Irene Rich
Rich in 1930
Born
Irene Frances Luther

(1891-10-13)October 13, 1891
DiedApril 22, 1988(1988-04-22) (aged 96)
OccupationActress
Years active19181949
Spouses
Elvo Deffenbaugh
(m. 1909; div. 1911)
    Charles Rich
    (m. 1912; div. 1916)
      David F. Blankenhorn
      (m. 1927; div. 1931)
        George Henry Clifford
        (m. 1950; died 1959)
        Children2, including Frances Rich

        Irene Frances Rich (née Luther; October 13, 1891 April 22, 1988) was an American actress who worked in both silent films, talkies, and radio.

        Early life

        Irene Rich

        Rich was born in Buffalo, New York.[1]

        At age 17, she wed Elvo Elcourt Deffenbaugh at All Saints' Cathedral in Spokane, Washington on February 17, 1909,[2] after her parents talked about sending her to boarding school. The couple had one child, born Irene Frances Luther Deffenbaugh, who later adopted her stepfather's surname and was a stage and film actress in the 1930s known as Frances Rich before becoming a noted sculptor. Elvo Deffenbaugh was a salesman who traveled a lot. The young family moved to the Bay Area of San Francisco, where the marriage ended after two years.[1]

        Next, Irene married Charles Henry Rich, who was then a lieutenant in the United States Army (became a major during World War I and was later a lieutenant colonel), in Portland, Oregon on January 9, 1912. The two had met when he was stationed with the 25th Infantry at Fort George Wright in Spokane.[3] They had one daughter, Martha Jane Rich, who was born on December 13, 1916.[4] The marriage ended after four years. Luther went into real estate to provide for herself and her daughters. She then went to Hollywood in 1918 and found work as an extra.[1]

        Career

        Rich with Will Rogers and Theodore Lodi in Down to Earth, 1932

        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, (who later played Lucille Ball's apoplectic boss "Mr. Mooney" on TV). In the early 1940s, Rich starred in Glorious One on NBC Blue.[5] Rich appeared in stage productions, including Seven Keys to Baldpate (1935) which starred George M. Cohan, the creator of the play, and later As the Girls Go in 1948.

        Personal life

        Rich married for the third time on April 6, 1927 in Del Monte, California, to real estate mogul David Ferguson Blankenhorn (1886–1969), at the home of William May Garland. Blankenhorn was well known in the Los Angeles real estate market, was a longtime resident of Pasadena and San Francisco, and handled the transaction of William Wrigley, Jr. purchasing Catalina Island in 1919.[6] Rich and Blankenhorn separated at least three times in the summer and fall of 1931,[7] they filed for divorce on October 30, 1931,[8] they were divorced that November.

        She became involved in a deadly love triangle in 1949 when Agnes Elizabeth Garnier shot and killed wealthy businessman John Edwin Owen (18811949). Owen, formerly a businessman and politician from Michigan, was president of the National Apartment House Owners' Association, among other business interests, including cattle and horse ranching in Gunnison, Colorado and Riverside, California. The Riverside County Sheriff's Department investigator said that Garnier killed Owen (who was married, but estranged and separated from his wife) and blamed Rich for coming between them. Garnier, Owen's personal secretary, told the district attorney that the gun went off accidentally and she took the gun from an intoxicated Owen as he was going to bed. Rich said that she was not in love with Owen and that they were just friends.[9] Garnier pleaded not guilty.[10] The prosecutor decided not to try for first degree murder,[11] and she was found guilty of manslaughter, and received a sentence of "one-to-ten" years.[12] Garnier, after losing her appeal in January 1950,[13] was released from Tehachapi Prison in May 1951 after serving less than a year-and-a-half.[14] She died in San Diego in 1990 at the age of 93.[15]

        Family and death

        Rich was married four times, the first time at age 17. She had two daughters, Frances and Jane.[1] On February 28, 1950, Rich married her last husband, George Henry Clifford (1881–1959), a public utilities executive, at The Sherry-Netherland Hotel in New York City. He was president of Stone & Webster Service Corporation.[16] The couple bought an avocado ranch within Hope Ranch, near Santa Barbara, in 1956,[17] where they lived out the remainder of their lives.

