Pauline Chase

Pauline Chase

Chase circa 1905
Born Ellen Pauline Matthew Bliss
(1885-05-20)May 20, 1885
Washington, D.C.
Died March 15, 1962(1962-03-15) (aged 76)
Royal Tunbridge Wells

Pauline Chase (May 20, 1885 March 15, 1962) was an American actress who performed on the stage in both the United States and the United Kingdom. She is known for her extended run in the title role of British productions of Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up.

Biography

She was born Ellen Pauline Matthew Bliss in Washington, D.C. on May 20, 1885. She was schooled at the Convent of the Sisters of the Holy Cross in New York.[1][2]

She began acting at the age of 15. She played one of the Lost Boys in the debut of Peter Pan in London in 1904. She was later selected by producer Charles Frohman and playwright J. M. Barrie for the title role, which she played from 19061913.[2][3]

She retired from the stage after the Christmas run of Peter Pan ended in 1913 to marry banker Captain Alexander Victor Drummond. They had three children.[2]

She came out of retirement in 1916 for her only screen appearance in The Real Thing at Last, a satirical film scripted by Barrie and shown at a benefit for the YMCA, attended by members of the British royal family.[2]

She was said to have had an affair with explorer Robert Falcon Scott before he was married.[1]

She died in Royal Tunbridge Wells, England in 1962.[4]

References

  1. 1 2 Collector's Post
  2. 1 2 3 4 StageBeauty.net web site, Don Gillan
  3. A 1909 New York Times news article about Barrie's divorce refers to the couple adopting her though Barrie biographers make no note of this happening. StageBeauty.net refers to her as Barrie's god-daughter.
  4. "Pauline Chase, 76, Actress In Britain". New York Times. March 5, 1962. Retrieved 2010-04-17. Pauline Chase, 76, American born actress who played the title role in ...
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