Kate Mayhew
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Kate Mayhew | |
|---|---|
 Kate Mayhew as M'liss in c. 1878 | |
| Born | September 2, 1853 |
| Died | May 16, 1944 (aged 90) New York |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1870s–1936 |
Kate Mayhew (September 2, 1853 – June 16, 1944), also known as Katie Mayhew and Kate Mayhew Widmer,[1] was an American stage and radio actress. She first performed on stage as a four year old child at the Metropolitan Opera House in Indianapolis, and her first New York performance was at Niblo's Garden Theatre in 1873.[1]
Mayhew became involved in producing plays, and owned the rights to M'Liss written by Clay M. Greene (adapted from a story by Bret Harte), in the 1870s.[1] Mayhew performed the title role herself at the Grand Opera House in New York in September 1878, however, a legal battle over rights to the play eventually saw Annie Pixley take up the role to critical acclaim.[1][2]
She performed in productions of Shakespeare, playing the roles of Juliet's Mother in Romeo and Juliet, and Gertrude, Queen of Denmark, in Hamlet.[3]
In the 1890s, she appeared in Oriental parts.[citation needed]
She was long on Broadway in support of most of the well-known names.[citation needed] She made films, and also voiced characters for radio programmes.[3]
One of her last Broadway appearances was in the 1934 stage production of The Farmer Takes a Wife with Henry Fonda and June Walker.[4]
She was born in Indianapolis, Indiana and died in New York aged 90.[4]
Mayhew donated playbills and other theatre ephemera to the New York Public Library in 1930.[5]
