Isabel Withers (January 20, 1896 – September 3, 1968) was an American actress, who worked in theatre, film, and television."Isabel Withers Biography"
''New York Times''. Retrieved 2016-01-24.

Early life

Withers was born in Frankton, Indiana, a small town just outside of

Anderson, Indiana Anderson is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Indiana, United States. The population was 54,788 at the 2020 census. It is named after Chief William Anderson. The city is the headquarters of the Church of God and its Anderson ...

. In her youth, Withers lived in

Coffeyville, Kansas Coffeyville is a city in southeastern Montgomery County, Kansas, United States, located along the Verdigris River in the state's southeastern region. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 8,826. Coffeyville is the most pop ...

, and

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

Career

Theater

She attended school in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

, and later enrolled in a school of drama there, and joining a

Chautauqua Chautauqua ( ) is an adult education and social movement in the United States that peaked in popularity in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Chautauqua assemblies expanded and spread throughout rural America until the mid-1920s. The Cha ...

circuit repertoire company. At the time it was playing in

Billings, Montana Billings is the most populous Lists of populated places in the United States, city in the U.S. state of Montana, with a population of 117,116 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located in the south-central portion of the state, i ...

, performing ''The Melting Pot'', a play by

Israel Zangwill Israel Zangwill (21 January 18641 August 1926) was a British author at the forefront of Zionism during the 19th century, and was a close associate of Theodor Herzl. He later rejected the search for a Jewish homeland in Palestine and became the ...

. Following a route of ''tented colleges'', Withers first appeared on the road in ''

Little Women ''Little Women'' is a coming-of-age novel written by American novelist Louisa May Alcott, originally published in two volumes, in 1868 and 1869. The story follows the lives of the four March sisters— Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy—and details th ...

''. She played the leading role in ''The Tailor Made Man'' after a season in stock theatre in

Utica, New York Utica () is the county seat of Oneida County, New York, United States. The tenth-most populous city in New York, its population was 65,283 in the 2020 census. It is located on the Mohawk River in the Mohawk Valley at the foot of the Adiro ...

. She performed in ''Cappy Ricks'' in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

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 ...

selected Withers for the lead feminine role, with

Lowell Sherman Lowell Sherman (October 11, 1888 – December 28, 1934) was an American actor and film director. In an unusual practice for the time, he served as both actor and director on several films in the early 1930s. He later turned exclusively to dire ...

, in the Chicago company of ''The Tavern''. 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 ...

she appeared in ''Kempy'' at the Belmont Theater. While in New York Withers modeled for an exclusive gown shop during the day. Henry Duffy wired her to come to

San Francisco, California San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, to do ''Kempy'' just as she was on her way to visit her mother in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. She made her way south acting in ''Love Em and Leave 'Em'' and ''Rain''. Withers starred in ''Rain'' at the old Orpheum Theater, 12th Street, San Francisco, in November 1926. Drawing comparisons to actress

Jeanne Eagels Jeanne Eagels (born Eugenia Eagles; June 26, 1890 – October 3, 1929) was an American stage and film actress. Eagels appeared in many Broadway productions, and in the emerging medium of sound films. She was posthumously nominated for the Acad ...

, she drew praise in the role of ''Sadie Thompson''.

Movies and television

Withers accumulated ninety-two screen and television credits, beginning with a role in the movie ''The Hot Spot'' (1931). Many of her screen appearances were uncredited parts. She was also in her share of

B-movies A B movie, or B film, is a type of cheap, low-budget commercial motion picture. Originally, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, this term specifically referred to films meant to be shown as the lesser-known second half of a double feature, s ...

. Two memorable movies in which she had uncredited parts were ''

The Babe Ruth Story ''The Babe Ruth Story'' is a 1948 American biographical film about professional baseball player Babe Ruth (1895–1948), who achieved fame as a slugging outfielder for the New York Yankees. However, most of the film, except for the basic details ...