        On April 22, 1988, Irene Rich died at age 96 of heart failure in Hope Ranch, California.[1]

        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.

        Filmography

        Year Title Role Notes
        1918 A Desert Wooing Bit Role Uncredited
        The Girl in His House Betty Burlingham Lost film
        A Law Unto Herself Stephanie
        1919 Todd of the Times Janet Milton Lost film
        The Man in the Open Kate Lost film
        Diane of the Green Van Keela Lost film
        The Silver Girl Julia Raymond
        Castles in the Air Mrs. Owen Pauncefort Lost film
        The Lone Star Ranger Mrs. Laramie Lost film
        The Blue Bonnet Martha Drake Lost film
        The Sneak Enid Granley Lost film
        Wolves of the Night Juanita Lost film
        Her Purchase Price Marda Lost film
        The Spite Bride Eileen Moore
        1920 Water, Water, Everywhere Hope Beecher Lost film
        The Street Called Straight Drusilla Fane Lost film
        The Strange Boarder Jane Ingraham Lost film
        Jes' Call Me Jim Miss Butterworth
        Stop Thief Madge Carr
        Just Out of College Miss Jones Lost film
        Godless Men Black Pawl's Wife
        1921 Sunset Jones Marion Rand Lost film
        One Man in a Million Madame Maureveau Lost film
        Boys Will Be Boys Lucy Lost film
        A Tale of Two Worlds Mrs. Carmichael
        A Voice in the Dark Blanche Walton
        Desperate Trails Mrs. Walker Lost film
        The Invisible Power Laura Chadwick Lost film
        The Poverty of Riches Mrs. Holt Lost film
        1922 The Call of Home Alix Lansing Lost film
        Strength of the Pines Linda Lost film
        The Trap The Teacher
        One Clear Call Maggie Thornton
        A Fool There Was Mrs. Schuyler Lost film
        The Yosemite Trail Eve Marsham Lost film
        The Ropin' Fool The Girl Short
        Brawn of the North Marion Wells Lost film
        While Justice Waits Nell Hunt Lost film
        The Marriage Chance Mary Douglas Lost film
        Fruits of Faith Larry's Wife Short
        1923 Dangerous Trails Grace Alderson
        Brass Mrs. Grotenberg / aka Mrs. G
        Snowdrift Kitty Lost film
        Michael O'Halloran Nellie Minturn Lost film
        Yesterday's Wife Megan Daye Lost film
        Rosita The Queen
        Defying Destiny Beth Alden
        Lucretia Lombard Lucretia Morgan
        Boy of Mine Ruth Latimer Lost film
        1924 Pal o' Mine Julia Montfort
        Beau Brummel Frederica Charlotte, Duchess of York
        Cytherea Fanny Randon Lost film
        Being Respectable Suzanne Schuyler Lost film
        Captain January Isabelle Morton
        A Woman Who Sinned Mrs. Ransdell Lost film
        Behold This Woman Louise Maurel
        What the Butler Saw Mrs. Barrington
        This Woman Carol Drayton
        A Lost Lady Marian Forrester Lost film
        1925 My Wife and I Mrs. James Borden Lost film
        The Man Without a Conscience Shirley Graves
        Eve's Lover Eva Burnside Lost film
        The Wife Who Wasn't Wanted Mrs. John Mannering Lost film
        Compromise Joan Trevore Lost film
        The Pleasure Buyers Joan Wiswell
        Lady Windermere's Fan Mrs. Erlynne
        1926 Silken Shackles Denise Lake Lost film
        The Honeymoon Express Mary Lambert Lost film
        My Official Wife Helene, Countess Orloff Lost film
        1927 Don't Tell the Wife Mrs. Cartier Lost film
        The Climbers Duchess of Arrogan Lost film
        Dearie Sylvia Darling / aka "Dearie" Lost film
        The Desired Woman Diana Maxwell Lost film
        The Silver Slave Bernice Randall Lost film
        1928 Beware of Married Men Myra Martin Incomplete film, one reel survives
        Across the Atlantic Minor Role Lost film
        Uncredited
        Powder My Back Fritzi Foy Lost film
        Craig's Wife Mrs. Craig Lost film
        The Perfect Crime Stella Lost film
        first Irene Rich film to have dialogue, a part-talkie from FBO
        Women They Talk About Irene Mervin Hughes Lost film
        Ned McCobb's Daughter Carol Lost film
        1929 Daughters of Desire
        The Exalted Flapper Queen Charlotte of Capra Lost film
        They Had to See Paris Idy Peters
        Shanghai Rose Shanghai Rose
        1930 So This Is London Mrs. Hiram Draper
        On Your Back Julianne
        Check and Double Check Mrs. Blair
        1931 Beau Ideal Lady Brandon
        Father's Son Ruth Emory
        Strangers May Kiss Celia
        Five and Ten Jenny Rarick
        The Mad Parade Mrs. Schuyler
        Wicked Mrs. Luther
        The Champ Linda Carleton
        1932 Down to Earth Idy Peters
        Her Mad Night Joan Manners
        Manhattan Tower Ann Burns
        1934 Spitfire Woman (scenes deleted)
        1938 Hollywood Handicap Woman at Racetrack Short
        Uncredited
        That Certain Age Dorothy Fullerton
        1939 The Right Way Mrs. Martin Short
        Everybody's Hobby Mrs. Myra Leslie
        1940 The Mortal Storm Mrs. Emilia Roth
        The Lady in Question Michele Morestan
        Queen of the Yukon Sadie Martin
        Keeping Company Mrs. Thomas
        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
        Angel and the Badman Mrs. Worth
        New Orleans Mrs. Rutledge Smith
        1948 Fort Apache Mary O'Rourke
        Joan of Arc Catherine le Royer
        Television
        Year Title Role Notes
        1949 The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre 1 episode, (final appearance)

