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
Mrs. Hermisillo Brunch
The Bank Dick
Mrs. Kensington-Bly
Double Wedding
The Madonna of the Slums
Applewoman
Little Lord Fauntleroy
Aunt Katherine Forrest
After the Thin Man
Nanine
Camille
Madame Magloire
Les Misérables
Sarah Crosby (uncredited)
Elmer, the Great
Mrs. Barlow
Captain Blood
Mrs. Helene Smith
Murder at the Vanities
Mrs. Weaver
Drums Along the Mohawk
Princess
Cocktail Hour
The Duchess of Ebley
The Last of Mrs. Cheyney
Mrs. Blake
Evelyn Prentice
Angelina
One Night of Love
Aunt Minnie
Child of Manhattan
Beatrice
The Affairs of Cellini
Mrs. McGuinness
The Lady from Cheyenne
Honorine
Port of Seven Seas
Aunt Minetta
The Kid From Texas
Mrs. Phoebe Fisher
Enchanted April
Lady Agatha Hathaway
The Unguarded Hour
Grandmother
Bunker Bean
Sheriff Janet Winfield
Love Is a Headache
Grandma Brokaw
I Want a Divorce
Charwoman
Metropolitan
Terry
Ann Carver's Profession
Aunt Lucy
Hold That Kiss
Nana
I Found Stella Parish
Clara Peggotty
The Personal History, Adventures, Experience, & Observation of David Copperfield the Younger
Evelyn Bennett
Walking on Air
Matrona Pavlovna
We Live Again
Zoe
Nana
Mrs. Brian
Yellow Dust
Fairy Berylune
The Blue Bird
Aunt Martha Parker
Star Dust
Countess de Charelle
Paris in Spring
Mrs. De Witt
Cafe Society
Miss Tobias
Four Girls in White
Gran Whiteoaks
Jalna
Veronica Hudson
Mickey the Kid
Mama McGann
I Can't Give You Anything But Love, Baby
Aunt Tibbie
St. Louis Blues
Mrs. O.H.B. Gage, Kay's Grandmother
I Live My Life
Lady Mullion
Vanessa: Her Love Story
Cuckoo
The Good Earth
Mrs. Hammle
The Garden Murder Case
Self
The Romance of Celluloid
Duchess of Beltravers
They Met in Bombay
Mrs. Maisie Burley
San Francisco
Midwife
Mark of the Vampire
Nora
Coming Out Party
Mrs. Van Dyne
The Girl from Avenue A
Mary
Such a Little Queen
Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Known Credits
54
Gender
Female
Birthday
1864-11-04
Place of Birth
Gloucester, Massachusetts, USA
Also Known As
Jessie Ralph Chambers