Fay Bainter | |
|---|---|
 Bainter in 1950 | |
| Born | Fay Okell Bainter (1893-12-07)December 7, 1893 Los Angeles, California, U.S.[1] |
| Died | April 16, 1968(1968-04-16) (aged 74) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Arlington National Cemetery |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1907–1961 |
| Known for | Jezebel White Banners State Fair The Children's Hour |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
Fay Okell Bainter (December 7, 1893 – April 16, 1968) was an American film and stage actress.[2] She won theAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actress forJezebel (1938) and has a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame.
Bainter was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Charles F. Bainter and Mary Okell.[3]
Bainter made her first appearance on stage in 1908 inThe County Chairman at Morosco's Theater in Burbank, California. In 1910, she was a traveling stage actress. Her Broadway debut was in the role of Celine Marinter inThe Rose of Panama (1912).P. G. Wodehouse, reviewingTurn to the Right inVanity Fair in 1916, wrote, "Miss Bainter's advent from nowhere and her instant success form the season's biggest sensation."[4] She appeared in a number of successful plays in New York, such asEast Is West,The Willow Tree, andDodsworth. In 1926, she appeared withWalter Abel in a Broadway production ofChanning Pollock'sThe Enemy.MGM persuaded her to try films and her movie debut was inThis Side of Heaven (February 1934). Also in 1934, she appeared inDodsworth on Broadway and in the filmIt Happened One Day. Bainter quickly achieved success in the movies, and in 1939, she became thefirst performer to receive two Oscar nominations in the same year, contending for bothBest Actress forWhite Banners (1938) andBest Supporting Actress forJezebel (1938), winning for the latter.[5] In 1940, she played Mrs. Gibbs in the film production of theThornton Wilder playOur Town. In 1945, she played Melissa Frake in theRodgers and Hammerstein musicalState Fair. She was again nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her role inThe Children's Hour (1961).[6]
Bainter has a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame at 7021 Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles, California.[7]
Fay Bainter and Reginald Venable were married on June 8, 1921, in Riverside, California.[8] Cmdr. Reginald Venable was a United States Navy officer who graduated from theUS Naval Academy in 1913. He resigned from the Navy in 1925 as a lieutenant commander to manage his wife's business affairs. He had been a real-estate operator.[9] The couple had one son, Reginald Venable Jr., who became an actor.[10]
Bainter was the aunt of actressDorothy Burgess.[11]
Bainter and Venable are interred atArlington National Cemetery.[12]
| Year | Program | Episode/source |
|---|---|---|
| 1946 | Suspense | 180/"The Lucky Lady" |
| 1952 | Theatre Guild on the Air | "The Search"[13] |
BAINTER—Mrs. Mary Okell, 72, mother of Fay Bainter, widely known actress, died of heart trouble at the Good Samaritan Hospital, Los Angeles, October 2. Surviving are her husband Charles F. Bainter and three daughters, Mrs. Ada M. Fitxmier, Mrs. Grace Burgess and Mrs. Fay Bainter Venable.
The year 1939 was one of repeats. Bette Davis for 'Jezebel', Spencer Tracy for 'Boys Town' and Walter Brennan for 'Kentucky', all got their second Oscars. Fay Bainter won as Best Supporting Actress for 'Jezebel', and the Best Picture was 'You Can't Take It With You'. Miss Bainter also had been nominated as Best Actress for her performance in 'White Banners'. She was the first actress to run in two categories in the same year.
Reginald S. H. Venable of Palm Springs, Calif., husband of Fay Bainter, the actress, died yesterday in a hospital there. He was 74 years old. Mr. Venable, who resigned from the Navy in 1925 as a lieutenant commander, had managed his wife's business affairs and had been a real-estate operator.
Plans were for her to be buried in Arlington national Cemetery in Virginia beside her husband, Navy Lt. Comdr. Reginald Venable, who died in 1964. Their son, actor Reginald Venable, Jr., survives.
Actress Dorothy Burgess, niece of Fay Bainter, died Sunday of cancer. Burial was Wednesday.