        References

        1. 1 2 3 4 5 Flint, Peter B. (April 25, 1988), "Irene Rich, Silent-Screen Actress And Radio Personality, Dies at 96", The New York Times
        2. "Society", The Spokesman-Review, p. 2, February 21, 1909
        3. "Spokane Society Woman Becomes Bride Of Lieutenant From Fort", Spokane Daily Chronicle, p. 3, January 9, 1912
        4. California Birth Index - California Department of Health Services Office of Health Information and Research.
        5. "(photo caption)" (PDF). Radio and Television Mirror. 14 (6): 26. October 1940. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
        6. "Irene Rich Is Married", The Spokesman-Review, Associated Press, April 7, 1927
        7. Merrick, Mollie (October 30, 1931), "Stars And Talkies Of Hollywood", The Spokesman-Review, North American Newspaper Alliance, p. 5
        8. "Irene Rich Cruel, Charge", The Spokesman-Review, Associated Press, p. 1, October 30, 1931
        9. "Woman Held For Killing Wealthy Man", St. Petersburg Times, Associated Press, p. 1, April 24, 1949
        10. "Owen Case Witness Names Irene Rich", Los Angeles Times, p. 4, May 10, 1949
        11. Ryon, Art (June 17, 1949), "Garnier Case May Go to Jury Today", Los Angeles Times, p. 5
        12. Ryon, Art (June 18, 1949), "Mrs. Garnier Convicted of Manslaughter", Los Angeles Times, p. 1
        13. "Mrs. Garnier Must Go to Prison for Slaying", Los Angeles Times, p. 4, January 19, 1950
        14. "Mrs. Gamier Is Released From Prison", Los Angeles Times, p. A, May 9, 1951
        15. California Death Index. - California Department of Health Services Office of Health Information and Research.
        16. "Irene Rich To Marry Again", The Hartford Courant, p. 2, February 28, 1950
        17. "Drama", Los Angeles Times, p. 26, March 5, 1956
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