Ottilie Turnbull Seybolt
A young white woman wearing a high-collared white blouse with lace trim
Ottilie Turnbull (later Seybolt), from a 1910 yearbook
BornApril 9, 1889
New Britain, Connecticut
DiedSeptember 10, 1978 (aged 89)
Lane County, Oregon
Occupation(s)Theatre professor, theatrical director

Ottilie Turnbull Seybolt (April 9, 1889 – September 10, 1978) was an American theatre professor and director. She was head of the drama program and a speech professor at the University of Oregon from 1928 until her retirement in 1955.

Early life and education

Turnbull was born in New Britain, Connecticut, the daughter of George James Turnbull and Emily S. Nash Turnbull. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 1910.[1] She earned a master's degree in English and drama from the University of Wisconsin in 1915, and pursued further studies at the Curry School of Expression in Boston, at Columbia University, and at the University of California.[2]

Career

Turnbull taught at the University of Wisconsin, Peru State Normal School in Nebraska,[3] and Vassar College[2][4] before becoming an assistant professor at Smith College in 1925. She joined the faculty of Grinnell College in 1927, and in 1928 became a professor of speech[5] and drama department chair at the University of Oregon.[6] She was active in the Very Little Theatre company,[1][7] and director of the Guild players.[8][9] She regularly directed, and sometimes acted in, college and community dramatic productions in Eugene in the 1930s and 1940s.[10][11][12][13] "Mrs. Seybolt's portrayal of the tragic mother in the summer production of Ghosts was in the opinion of many, one of the outstanding pieces of acting in recent Guild hall plays," reported the Eugene Guard in 1936.[14] She retired from the university in 1955.[15]

Seybolt toured California for three weeks in 1929, studying little theatre programs in Pasadena, Santa Barbara, and Carmel, among other communities.[16] She visited Hollywood film sets in 1938, and decided that "the screen must be accepted as an entirely different theatre from that of the stage, and the actor must change his method of work accordingly."[17]

Personal life

Turnbull married education professor Robert Francis Seybolt in 1913. They divorced before his second marriage in 1926.[18] She traveled in her retirement,[19][20][21] and gave poetry readings.[22] In 1962 she suffered a head injury in a fall while teaching at the University of South Carolina.[23][24] She died in 1978, at the age of 89, in Oregon.

References

  1. 1 2 Berkeley, Pepper (1960-11-06). "'Emeritus', 'Retired'-and Hard at Work; at 71, Drama Teacher Still Active with Stage". The Eugene Guard. p. 21. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. 1 2 Vassar College (1923). Reports of the President and the Treasurer. p. 48.
  3. ↑ "Peru State Normal". The Nebraska Teacher. 22 (1): 42. September 1919.
  4. ↑ College, Vassar (1922). Annual Catalogue...
  5. ↑ "'Othello' Next at UO Theater". The Eugene Guard. 1950-11-21. p. 13. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "Our History, University Theatre". University of Oregon. Retrieved 2023-01-29.
  7. ↑ "VLT Elects New Officers". The Eugene Guard. 1942-04-06. p. 5. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "'Romeo and Juliet' Staged Colorfully by Guild Group". The Eugene Guard. 1935-06-01. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Campus Play to Open Wednesday; Town Folk Asked". The Eugene Guard. 1933-02-21. p. 3. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Summer Theatre Presents Ibsen Play for Opener". The Eugene Guard. 1935-07-11. p. 3. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "'Hotel Universe' Capably Handled by Guild Players". The Eugene Guard. 1931-05-17. p. 5. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "'George and Margaret' is Tops, There's More in it than Billed". The Eugene Guard. 1941-07-10. p. 14. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ Harbert, Wayne (1940-12-05). "Campus Players Strike Spot in Lively 'Berkeley Square'". The Eugene Guard. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ "University Play Cast is Announced". The Eugene Guard. 1936-01-08. p. 12. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ↑ "Expert to Give Tips to Amateur Players". The Eugene Guard. 1957-06-30. p. 18. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ↑ "Little Theatres Viewed; Mrs. Ottilie Turnbull Seybolt Home from Trip to Various Cities in California". Eugene Register. 1929-09-13. p. 4. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ↑ Hasselrooth, Glenn (1938-09-19). "Mrs. Ottilie Seybolt Enjoys Visit on Hollywood Sets". The Eugene Guard. p. 12. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ "U. of Illinois Prof is Found Shot to Death". Chicago Tribune. 1951-02-06. p. 3. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ↑ Connell, Ann (1956-06-24). "Ottilie Seybolt Writes of Stone Age Village". The Eugene Guard. p. 35. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ↑ Connell, Ann (1957-02-19). "Eugenean Visits Historical British Sites". The Eugene Guard. p. 6. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ↑ Connell, Ann (1957-02-20). "Ottilie Seybolt Visits Orkneys". The Eugene Guard. p. 7. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ↑ "Interfaith Tea Tuesday". The Eugene Guard. 1961-05-14. p. 34. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ↑ "Mrs. Seybolt Reportedly Hurt in Fall". The Eugene Guard. 1962-04-19. p. 12. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ↑ "Mrs. Seybolt Reported Better". The Eugene Guard. 1962-04-30. p. 25. Retrieved 2023-01-29 – via Newspapers.com.
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