Janice Gilbert (c. 1920 - 1992) was an American child actress on radio and a game-show personality on television who became an expert on bridge.

Early years

Gilbert was born Janice Wolfe[1] in New York City c. 1920.[2] Her father was Eddie Wolfe, and her uncle was composer L. Wolfe Gilbert.[3] She and her family moved to Sebring, Florida, soon after her birth, and they moved back to the northern United States when she was 8+1⁄2 years old.[4] She attended the Professional Children's School and graduated from high school before her 14th birthday.[4] By the time she was 19 years old, she had studied painting at the Art Students' League and was creating portraits of people.[5]

Radio and television

Gilbert's acting career began when she and her mother arrived early at a radio studio and watched the rehearsal. They met some of the actors, and Gilbert told them that she wanted to be an actress. When a child actress who had a role that included a southern dialect failed to appear for the broadcast, Gilbert was given an audition, and she went on the air for the first time that day.[4]

As a youngster on radio programs, Gilbert portrayed children of varied ages, including infants. A 1939 newspaper article said: "The young actress revels in baby roles. She specializes in infant cries, coos, and gurgles and is considered one of several actresses in radio capable of running the gamut of infant sounds."[6] Gilbert (then 16 years old) attributed that versatility to her having "a voice flexible enough to change."[6] She also did dialects.[6]

Gilbert's vocal versatility led to her sometimes playing more than one role on a radio program. On The O'Neills, in addition to her primary role of Janice Collins, she portrayed 2-year-old twins Margie and Junior and infant Bobby. Portraying different characters on a single show meant that Gilbert sometimes conversed with herself. One episode of The O'Neills had her "cry hysterically as Miss Collins, interrupt herself as the twins, who demanded to know what the crying was about, and then try to answer the kids through her hysteria."[7]

Partial List of Gilbert's Roles on Radio
ProgramCharacter
Bachelor's ChildrenKathleen Carney[8]
Doc Barclay's DaughtersClarabelle Higgins[9]
Gasoline AlleyNina Clock[10]
Her Honor, Nancy JamesA baby[11]
Hilltop HouseAdair[12]
Little Orphan AnnieAnnie[13]
The O'NeillsJanice Collins[14]
The Sea HoundCarol Anderson [9]: 243 
Second HusbandFran[10]: 603-604 

Other radio shows on which she performed included True Confessions[9]: 278 , Cloak and Dagger,[10]: 160  The Aldrich Family, Aunt Jenny, David Harum, Light of the World, Myrt and Marge, Pepper Young's Family, and True Story.[15] In the late 1940s and early 1950s, Gilbert was the "paying teller" on the radio and television versions of Break the Bank. In that role she presented the prize money to each winner.[16]

Bridge

Tobias Stone, whom Gilbert married in 1955,[2] was "one of the world's top bridge players", and he introduced her to that card game. She won her first tournament four months later,[17] and she set records by achieving life-master status in seven months and by accumulating the most master points in one year.[18] She said that the memory skills that had enabled her to perform in 10-12 radio and TV shows per day were an asset in playing bridge. In 1956, Stone was ranked the best bridge player in the world, and Gilbert was ranked second.[17]

The couple played as a team, and an article in the March 18, 1957, issue of Life magazine related the intensity with which Stone taught Gilbert:

Stone began his cram course on championship play with a blunt lecture: "You can't be a lady. You've got to hate everybody you play against. There must be no casual conversation because it might interfere with your play. You have got to be killer whether you like it or not." He taught her the complicated bidding system that he and Alvin Roth devised and forbade her to open her mouth at the table except to bid. Stone would do all the talking for both of them.[19]

In 1957 they became the only married couple to win the Goldman Pairs in its 64-year history. In 1965 they won the Master Mixed Team Championship. Gilbert also was part of three additional national championship groups, Women's Teams (1956, 1969) and Life Master Women's Pairs (1965).[2]

Personal life

Gilbert's first marriage was to William Miles. She next married William Dunlop. She and Stone divorced in 1975. In 1980 she married David Fulton, a mining engineer. She had a son and a daughter.[2]

Boating accident and presumed death

Gilbert and Fulton were lost in choppy waters when their fishing boat capsized in the Caribbean about 150 miles north of Haiti on November 12, 1992. Ian Miller, Gilbert's attorney said that both were presumed dead, as was another passenger in the 22-foot boat. The Coast Guard and private planes searched the area, and two passengers were rescued from the righted boat on November 13. The search, which had been initiated after Miller alerted authorities that the Fultons had not returned home, ended on November 15.[2]

References

  1. ↑ "Radio to turn spotlight on guest stars". Tampa Sunday Tribune. February 16, 1941. p. Part 3 - Page 11. Retrieved June 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Barron, James (November 17, 1992). "Janice G. Fulton, A Bridge Champion, Is Presumed Dead". The New York Times. p. D 21. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
  3. ↑ Steinhauser, Si (August 18, 1937). "Radio Star Manager Leads His Daughter To Fame on Network". The Pittsburgh Press. p. 18. Retrieved June 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. 1 2 3 Merwin, Gregory (September 1954). "The girl who gave away $3,000,000!" (PDF). TV Radio Mirror. pp. 52–53, 93–95. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  5. ↑ "Janice Gilbert is a radio crybaby". Chattanooga Daily Times. March 15, 1942. p. 74. Retrieved June 19, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. 1 2 3 "Just Loves to Bawl". Pensacola News Journal. May 7, 1939. p. 18. Retrieved June 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Girl Can Prattle In Four Keys". The Sacramento Bee. May 20, 1939. p. Magazine Section - 7. Retrieved June 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ Terrace, Vincent (September 2, 2015). Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows. McFarland. pp. 32–33. ISBN 978-1-4766-0528-9. Retrieved June 18, 2023.
  9. 1 2 3 Lackmann, Ron (2000). The Encyclopedia of American Radio: An A-Z Guide to Radio from Jack Benny to Howard Stern (PDF). p. 85. ISBN 0-8160-4137-7. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  10. 1 2 3 Dunning, John (May 7, 1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio. Oxford University Press. p. 160. ISBN 978-0-19-977078-6. Retrieved June 18, 2023.
  11. ↑ Fizdale, Tom (December 29, 1938). "Listen to This". The Brookville American. p. 7. Retrieved June 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "Star-studded cast will support Bess Johnson in new 'Hilltop House' series". The Wichita Eagle. October 31, 1937. p. 15. Retrieved June 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ "'Orphan Annie' back; Janice Gilbert to play leading part". Chicago Tribune. January 26, 1941. p. 11. Retrieved June 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ Steinhauser, Si (March 2, 1938). "Radio Juvenile Plays Anything, Twins, Quins, or Plain Cry Baby". The Pittsburgh Press. p. 24. Retrieved June 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ↑ "Who's News In Radio And TV". Dayton Daily News. June 20, 1953. p. 7. Retrieved June 19, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ↑ Toomey, Elizabeth (March 30, 1952). "Radio Girl Gives Away Millions But It's Studio Dough, Not Hers". Portland Press Herald. United Press. p. 11. Retrieved June 19, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. 1 2 Eaton, Nancy (July 11, 1964). "Actress Turned Bridge Pro Relies On Memory". Monroe Morning World. Associated Press. p. 1-B. Retrieved June 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ Truscott, Alan (November 18, 1992). "Bridge: Remembering the multiple talents of Jan Stone, a tournament champion and actress". The New York Times. p. C 23. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  19. ↑ "Bridge". Life. March 18, 1957. p. 110. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
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