sarasota County, Florida, United States. It is located in Southwest Florida, the southern end of the Tampa Bay area, and north of Fort Myers, Florida, Fort Myers and Punta Gorda, Florida, Punta Gord ...

, for over 25 years. Morton Wormser was an avid

tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

player and supporter of the sport. As a result of this interest, professional tennis player

Martina Navratilova Martina Navratilova (, ; ; born October18, 1956) is a Czech-American former professional tennis player. She was ranked as the world No. 1 in women's List of WTA number 1 ranked singles tennis players, singles for 332 weeks (List of WTA number ...

lived with Frances and Morton when she first arrived in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in the early 1970s. Frances and Morton Wormser traveled "around the world" on their honeymoon. She took her last major trip to visit friends in

Maui Maui (; Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ) is the second largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2). It is the List of islands of the United States by area, 17th-largest in the United States. Maui is one of ...

when she was 100 years old. She was a major contributor to the Aviation Museum of Santa Paula, which she supported in honor of her brother, pilot Jim Dewey.

Career

Dewey spent more than a decade in

showbusiness Show business, sometimes shortened to show biz or showbiz (since 1945), is a vernacular term for all aspects of the entertainment industry.''Oxford English Dictionary'' 2nd Ed. (1989) From the business side (including managers, agents, produce ...

during the 1920s and 1930s. She played the lead role in a number of shows, including the 1925 revival of ''Sally, Irene & Mary''. It was her performance in ''

The Girl Friend ''The Girl Friend'' is a musical comedy with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Lorenz Hart and book by Herbert Fields. This was the longest running show for the trio to that date.Secrest, Meryle. ''Somewhere for me:a biography of Richard Rodge ...

'' in 1926, which caught the attention of producer

Lew Fields Lew Fields (born Moses Schoenfeld, January 1867 – July 20, 1941) was an American actor, comedian, vaudeville star, theatre manager, and producer. He was part of a comedy duo with Joe Weber. He also produced shows on his own and starred in com ...

. Fields created the ''Dewey and Gold Revue'', specifically for Dewey and her professional performing partner, Al Gold. Dewey and Gold toured together on the Pantages Circuit in 1927 and 1928. She toured in ''Good Boy'' in 1929. Wormser also performed with

Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English and American actor. Known for his blended British and American accent, debonair demeanor, lighthearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing, he ...

(who was still using his name of Archie Leach) and

Jeanette MacDonald Jeanette Anna MacDonald (June 18, 1903 – January 14, 1965) was an American soprano and actress best remembered for her musical films of the 1930s with Maurice Chevalier (''The Love Parade'', ''Love Me Tonight'', ''The Merry Widow (1934 film) ...

in an out-of-town tryout of ''Boom Boom'' in late 1928, which was one of Grant's earliest roles. She later appeared in '' Shoot the Works'', a 1931 revue on Broadway by

Heywood Broun Heywood Campbell Broun Jr. (; December 7, 1888 – December 18, 1939) was an American journalist. He worked as a sportswriter, newspaper columnist, and editor in New York City. He founded the American Newspaper Guild, later known as The Newspape ...

. Dewey was also featured in the very first franchised list of

Leonard Sillman Leonard Sillman (May 9, 1908 - January 23, 1982) was an American Broadway producer. Born in Detroit, Michigan, on May 9, 1908, he was the brother of June Carroll, the brother-in-law of Sidney Carroll and the uncle of Steve Reich and Jonathan Carrol ...

's ''

New Faces ''New Faces'' is a British television talent show that aired in the 1970s and 1980s. It has been hosted by Leslie Crowther, Derek Hobson and Marti Caine. It was produced for the ITV network by ATV, and later by Central. Original series: ...

'' in 1934. Silman's ''New Faces'' introduced audiences to new up-and-coming Broadway actors, such as Wormser. The 1934 first edition of New Faces also included

Henry Fonda Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor whose career spanned five decades on Broadway theatre, Broadway and in Hollywood. On screen and stage, he often portrayed characters who embodied an everyman image. Bo ...

and

Imogene Coca Imogene Coca (born Emogeane Coca; November 18, 1908 – June 2, 2001) was an American comic actress best known for her role opposite Sid Caesar on ''Your Show of Shows''. Starting out in vaudeville as a child acrobat, she studied ballet and pursu ...

. Coca became a lifelong friend of Frances Wormser, who also counted Leo Lerman, the former editor of

Vogue Magazine ''Vogue'' (stylized in all caps), also known as American ''Vogue'', is a monthly fashion and lifestyle magazine that covers style news, including haute couture fashion, beauty, culture, living, and runway. It is part of the global collectio ...

and

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The editor-in-chief heads all departments of the organization and is held accoun ...

of '' Vanity Fair'', to be her professional "soul mate". He died in 1994. Dewey officially retired from the

entertainment industry Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and Interest (emotion), interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but it is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have deve ...

during the 1930s. She was a

buyer Procurement is the process of locating and agreeing to terms and purchasing goods, services, or other works from an external source, often with the use of a tendering or competitive bidding process. The term may also refer to a contractual o ...

for Jane Engel, a women's clothing company, around this time.

Death

Frances Dewey Wormser died on January 28, 2008, from natural causes in

Santa Paula, California Santa Paula ( Spanish for " St. Paula") is a city in Ventura County, California, United States. Situated amid the orchards of the Santa Clara River Valley, the city advertises itself to tourists as the "Citrus Capital of the World". Santa Pa ...

. She was 104 years old. She had no children.

References

External links

* *
Santa Paula Times: Frances Dewey Wormser: 1903 - 2008
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dewey Wormser, Frances American stage actresses American vaudeville performers 1903 births 2008 deaths American women centenarians American entertainers Actresses from New York City People from Santa Paula, California 20th-century American actresses People from Sierra Madre, California 21st-century American women