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Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Known Credits

54

Gender

Female

Birthday

1864-11-04

Day of Death

1944-05-30 (80 years old)

Place of Birth

Gloucester, Massachusetts, USA

Also Known As

Jessie Ralph Chambers

Jessie Rolph

Jessie Ralph Patton

Jessie Ralph

Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jessie Ralph (born Jessie Ralph Chambers, November 5, 1864 – May 30, 1944) was an American stage and screen actress, best known for her matronly roles in many classic motion pictures. She was born in Gloucester, Massachusetts, in 1864. She made her acting debut in 1880, at the age of sixteen. She made it to Broadway, where George M. Cohan cast her in many of his musicals, but she also excelled at dramatic roles. Although she made her Hollywood debut in 1916, in a motion picture career that would eventually span 25 years, she only became a permanent Hollywood actress in 1933. She was nearly 70 at this time, so her roles were limited to matronly roles, but her expertise at stealing scenes captured the imagination of cinema-goers of the time. Her best-known roles are as Greta Garbo's maid in Camille, as W.C. Fields' battle-axe of a mother-in-law in The Bank Dick, as Myrna Loy's supercilious aunt Katherine in After the Thin Man, and as Nurse Peggotty in David Copperfield. She starred in 55 movies altogether, 52 between 1933 and 1941. Jessie Ralph retired from Hollywood in 1941, after her leg was amputated. She died four years later in her home town of Gloucester at the age of 79. She was buried in Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Gloucester, Massachusetts.

Known For

Acting

The Bank Dick

1940

The Bank Dick

as

Mrs. Hermisillo Brunch

Double Wedding

1937

Double Wedding

as

Mrs. Kensington-Bly

Little Lord Fauntleroy

1936

Little Lord Fauntleroy

as

Applewoman

After the Thin Man

1936

After the Thin Man

as

Aunt Katherine Forrest

Camille

1936

Camille

as

Nanine

Les Misérables

1935

Les Misérables

as

Madame Magloire

Elmer, the Great

1933

Elmer, the Great

as

Sarah Crosby (uncredited)

Captain Blood

1935

Captain Blood

as

Mrs. Barlow

Murder at the Vanities

1934

Murder at the Vanities

as

Mrs. Helene Smith

Drums Along the Mohawk

1939

Drums Along the Mohawk

as

Mrs. Weaver

Cocktail Hour

1933

Cocktail Hour

as

Princess

The Last of Mrs. Cheyney

1937

The Last of Mrs. Cheyney

as

The Duchess of Ebley

Evelyn Prentice

1934

Evelyn Prentice

as

Mrs. Blake

One Night of Love

1934

One Night of Love

as

Angelina

Child of Manhattan

1933

Child of Manhattan

as

Aunt Minnie

The Lady from Cheyenne

1941

The Lady from Cheyenne

as

Mrs. McGuinness

Port of Seven Seas

1938

Port of Seven Seas

as

Honorine

The Kid From Texas

1939

The Kid From Texas

as

Aunt Minetta

Enchanted April

1935

Enchanted April

as

Mrs. Phoebe Fisher

The Unguarded Hour

1936

The Unguarded Hour

as

Lady Agatha Hathaway

Bunker Bean

1936

Bunker Bean

as

Grandmother

Love Is a Headache

1938

Love Is a Headache

as

Sheriff Janet Winfield

I Want a Divorce

1940

I Want a Divorce

as

Grandma Brokaw

Metropolitan

1935

Metropolitan

as

Charwoman

Hold That Kiss

1938

Hold That Kiss

as

Aunt Lucy

David Copperfield

1935

David Copperfield

as

Clara Peggotty

Walking on Air

1936

Walking on Air

as

Evelyn Bennett

We Live Again

1934

We Live Again

as

Matrona Pavlovna

Nana

1934

Nana

as

Zoe

Yellow Dust

1936

Yellow Dust

as

Mrs. Brian

The Blue Bird

1940

The Blue Bird

as

Fairy Berylune

Star Dust

1940

Star Dust

as

Aunt Martha Parker

Paris in Spring

1935

Paris in Spring

as

Countess de Charelle

Cafe Society

1939

Cafe Society

as

Mrs. De Witt

Four Girls in White

1939

Four Girls in White

as

Miss Tobias

Jalna

1935

Jalna

as

Gran Whiteoaks

Mickey the Kid

1939

Mickey the Kid

as

Veronica Hudson

St. Louis Blues

1939

St. Louis Blues

as

Aunt Tibbie

I Live My Life

1935

I Live My Life

as

Mrs. O.H.B. Gage, Kay's Grandmother

Vanessa: Her Love Story

1935

Vanessa: Her Love Story

as

Lady Mullion

The Good Earth

1937

The Good Earth

as

Cuckoo

The Garden Murder Case

1936

The Garden Murder Case

as

Mrs. Hammle

They Met in Bombay

1941

They Met in Bombay

as

Duchess of Beltravers

San Francisco

1936

San Francisco

as

Mrs. Maisie Burley

Mark of the Vampire

1935

Mark of the Vampire

as

Midwife

The Girl from Avenue A

1940

The Girl from Avenue A

as

Mrs. Van Dyne

Production

Crew

Directing