May McAvoy
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia May McAvoy (September 8, 1899 – April 26, 1984) was an American actress who worked mainly during the silent film era. Some of her major roles are Laura Pennington in The Enchanted Cottage, Esther in Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ, and Mary Dale in The Jazz Singer. McAvoy appeared in her first film, entitled Hate, in 1917. After appearing in more than three dozen films, she co-starred with Ramón Novarro and Francis X. Bushman in director Fred Niblo's 1925 production of Ben-Hur, released by MGM. The feature-length film was one of the most lavish and spectacular productions of the silent movie era. Although her voice was not heard in The Jazz Singer, McAvoy did speak in several other films, including the second "all-talkie" released by Warner Brothers, The Terror, which was directed by Roy Del Ruth and co-starred Conrad 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. In truth, she married the treasurer of United Artists, who asked her not to work. Later, she returned to films and played small roles during the 1940s and 1950s, making her final film appearance in a small part in the 1959 version of Ben-Hur.
Personal Details
Movies (50)
Gareth Hughes
as Self (archive footage)
2000
Ben-Hur
as Woman in crowd (uncredited)
1959
Executive Suite
as Grimm's Secretary (uncredited)
1954
The Bad and the Beautiful
as Pebbel's Secretary (uncredited)
1952
Mystery Street
as Nurse (uncredited)
1950
The Yellow Cab Man
as (uncredited)
1950
Luxury Liner
as Woman (uncredited)
1948
Movie Pests
as Woman Whose Vision Gets Blocked (uncredited)
1944
Two Girls and a Sailor
as Dowager (uncredited)
1944
Mr. Blabbermouth!
1942
Rio Rita
as Hotel Guest (uncredited)
1942
Born to Sing
as (uncredited)
1942
Main Street on the March!
as Window Shopper (uncredited)
1941
Ringside Maisie
as 1st Nurse (uncredited)
1941
Sucker List
as Secretary (uncredited)
1941
Love Crazy
as Sanity Hearing Secretary (uncredited)
1941
1-2-3-Go!
as Nurse
1941
Whispers
as Gossip (uncredited)
1941
Third Finger, Left Hand
as Telephone Operator (uncredited)
1940
Dulcy
as Miss Murphy - Van Dyke's Secretary (uncredited)
1940
Phantom Raiders
as Middle Telephone Operator
1940
Hollywood: Style Center of the World
as Saleslady
1940
Two Girls on Broadway
as Chatworth's Secretary (uncredited)
1940
No Defense
as Ruth Harper
1929
Stolen Kisses
as May Lambert
1929
The Terror
as Olga Redmayne
1928
Caught in the Fog
as The Girl
1928
The Lion and the Mouse
as Shirley Ross
1928
The Little Snob
as May Banks
1928
If I Were Single
as May Howard
1927
A Reno Divorce
as Carla
1927
The Jazz Singer
as Mary Dale
1927
Slightly Used
as Cynthia Martin
1927
Irish Hearts
as Sheila
1927
Matinee Ladies
as Sallie Smith
1927
The Fire Brigade
as Helen Corwin
1926
The Savage
as Ysabel Atwater
1926
The Passionate Quest
1926
My Old Dutch
as Sal Gratton
1926
The Road to Glory
as Judith Allen
1926
Lady Windermere's Fan
as Lady Windermere
1925
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
as Esther
1925
Tessie
as Tessie
1925
The Mad Whirl
as Cathleen Gillis
1925
Three Women
as Jeannie Wilton
1924
Tarnish
as Letitia Tevis
1924
The Bedroom Window
as Ruth Martin
1924
The Enchanted Cottage
as Laura Pennington
1924
West of the Water Tower
as Bee Chew
1924
Her Reputation
as Jacqueline Lanier
1923