Jane Grey (born Mamie Larock; May 22, 1882—November 9, 1944[citation needed]) was an American stage and screen actress of the silent era.[1][2]

Jane Grey
Grey in 1918
BornMay 22, 1882
Vermont, US
DiedNovember 9, 1944 (aged 61)
Other namesGladys Grey
Mamie Larock
OccupationActress
Years active1909–1935
Spouses
  • Ricardo Martin
  • William E. Tyrrel
Children2

Early life

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Born in Vermont in 1882, Mamie (later Jane Grey) was the fifth child of seven children of Louisa May and Joseph Larock.[1] The federal census of 1900 documents that her father, a native of Canada, was a "common day laborer" and that her Vermont-born mother washed other people's clothes to earn extra money to support the large family.[1]

Stage and film

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Grey started her Broadway career around 1911 and was the original female lead with John Barrymore in the popular 1914 stage play Kick In written by Willard Mack .[3] Grey, who began appearing in films around 1913, was in Hassard Short's All-Star Shakespearean pageant for Actor's Equity in 1921, and she was also cast in a few French productions for Louis Feuillade in the early 1920s.[4]

In 1911, and again in 1914, Grey was a member of the Summer Stock cast at Elitch Theatre in Denver, Colorado. "The leading woman was Jane Grey. Miss Grey was an Anglo-Australian actress whom Charles Frohman brought to the United States and who had just completed a ten-month run in the New York engagement of David Belasco's play, The Concert."[5]

Personal life and death

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Grey was married twice, to Ricardo Martin and then to William E. Tyrrel.[6][7]

Filmography

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Twelfth Census of the United States: 1900", Larock Family, digital image of original census page, Middlebury Town, Addison County, Vermont, June 21, 1900. United States Census Bureau, Washington, D.C.
  2. ^ Grey's grave marker, available at Find a Grave, cites 1888 as her birth year, but federal records clearly document May 1882 as her actual birth month and year. The Jane Grey entry on the Internet Movie Database incorrectly cites 1883 as her birth year.
  3. ^ "Motion Picture Studio Directory", entry for Jane Grey under "Actresses—Leads", Motion Picture News (New York, N.Y.), October 21, 1916, p. 76. Internet Archive, San Francisco, California. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  4. ^ Pictorial History of the American Theatre:1860-1985 by Daniel Blum, c.1985 ISBN 0-517-562588
  5. ^ Borrillo, Theodore. Denver's historic Elitch Theatre : a nostalgic journey (a history of its times). p. 98.
  6. ^ Silent Film Necrology, p.212 2nd edit. c.2001 by Eugene M. Vazzana ISBN 0-7864-1059-0
  7. ^ Who Was Who in the Theatre: 1912-76 page 1007 vol.2 D-H compiled from annual editions by John Parker; 1976 edition by Gale Research ISBN 0-8103-0406-6
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