Iris Stuart
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Iris Stuart (February 2, 1903 - December 21, 1936) was a motion picture actress of the silent film era. Her birth name was Frances McCann.
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[edit] Model
Before breaking into films she was educated in a secretarial school. She was a magazine cover girl who was much favored by artists. Her picture was used as a model for a jewelry advertisement. Stuart was especially noted for the beauty of her hands.
[edit] Film Actress
Stuart was signed by Paramount Pictures associate producer B.P. Schulberg to a long-term contract with Famous Players in July 1926. She was first cast in a Bebe Daniels film entitled Stranded In Paris (1926). She played the part of Theresa Halstead, the movie's second lead. She obtained the role quite by accident. Director Arthur Rosson asked to view a screen test of another actress and the projection operator mixed up the reels. Rosson quickly decided on Stuart for the part. The story was adapted from a play called Jenny's Escapade.
In January 1927 she was selected with twelve other young actresses as a Wampas baby star of 1927. Some of the other women named were Sally Phipps, Natalie Kingston, Sally Rand, Frances Lee, and Helene Costello.
[edit] Illness
Stuart's health declined so rapidly that physicians advised her to admit herself to a southern California sanitarium in February 1927. Her constitution was fragile and was weakened further by work and nervous strain. Doctors believed that only care and a long period of inactivity would enable her to regain her health. Stuart resolved to rest at the home of her aunt, Mrs. J. Piatzza, in Cooperstown, New York. However, she was there but two months when she was stricken with pneumonia. The recuperative environment of the Adirondack Mountains helped cure the cold in her lungs and her hacking cough.
[edit] Comeback and Marriage
She returned to films in December 1927 against the wishes of her family. Stuart signed a new contract with Paramount-Famous-Lasky Corporation in January 1928. Her first role in her comeback was not immediately decided upon. The following month she secretly wed wealthy New York magazine publisher, Bert A. Mackinnon, in Las Vegas, Nevada. She took out a marriage license using her true name, Iris McCann. The couple postponed plans for a honeymoon and resided temporarily at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, California.
Iris Stuart died in New York City in 1936.
[edit] References
- Los Angeles Times, Paramount Has New Beauty, July 30, 1926, Page A8.
- Los Angeles Times, Magazine Cover Girl Busy, September 17, 1926, Page A8.
- Los Angeles Times, New Baby Stars Stud Film Firmament, January 7, 1927, Page A1.
- Los Angeles Times, Illness May Bar Path To Stardom, February 24, 1927, Page A1.
- Los Angeles Times, Baby Star Returns To Film City, December 3, 1927, Page A1.
- Los Angeles Times, Iris Stuart, Bride of Magazine Publisher, January 4, 1928, Page A15.
- Los Angeles Tines, Iris Stuart Signs Contract, January 17, 1928, Page A10.
- New York Times, Iris Stuart, Baby Star, Stricken, February 25, 1927, Page 25.
- Port Arthur News, Hollywood, Sunday, January 1, 1928, Page 16.
