May Robson (19 April 1858 - 20 October 1942) was an actress and playwright. A major stage actress of the late 19th and early 20th century, Robson is best known today for the dozens of 1930s motion pictures she appeared in when she was well into her seventies, usually playing cross old ladies with hearts of gold.
Born Mary Jeanette Robison in Melbourne, Australia, she moved to the United States in her late teens. In 1884, after being widowed, she ...
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May Robson (19 April 1858 - 20 October 1942) was an actress and playwright. A major stage actress of the late 19th and early 20th century, Robson is best known today for the dozens of 1930s motion pictures she appeared in when she was well into her seventies, usually playing cross old ladies with hearts of gold.
Born Mary Jeanette Robison in Melbourne, Australia, she moved to the United States in her late teens. In 1884, after being widowed, she became an actress simply to support her children. Over the next several decades, she flourished on the stage.
She starred in the 1916 silent film A Night Out, an adaptation of the play she co-wrote, The Three Lights. She made several other silent films, then successfully transitioned to talkies. She made 45 films during the 1930s. Among her starring roles was 1931's The She Wolf, in which she was cast as a miserly millionaire businesswoman, apparently a roman a clef of Hetty Green. She also starred in the final segment of the episodic classic...
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