Frances Howard | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Howard in 1953 | |
| Born | Frances Howard McLaughlin June 4, 1903 Omaha, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Died | July 2, 1976 (aged 73) |
| Resting place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1925–1935 |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Samuel Goldwyn Jr. |
| Relatives |
|
Frances Howard Goldwyn (née McLaughlin; June 4, 1903 – July 2, 1976) was an American actress. She was the second wife of producer Samuel Goldwyn, and the paternal grandmother of actors Tony and John Goldwyn.
Frances Howard McLaughlin[1] was born in Kansas City, Kansas[2] or Omaha, Nebraska in 1903[3] to Helen Victoria (née Howard) and Charles Douglas McLaughlin.[4] She was raised as a Catholic. Her mother, nicknamed Bonnie, had been raised a Quaker but converted to Catholicism, and she predeceased her daughter by five years. Her father was reportedly a grandson of Irish nationalist politician Daniel O'Connell. Howard had two sisters and a brother.[4]
Howard began her professional career at age 16 with a stock theater company.[5] When she was 21, Howard portrayed a flapper on Broadway in The Intimate Stranger. She followed that part with another flapper role in The Best People. Paramount signed her to a five-year contract, and she co-starred in the film The Swan.[2] She also appeared in Too Many Kisses (1925).[6] She had the contract canceled when she decided to marry.[2]
Howard married Samuel Goldwyn, more than two decades her senior, on April 23, 1925.[7] They remained married until Goldwyn's death on January 31, 1974. They had one son, Samuel Goldwyn Jr.;[8] their grandsons are actors Tony and John Goldwyn.[citation needed]
On July 2, 1976,[2] at the age of 73, Howard died in Beverly Hills, California more than a year after being diagnosed with advanced cancer, for which she refused treatment which would have required invasive and disfiguring surgery.[4] She was funeralized at Church of the Good Shepherd in Beverly Hills and interred next to her husband at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale.[9][10]
Howard made four films from 1925 to 1935:
The Hollywood Branch Library in the Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles is named for Howard, and it acts as an archival repository for many film collections.[11][12] The library was funded by The Samuel Goldwyn Foundation in 1982 after the previous building was destroyed by arson.[12]
