Irene Gladys Selznick (née Mayer; April 2, 1907 – October 10, 1990) was an American

socialite A socialite is a person, typically a woman from a wealthy or aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having ...

and

theatrical producer Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The performers may communi ...

Early life

Irene Gladys Mayer was born in Brooklyn, the younger of two sisters born to film producer

Louis B. Mayer Louis Burt Mayer (; born Lazar Meir; July 12, 1884Mayer maintained that he was born in Minsk on July 4, 1885. According to Scott Eyman, the reasons may have been: * Mayer's father gave different dates for his birthplace at different times, so ...

and his first wife, Margaret Shenberg Mayer. Her sister, Edith (1905–1987), was nicknamed "Edie." In March, 1930, Edith married

William Goetz William B. Goetz (March 24, 1903 – August 15, 1969) was an American film producer and studio executive. Goetz was one of the founders of Twentieth Century Pictures, and later served as vice president of 20th Century Fox after the studio's me ...

, who became the vice president of

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

in 1941 and later became the head of production at

Universal-International Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American film production and distribution company headquartered at the Universal Studios complex in Universal City, ...

. Selznick's paternal and maternal grandparents were

Belarusian Jews The history of the Jews in Belarus begins as early as the 8th century. Jews lived in all parts of the lands of modern Belarus. In 1897, the Jewish population of Belarus reached 910,900, or 14.2% of the total population. Following the Poli ...

who immigrated to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

in the 1880s from

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

and

Kaunas Kaunas (; ) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius, the fourth largest List of cities in the Baltic states by population, city in the Baltic States and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaun ...

(then territories belonging to the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

). The Mayer family initially lived in

Haverhill, Massachusetts Haverhill ( ) is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. Haverhill is located north of Boston on the New Hampshire border and about from the Atlantic Ocean. The population was 67,787 at the 2020 United States census. Located o ...

, and then moved to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

in 1918. It was there that her father established

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

, one of the more successful film studios of its time. She attended

Hollywood School for Girls The Women's Club of Hollywood, also known as the Hollywood Club LA, serves as a social and philanthropic organization with close connections to the local film industry. The historic women's club sits on the former campus of the Hollywood School ...

, a private school in Los Angeles. She and her sister Edith both studied singing with

Estelle Liebling Estelle Liebling (April 21, 1880 – September 25, 1970) was an American soprano, composer, arranger, music editor, and celebrated voice teacher and vocal coach. Born into the Liebling family of musicians, she began her professional opera career ...

, the voice teacher of

Beverly Sills Beverly Sills (born Belle Miriam Silverman; May 25, 1929July 2, 2007) was an American operatic soprano whose career peak was between the 1950s and 1970s. Although she sang a repertoire from Handel and Mozart to Puccini, Massenet and Verd ...

Marriage and career

Willebrandt and Mayer family at White House

Irene married producer

David O. Selznick David O. Selznick (born David Selznick; May 10, 1902June 22, 1965) was an American film producer, screenwriter and film studio executive who produced ''Gone with the Wind (film), Gone with the Wind'' (1939) and ''Rebecca (1940 film), Rebecca'' (1 ...

in 1930. Her husband came from an extremely dysfunctional but talented

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

, and he was one of the few men who stimulated her intellect. During the marriage, she acted as a hostess to the couple's Hollywood parties. The couple frequently socialized with Hollywood stars, including

Ingrid Bergman Ingrid Bergman (29 August 191529 August 1982) was a Swedish actress.Obituary ''Variety Obituaries, Variety'', 1 September 1982. With a career spanning five decades, Bergman is often regarded as one of the most influential screen figures in cin ...

Janet Gaynor Janet Gaynor (born Laura Augusta Gainor; October 6, 1906 – September 14, 1984) was an American actress. She began her career as an extra in shorts and silent films. After signing with Fox Film Corporation (later 20th Century-Fox) in 1926, she ...

, and

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress whose Katharine Hepburn on screen and stage, career as a Golden Age of Hollywood, Hollywood leading lady spanned six decades. She was known for her headstrong ...

