Jessie Coles Grayson facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jessie Coles Grayson
Born	Jessie Coles (1886-03-07)March 7, 1886 Albia, Iowa, U.S.
Died	February 27, 1953(1953-02-27) (aged 66) Los Angeles County, California, US
Occupation	Actress, singer
Years active	1921–1953
Spouse(s)	Garner Van Grayson
Children	2

Jessie Coles Grayson (born March 7, 1886 – died February 27, 1953) was an American singer and actress. She was known for her roles in movies like The Little Foxes (1941), Cass Timberlane (1947), and Homecoming (1948). She was also a talented singer and worked to help her community.

About Jessie Coles Grayson

Jessie Coles was born in 1886 in Albia, Iowa. When she was eight years old, she moved to Los Angeles. Later, she married Garner Van Grayson. They had a daughter and a son. After getting married, she moved to Portland, Oregon.

Jessie loved to sing. She studied with a voice teacher named J. William Belcher in Portland. During the 1920s and 1930s, she performed on stage and radio. She was a contralto soloist, meaning she sang in a low female voice. People called her "Portland's Famous Contralto." A newspaper review said she was "an artist in every sense of the word."

Community Involvement

Jessie Grayson was very active in community groups. In 1928, she became a secretary for the National Association of Colored Women's Clubs. This group worked to improve the lives of African American women.

In 1929, she was on the Portland committee for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The NAACP works for equal rights for all people. In 1936, she was the president of the Oregon Federated Club Women.

Later, in the late 1930s and early 1940s, she was active in the YWCA in California. The YWCA helps women and girls. In 1944, she was named "the outstanding woman for 1943" by a sorority group in Pittsburgh. Jessie also enjoyed collecting rare American pottery as a hobby. She passed away on February 27, 1953, in California.

Jessie Grayson's Acting Career

Bette Davis and Jessie Grayson in The Little Foxes

Jessie Grayson's first movie role was in 1939. It was in an all-black film called One Dark Night. This movie was meant to be an African-American version of the popular Hardy family films.

Her next big role was in The Little Foxes in 1941. She played a character named Addie. Some people said she had never been on screen before. She got the job because the casting director liked her voice over the phone! She won the part over many experienced actors. People called her "a fine character actress." Her role as Addie was described as a "wise" and "dominant" character in the movie.

Jessie Grayson and Bonita Granville in the 1943 film Syncopation

In the 1942 movie Syncopation, Jessie Grayson played a blues-singing servant. Her character had a young son who loved music. An African-American newspaper said her role was not like the old "Aunt Dinah" characters. This showed that Hollywood was starting to show African-Americans in a more positive way. Some critics thought the African-American actors, including Jessie, gave the best performances in the film.

Breaking Stereotypes in Film

Jessie Grayson's role in Cass Timberlane (1947) was also very important. She played Mrs. Higbee, a maid who gives advice to Judge Timberlane. For the first time on screen, a Black maid character was called "Mrs." This was a big step.

The director, George Sidney, explained why they chose Jessie. He said that in the past, they might have picked a funny actor for the role. But after the war, people realized that old stereotypes, like the "mammy" roles, were unfair and harmful. So, they wanted a "normal, intelligent character actress" like Jessie Grayson.

In 1946, Jessie performed in a play called Deep Are the Roots. She played Bella Charles, the mother of an African-American war veteran. A reviewer said she gave a "living performance" that was "illuminated by validity, deepened by compassion." She performed this role in several cities, including Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles.

Filmography

Selected Stage Performances