'' (1948) and '' Monkey Business'' (1952). She performed on television during the 1950s in such shows as ''

Four Star Playhouse ''Four Star Playhouse'' (syndicated as Star Performance) is an American anthology series that ran from September 25, 1952, through September 27, 1956. Overview Four Star Playhouse was owned by Four Star International. Its episodes ranged an ...

'' (1955), ''

Lassie Lassie is a fictional female Rough Collie dog and is featured in a 1938 short story by Eric Knight that was later expanded to a 1940 full-length novel, '' Lassie Come-Home''. Knight's portrayal of Lassie bears some features in common with anot ...

'' (1956), '' The Millionaire'' (1957), and ''

The Bob Cummings Show ''The Bob Cummings Show'' (also known in reruns as ''Love That Bob'') is an American sitcom starring Bob Cummings, which was broadcast from January 2, 1955, to September 15, 1959. The program began with a half-season run on NBC, then ran for ...

'' (1958). Isabel Withers died in 1968 in

Hollywood, California Hollywood, sometimes informally called Tinseltown, is a List of districts and neighborhoods in Los Angeles, neighborhood and district in the Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles County, California, within the city of Los Angeles. ...

, aged 72.

Partial filmography

* '' Women Won't Tell'' (1932) * ''

Brother Rat ''Brother Rat'' is a 1938 American comedy drama film about cadets at Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia, directed by William Keighley, and starring Ronald Reagan, Priscilla Lane, Eddie Albert (in his film debut), Jane Wyman, and W ...

'' (1938) * '' Henry and Dizzy'' (1942) * '' Behind Prison Walls'' (1943) * '' Law Men'' (1944) * ''

I Love a Mystery ''I Love a Mystery'' is an American radio drama series that aired 1939–44 and 1949–52, and was written and directed by Carlton E. Morse, about three friends who ran a detective agency and traveled the world in search of adventure. The adve ...

'' (1945) * ''

The Missing Corpse ''The Missing Corpse'' is a 1945 American comedy mystery film directed by Albert Herman. Plot summary The publisher of The Tribune newspaper, Henry Kruger, who is used to ordering his staff around, finds that he is ignored by everyone in his ow ...

'' (1945) * '' A Sporting Chance'' (1945) * '' The Gay Senorita'' (1945) * ''

Girls of the Big House A girl is a young female human, usually a child or an adolescent. While the term ''girl'' has other meanings, including ''young woman'',Dictionary.com, "Girl"'' Retrieved January 2, 2008. ''daughter'' or ''girlfriend'' regardless of age, ...

'' (1945) * ''

The Undercover Woman ''The Undercover Woman'' is a 1946 American comedy mystery film directed by Thomas Carr, written by Sherman L. Lowe, Robert F. Metzler and Jerry Sackheim, and starring Stephanie Bachelor, Robert Livingston, Richard Fraser, Isabel Withers, He ...

'' (1946) * ''

Air Hostess A flight attendant is a member of the aircrew whose primary responsibility is ensure the safety of passengers in the cabin of an aircraft across all stages of flight. Their secondary duty is to see to the comfort of passengers. Flight attenda ...

'' (1949) * '' Perfect Strangers'' (1950) * ''

Beware of Blondie ''Beware of Blondie'' is a 1950 American black and white comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, w ...

'' (1950) * '' A Wonderful Life'' (1951)

Sources

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

, ''Who's Who'', October 5, 1924, p. X2. *New York Times, ''Week Promises Brilliant New Offerings In Theaters'', May 22, 1927, p. 17. *Oakland Tribune, ''Rain Billed For 12th Street Theater'', Sunday, November 14, 1926, p. 2W.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Withers, Isabel 1896 births 1968 deaths 20th-century American actresses Actresses from Indiana American film actresses American silent film actresses American stage actresses American television actresses People from Coffeyville, Kansas People from Madison County, Indiana