May McAvoy
McAvoy in 1924
Born	May Irene McAvoy (1899-09-08)September 8, 1899 New York City, U.S.
Died	April 26, 1984(1984-04-26) (aged 84) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting place	Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City,California, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1917–1959
Spouses	Maurice Cleary ​ ​ (m. 1929; div. 1940)​ ​ ​ (m. 1971)​
Children	1

May Irene McAvoy^{[citation needed]} (September 8, 1899 – April 26, 1984)^[1] was an American actress who worked mainly during thesilent-film era. Some of her major roles are Laura Pennington inThe Enchanted Cottage, Esther inBen-Hur, and Mary Dale inThe Jazz Singer.

May Irene McAvoy was born on September 8, 1899, in New York City to Julia Agnes McAvoy (née Reilly) and James Patrick McAvoy, who were both first generation Irish-Americans. The 1910 census lists her as living with her maternal grandparents inSussex, New Jersey.^{[citation needed]}

McAvoy debuted as an extra in the filmHate in 1917.^[2] After appearing in more than three dozen films, she co-starred withRamón Novarro andFrancis X. Bushman in directorFred Niblo's 1925 production ofBen-Hur released byMGM. She also portrayed Lady Windermere inErnst Lubitsch'sLady Windermere's Fan (1925).

In addition to acting inThe Jazz Singer, McAvoy coached Al Jolson as he made his film debut.^[3] Although her voice was not heard inThe Jazz Singer, she spoke in several other films, including the second sound film released byWarner Brothers,The Terror, which was directed byRoy Del Ruth and co-starredConrad Nagel.

For years, a rumor circulated that McAvoy retired from the screen at the transition to sound films because of a lisp or speech impediment.^[4] In truth, she married the treasurer ofUnited Artists, who asked her not to work.^[4]

Later, she returned to films and played small, uncredited roles during the 1940s and 1950s, making her final film appearance in a small part of the 1959 version ofBen-Hur. Most of her later uncredited work was performed forMGM.^[5]

McAvoy was the Rose Queen in theRose Parade in 1923.^[6]

McAvoy married banker Maurice Cleary on June 26, 1929,^[7] with whom she had a son named Patrick,^[1] and divorced him in 1940.^[8] They remarried on December 10, 1971. She was a registeredRepublican.^[9] McAvoy was a lifelongRoman Catholic.^[10]

On April 26, 1984, McAvoy died at the age of 84 from the after effects of aheart attack suffered the previous year.^[2] She is interred in theHoly Cross Cemetery inCulver City, California.^[1]

For her contribution to the motion picture industry, May McAvoy has a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame at 1731 Vine Street.^[11]

1917-1929

1940-1959

Wikimedia Commons has media related toMay McAvoy.

• May McAvoy atIMDb
• Photography and bibliography
• May McAvoy portrait gallery NY Public Library (Billy Rose collection)

• 1899 births
• 1984 deaths
• Actresses from New York City
• American film actresses
• American silent film actresses
• Burials at Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City
• 20th-century American actresses
• American Roman Catholics
• New York (state) Republicans
• California Republicans

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