Jeanette Macdonald
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Bibliography
Notes
A number of sources gives MacDonald's year of birth as 1901 or 1902; MGM press releases and even MacDonald's tombstone give the year 1907.
Billed as 'the girl with the red-gold hair and sea-green eyes' on Broadway, and sometimes known for her strong will as the 'Iron Butterfly' in Hollywood circles
Biography
A gifted, vivacious Broadway soprano, the red-haired Jeanette MacDonald entered films in 1929 under the auspices of Ernst Lubitsch at Paramount and showed a flair for sophisticated comedy in a number of his spicy Continental musicals, especially opposite Maurice Chevalier. In such films as "The Love Parade" (1929), "Oh, For a Man" (1930) and "One Hour With You" (1932), MacDonald was typically cast as girlish but aristocratic types who display a surprising aptitude for risque banter when the occasion demands. Her best film from this early period was Rouben Mamoulian's superb "Love Me Tonight" (1932), opposite Chevalier.
Moving to MGM in 1934, MacDonald reached a personal zenith in the title role of Lubitsch's saucy "The Merry Widow" (1934), but soon began playing more genteel if similarly princessy roles, in accordance with the stricter enforcement of Hollywood's self-imposed Production Code. She enjoyed considerable popular and critical acclaim with the delightful "Naughty Marietta" (1935), the first in a series of romantic operettas co-starring the handsome baritone Nelson Eddy. Mostly directed by W.S. Van Dyke, these films turned the couple into Hollywood's most popular singing team ever. Their best films together include the romantic valentine "Maytime" (1937) and the robust "Rose Marie" (1936), which featured the famous "Indian Love Call" so often parodied in later years. Later films, however, suffered from being overly schmaltzy or overproduced, and the team's popularity declined abruptly in the early 40s.
MacDonald also played in a number of enjoyable films sans Eddy while at MGM, including the lilting musical melodrama "The Firefly" (1937) with Allan Jones, and the memorable recreation of the Barbary Coast days of "San Francisco" (1936) just before the legendary 1906 earthquake. Famous for her powerful "high C," MacDonald turned to a successful concert hall career during the WWII years as her screen stardom waned but made occasional screen appearances through the late 40s. She married actor Gene Raymond in 1937 and the two later acted together onscreen in the third version of "Smilin' Through" in 1941. MacDonald's sister was character actress Marie Blake, who played the switchboard operator in the famous "Dr. Kildare" series of the 30s and 40s and later resurfaced under the name of Blossom Rock as the grandmother on the TV sitcom, "The Addams Family" (1964-66).
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Music (Feature Film)
Cast (Short)
Misc. Crew (Short)
Life Events
1921
Broadway debut as chorus girl in "The Night Boat"
1928
Made unsuccessful Paramount screen test
1929
Made film debut opposite Maurice Chevalier in Lubitsch's "The Love Parade"
1931
Journeyed to Europe to give concerts in Paris and London to dispel rumor that she had been killed by the irate wife of a prince with whom MacDonald was supposedly having an affair and that her "twin sister" had taken over her screen career
1932
Made last film at Paramount, "Love Me Tonight", opposite Chevalier
1932
Set sail for Europe in December to give more extended concert tour
1933
Signed contract with MGM
1934
Last of 4 films opposite Chevalier, Lubitsch's "The Merry Widow"
1935
First film opposite Nelson Eddy, "Naughty Marietta"
1936
Appeared in most successful MGM film sans Eddy, "San Francisco"; that same year MacDonald made motion pictures exhibitors' poll of top ten boxoffice stars, placing 8th
1941
Starred in "Smilin' Through" opposite her husband, Gene Raymond
1942
Last of 8 films opposite Eddy, "I Married an Angel"
1942
Final film under MGM contract, "Cairo"
1943
Made opera debut in Montreal in "Romeo and Juliet" opposite Ezio Pinza
1945
Set a concert attendance record at the Hollywood Bowl
1948
Returned to film after four-year absence in "Three Daring Daughters"
1949
Last film appearance, opposite Claude Jarman Jr. and Lassie, in "The Sun Comes Up"
1959
Collapsed while watching husband Gene Raymond performing in a play; rushed to hospital with appendicitis; later developed hepatitis
1963
Had arterial transplant performed
Photo Collections
Videos
Movie Clip
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Family
Companions
Bibliography
Notes
A number of sources gives MacDonald's year of birth as 1901 or 1902; MGM press releases and even MacDonald's tombstone give the year 1907.
Billed as 'the girl with the red-gold hair and sea-green eyes' on Broadway, and sometimes known for her strong will as the 'Iron Butterfly' in Hollywood circles
"Whether MacDonald starred with Maurice Chevalier or Nelson Eddy, she generally played a rich, spoiled, and sophisticated woman who eventually came to her senses and fell in love with the poor but charmingly sincere hero. It was a formula that worked because MacDonald, with her soprano voice and high-toned style, played female aristocrats convincingly." --Scott Siegel and Barbara Siegel ("The Encyclopedia of Hollywood", 1990)
