| Irene Rich | |
|---|---|
| Born | Irene Luther October 13, 1891 Buffalo, New York |
| Died | April 22, 1988 (aged 96) Hope Ranch, California |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1918-1949 |
| Spouse | Elvo Deffenbaugh (?-?) 1 child Charles Rich (?-?) 2 children David Blankenthorn (1926-?) (divorced) George Henry Clifford (1950-?) |
Irene Rich (October 13, 1891 - April 22, 1988) was an American actress who worked in both silent films and talkies.
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Born Irene Luther in Buffalo, New York, Rich worked for Will Rogers, who used her in eight pictures, including Water Water Everywhere (1920), The Strange Boarder (1920), Jes' Call Me Jim (1920), Boys Will Be Boys (1921) and The Ropin' Fool (1921). She often portrayed society women, such as in the 1925 adaptation of Lady Windermere's Fan and also in Queen of the Yukon (1940).
In two of her last films she played a frontier wife and mother. She was the mother of Gail Russell's character 'Penelope Worth', in John Wayne's Angel and the Badman as well as in John Ford's cavalry story Fort Apache in which she portrayed Mrs. O'Rourke, the wife of Sergeant O'Rourke (Ward Bond).
In the 1930s, Rich did much work in radio. From 1933 to 1944, she hosted a nationwide anthology program of serialized mini-dramas, Dear John (aka The Irene Rich Show). Her leading man was actor Gale Gordon,[1] who later played Lucille Ball's apoplectic boss "Mr. Mooney" on TV. Rich also appeared in stage productions, including Seven Keys to Baldpate (1935) which starred George M. Cohan and As the Girls Go in 1948.
Rich was married four times. She had two daughters—one of whom, Frances Rich, was a stage and film actress in the 1930s before becoming a sculptor.
On April 22, 1988, Rich died at age 96 of heart failure in Hope Ranch, California.
Rich has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for her contribution to the motion picture industry at 6225 Hollywood Boulevard and one for her contributions to the radio industry at 6150 Hollywood Boulevard.
| Film | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 1918 | A Law Unto Herself | Stephanie | |
| 1919 | The Spite Bride | Eileen Moore | |
| 1920 | Stop Thief | Madge Carr | |
| 1921 | Sunset Jones | Marion Rand | |
| 1922 | The Yosemite Trail | Eve Marsham | |
| 1923 | Rosita | The Queen | |
| 1924 | Beau Brummel | Charlotte, Duchess of York | |
| Behold This Woman | Louise Maurel | ||
| Cytherea | Fanny Randon | ||
| 1925 | The Man Without a Conscience | Shirley Graves | |
| 1926 | Silken Shackles | Denise Lake | |
| 1927 | Dearie | Sylvia Darling/aka "Dearie" | |
| The Desired Woman | Diana Maxwell | ||
| 1928 | Ned McCobb's Daughter | Carol | |
| 1929 | The Exalted Flapper | Queen Charlotte of Capra | |
| They Had to See Paris | Idy Peters | ||
| 1930 | Check and Double Check | Mrs. Blair | |
| So This Is London | Mrs. Draper | ||
| 1931 | Five and Ten | Jenny Rarick | |
| The Champ | Linda | ||
| 1932 | Manhattan Tower | Ann Burns | |
| 1934 | Spitfire | Woman | Uncredited |
| 1938 | That Certain Age | Dorothy Fullerton | |
| 1939 | Everybody's Hobby | Mrs. Myra Leslie | |
| 1940 | The Mortal Storm | Amelie Roth | |
| 1941 | Three Sons o' Guns | Mrs. Margaret Patterson | |
| 1942 | This Time for Keeps | Mrs. Bryant | Alternative title: Over the Waves |
| 1947 | Calendar Girl | Lulu Varden | Alternative title: Star Dust and Sweet Music |
| 1948 | Joan of Arc | Catherine le Royer | |
| Television | |||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1949 | The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre | 1 episode | |