Inez Courtney (October 12, 1897[1][2] – April 5, 1975) was an American actress on the Broadway stage and in films.

Inez Courtney
Still for the romantic crime film It Couldn't Have Happened – But It Did (1936)
Born(1897-10-12)October 12, 1897
DiedApril 5, 1975(1975-04-05) (aged 77)
OccupationActress
Years active1930–1940 (retired)
Spouse(s)Luigi Filiasi (1935–?)
Howard "Stanley" Paschal (1931–1933)

Early years

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Born in Amsterdam, New York, Courtney came from a large Irish-American family. After her father's death when she was fifteen, she decided to go onto the stage.

Career

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At age 16, Courtney was doing a specialty dance that earned her the nicknames of St Vitis, Mosquito and Lightning.

Courtney's first role as a singer and dancer came in the musical The Little Whopper in 1919.[3] She became known among New York theatrical audiences for her work in Good News (1927), a musical comedy about college life. Her other credits include Spring Is Here (1929) and America's Sweetheart (1931).[4] In the early 1930s, she left Broadway and went to Hollywood.[5]

Courtney acted in 58 films between 1930 and 1940. She secured her first movie work by asking Harry Cohn of Columbia Pictures for his assistance. She made her screen debut as Cousin Betty in Loose Ankles (1930). Her movie credits include The Raven (1935), Suzy (1936), The Shop Around the Corner (1940), and Turnabout (1940), her last film.

Personal life and death

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On June 20, 1931, Courtney married broker Howard S. Paschal in Rye, New York. They were divorced on May 10, 1933.[6] Courtney was married to an Italian nobleman, whereby she acquired the title Marchesa, but did not use it.[citation needed] On April 5, 1975, Courtney died at the Jersey Shore Medical Center in Neptune, New Jersey.[5]

Partial filmography

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*Makers of Melody" (1929) dance number. 'The Girlfriend' with Allan Gould

References

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  1. ^ 1948 passenger list stating birth date October 12. "Ancestry. com".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ Birth date 12 October 1897. "Social Security death index".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ "Ibdb.com".
  4. ^ Dietz, Dan (2018). "America's Sweetheart". The Complete Book of 1930s Broadway Musicals (hardcover) (1st ed.). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. pp. 103–106. ISBN 978-1-5381-0276-3.
  5. ^ a b "Inez Courtney". The New York Times. April 7, 1975. p. 34. Retrieved December 24, 2020 – via ProQuest.
  6. ^ "Inez Courtney Wins Divorce". The New York Times. May 11, 1933. p. 14. Retrieved December 24, 2020 – via ProQuest.

Bibliography

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