. Selznick was also an executive at her husband's production company. Irene Selznick also did volunteer and charity work and worked as a probation officer for juveniles for Los Angeles County during World War II. After separating from her husband in 1945, Irene Selznick moved to New York City, where she pursued her love of the theatre. In 1947, she worked with playwright

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the three ...

and director

Elia Kazan Elias Kazantzoglou (, ; September 7, 1909 – September 28, 2003), known as Elia Kazan ( ), was a Greek-American film and theatre director, producer, screenwriter and actor, described by ''The New York Times'' as "one of the most honored and inf ...

and produced her first play, ''

A Streetcar Named Desire ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' is a play written by Tennessee Williams and first performed on Broadway on December 3, 1947. The play dramatizes the experiences of Blanche DuBois, a former Southern belle who, after encountering a series of pe ...

'', which gave

Marlon Brando Marlon Brando Jr. (April 3, 1924 – July 1, 2004) was an American actor. Widely regarded as one of the greatest cinema actors of the 20th century,''Movies in American History: An Encyclopedia''

his break-out role. The play's success brought her a great deal of respect, and she produced four more plays, among them 1955's ''

The Chalk Garden ''The Chalk Garden'' is a play by Enid Bagnold that premiered in the USA in 1955 and was produced in Britain the following year. It tells the story of the imperious Mrs St Maugham and her granddaughter Laurel, a disturbed child under the care o ...

'' for which she received a

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

nomination. She retired in 1961. Considered by her peers within the entertainment industry as one of the foremost historians of Hollywood and Broadway, Selznick published her autobiography, ''A Private View'', in 1983.

Personal life

Mayer and Selznick had two sons, Lewis Jeffrey (1932–1997) and Daniel Selznick (1936-2024), both of whom became film producers. Daniel married Susan Warms Dryfoos, daughter of Orvil E. Dryfoos. However, David O. Selznick's constant philandering and frequent financial problems as a result of a gambling addiction led to their growing apart, which resulted in her leaving Selznick in 1945. Their divorce became final on January 22, 1949. She was a close friend of Katharine Hepburn for several decades, but distanced herself from her late in life.

Death

Irene Mayer Selznick died on October 10, 1990, from complications from breast cancer at her apartment at

The Pierre The Pierre is a luxury hotel located at 2 61st Street (Manhattan), East 61st Street, at the intersection of that street with Fifth Avenue, in Manhattan, New York City, facing Central Park. Designed by Schultze and Weaver, Schultze & Weaver, th ...

in Manhattan. Her remains were returned to California, where she was interred next to her mother in the Mausoleum, Hall of Graciousness,

Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery The Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery is a Jewish cemetery in Culver City, California, United States. Many Jewish people from the entertainment industry are buried there. The cemetery is known for Al Jolson's elaborate tomb (designed by Los Angeles ...

Culver City Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. It is mostly surrounded by Los Angeles, but also shares a border with the unincorporated area of Ladera Heights to the ea ...

, California.Irene Mayer Selznick grave at Hall of Graciousness
Hillside Memorial Park, Culver City, CA

Broadway productions

*''

'' (1947) *''

Bell, Book and Candle ''Bell, Book and Candle'' is a 1958 American supernatural romantic comedy film directed by Richard Quine from a screenplay by Daniel Taradash, based on the 1950 Broadway play of the same title by John Van Druten and starring James Stewart, ...

'' (1950) *''Flight Into Egypt'' (1952) *''

'' (1955) *''The Complaisant Lover'' (1961)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Selznick, Irene Mayer 1907 births 1990 deaths 20th-century American memoirists American people of Belarusian-Jewish descent Philanthropists from New York (state) American socialites American theatre managers and producers Deaths from breast cancer in New York (state) People from Brooklyn People from Haverhill, Massachusetts People from Los Angeles 20th-century American businesspeople Burials at Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery 20th-century American philanthropists 20th-century American Jews