Virginia Gilmore
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2021}}
{{short description|American actress}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Virginia Gilmore
| image = Virginia Gilmore in Western Union.jpg
| caption = Gilmore in 1941
| birth_name = Sherman Virginia Poole
| birth_date = {{birth date|1919|7|26}}
| birth_place = El Monte, California, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|1986|3|28|1919|7|26}}
| death_place = Santa Barbara, California, U.S.
| occupation = Actress
| yearsactive = 1939–1970
| spouse = {{marriage|Yul Brynner|1944|1960|end=divorced}}
| children = 1
}}
File:Yul Brynner-Virginia Gilmore.jpg and Virginia Gilmore]]
File:Virginia Gilmore-Dana Andrews in Swamp Water.jpg in Jean Renoir's Swamp Water (1941)]]
Virginia Gilmore (born Sherman Virginia Poole,{{Citation needed |date=September 2024}} July 26, 1919 – March 28, 1986) was an American film, stage, and television actress.
Career
Gilmore began her stage career in San Francisco at the age of 15, but moved to Los Angeles in 1939 to pursue work in films. When her movie career was not progressing, Gilmore mustered the nerve to approach Samuel Goldwyn at his home. As a result of their meeting, he promised her a screen test. She soon landed some small movie roles. Her better-known film appearances both occurred in 1941: Western Union, directed by Fritz Lang, and Swamp Water directed by Jean Renoir.
Later years
When her movie role options began to dwindle, Gilmore left Los Angeles for New York City and started working on Broadway, where she had appeared in A Successful Calamity in 1934. In 1943, she played in Those Endearing Young Charms and The World's Full of Girls.{{cite web |title=Virginia Gilmore |url=https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/virginia-gilmore-42240 |website=Internet Broadway Database |publisher=The Broadway League |access-date=September 3, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180903190649/https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/virginia-gilmore-42240 |archive-date=September 3, 2018}} In 1944, she played the title role in Dear Ruth,{{cite journal|last1=Rainho|first1=Manny|title=This Month in Movie History|journal=Classic Images|date=March 2015|issue=477|page=28}} which was directed by Moss Hart. Her other Broadway credits include Truckline Cafe (1946), The Grey-eyed People (1952), and Critics Choice (1960).
Starting in the late 1940s, Gilmore had many television roles. In 1949, she and her husband, Yul Brynner, were featured on We're On, an NBC television series. Between 1966 and 1968, she taught drama at Yale University. In her later years, Gilmore was a leader in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA).{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FOHgDAAAQBAJ&q=virginia+gilmore+cremated+scott+wilson&pg=PA280|title=Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed.|first=Scott|last=Wilson|date=August 19, 2016|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-1-4766-2599-7|via=Google Books}}
Personal life
In 1944, she married Yul Brynner. The couple had one son, Yul "Rock" Brynner, before divorcing in 1960.{{cite web|url=http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographies/yul-brynner.html|title=Yul Brynner biodata|website=thebiographychannel.co.uk|accessdate=October 16, 2014|archive-date=September 25, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130925220041/http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographies/yul-brynner.html|url-status=dead}}
Death
On March 28, 1986, Gilmore died from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at her home in Santa Barbara, California, aged 66.{{cite news |title=Actress Virginia Gilmore Dies: Veteran of Stage, Hollywood |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/23406365/virginia_gilmore/ |work=The Los Angeles Times |date=April 1, 1986 |location=California, Los Angeles |page=Part II – 4|via = Newspapers.com|access-date = September 3, 2018}} {{Open access}} Upon her death, she was cremated by the Neptune Society and her ashes scattered at sea.
Filmography
| class="wikitable" | |||
| Year
! Title ! Role ! Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | Winter Carnival | Margie Stafford | |
| rowspan=3 | 1940 | Laddie | Pamela Pryor | |
| Manhattan Heartbeat | Dottie Haley | ||
| Jennie | Jennie Collins | ||
| rowspan=4 | 1941 | Tall, Dark and Handsome | Judy Miller | |
| Western Union | Sue Creighton | ||
| Swamp Water | Mabel MacKenzie | ||
| Mr. District Attorney in the Carter Case | Terry Parker | ||
| rowspan=6 | 1942 | Sundown Jim | Toni Black | |
| The Pride of the Yankees | Myra | ||
| Berlin Correspondent | Karen Hauen | ||
| The Loves of Edgar Allan Poe | Elmira Royster | ||
| Orchestra Wives | Elsie | ||
| That Other Woman | Emily Borden | ||
| 1943 | Chetniks! The Fighting Guerrillas | Natalia | |
| 1945 | Wonder Man | Sailor's Girl Friend | |
| 1948 | Close-Up | Peggy Lake | |
| 1952 | Walk East on Beacon | Millie Zalenko / Teresa Henning |
Stage performances
- Those Endearing Young Charms (1943)
- The World's Full of Girls (1943)
- Dear Ruth (1944)
- Truckline Cafe (with Marlon Brando) (1946)
- The Grey-Eyed People (1952)
- Critic's Choice (with Henry Fonda) (1960)
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Portal|Biography}}
{{Commons category}}
- {{IMDb name|0319582}}
- {{IBDB name|42240}}
- [https://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/29/obituaries/virginia-gilmore-dead-at-66-was-stage-and-film-actress.html The New York Times – Virginia Gilmore]
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilmore, Virginia}}
Category:20th-century American actresses
Category:Actresses from Los Angeles
Category:American film actresses
Category:American stage actresses
Category:American television actresses