Gertrude Vanderbilt (actress)

Gertrude Vanderbilt (25 July c. 1885 – February 18, 1960),[lower-alpha 1] also known as Gertie Vanderbilt, was an American stage actress and Vaudeville performer.

For other people named Gertrude Vanderbilt, see Gertrude Vanderbilt (disambiguation).
Gertrude Vanderbilt c. 1919

Early life and career

Gertrude Vanderbilt was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was "understood to have been distantly related to the socially prominent Vanderbilt family."[7] She recorded her birthday as July 25, but her year of birth varies: 1890 on her official U.S. Passport application, and 1895, 1896, 1900, and 1901 on border crossings.[8] She was the daughter of Ezekiel Vanderbilt and Gertrude Meng.[9] Her father died in 1898.[10] She entered show business at age 14, and became known as "one of the bright theatrical lights of the Nineteen Twenties when she had leading roles in several David Belasco shows".[7] She rose to public attention in Broadway productions of The Talk of New York (1907) and The American Idea (1908), The Follies of 1909 (1909).[11][12] She later replaced Ina Claire in the lead role of the 1919 play, The Gold Diggers.[13]

She appeared in the 1914 production of Ziegfeld Follies, and was later president of the Ziegfeld Alumni Association.[4]

Personal life

At age 17, she was married to Joseph Pincus, a booking agent who subsequently became a Hollywood talent scout after their divorce.[7] In February 1908, she married actor Robert L. Dailey, brother of burlesque comedian and singer Peter F. Dailey, in Baltimore, Maryland.[6] Vanderbilt married Dailey while they were both members of The American Idea company. In 1909, she sued her husband for a separation, giving her age as 19, and saying "it is impossible for her to continue living with Dailey on account of his uncontrollable temper and cruel treatment."[11]

In 1926, she was reported to have been engaged to Italian Baron Georgio Mario Suriani, son of Italian Senator Giovanni Suriani of Naples.[13][14] Vanderbilt's engagement to the dancer was later called off, as was his 1928 engagement to actress Winifred Barry.[15]

In June 1921, she bought, and sold for $40,000 in 1924, a five0story residence at 309 West 84th Street.[16] At the time of her death, she lived at the Delmonico Hotel at 502 Park Avenue.[7]

She died at Roosevelt Hospital in New York City on February 18, 1960.[1][2]

References
Notes
  1. Her birth year is given as 1880 in Anthony Slide's, Encyclopedia of Vaudeville;[1] as ca. 1885 by Cullen et al. in Vaudeville, Old & New;,[2] while contemporary obituaries variously list her age at death as 60,[3][4] and 80.[5] Her age was reported as 20 in July, 1909.[6]
Sources
  1. Slide, Anthony (2012). The Encyclopedia of Vaudeville. University Press of Mississippi. pp. 522–523. ISBN 9781617032509.
  2. Cullen, Frank; Hackman, Florence; McNeilly, Donald (2007). Vaudeville, Old & New: An Encyclopedia of Variety Performers in America, Volume 1. Routledge. pp. 1149–1150. ISBN 9780415938532.
  3. "Long Beach Press Telegram". February 19, 1960. p. 22.
  4. Burns Mantle; John Arthur Chapman; Garrison P. Sherwood (1960). Burns Mantle Yearbook. 41. Dodd, Mead. p. 412.
  5. "Hanover Evening Sun". February 19, 1960. p. 11.
  6. "Guardian ad Litem for Gertrude Vanderbilt Dailey". The Sun. 22 July 1909. p. 5.
  7. "Gertrude Vanderbilt, 60, Dead; Former 'Ziegfeld Follies9 Star" (PDF). The New York Times. 19 February 1960.
  8. New York, Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820–1957
  9. U.S. Passport Applications, 1795–1925
  10. New York, New York, Death Index, 1892–1898, 1900–1902
  11. "Dancer sues her husband; Gertrude Dailey Says He Struck Her and She Seeks a Separation" (PDF). The New York Times. 28 June 1909.
  12. "Joys of the Season on Tour" (PDF). The New York Times. January 14, 1912.
  13. "Miss Vanderbilt to Wed" (PDF). The New York Times. November 25, 1926.
  14. Martin, Carol J. (1994). Dance Marathons: Performing American Culture of the 1920s and 1930s. University Press of Mississippi. p. 30. ISBN 9781604737684.
  15. "Won't we Baron, miss Barry declares" (PDF). The New York Times. May 9, 1928.
  16. "Miss Vanderbilt sells her home" (PDF). The New York Times. 31 July 1924.
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