Josephine Hull facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Josephine Hull
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Hull in the Harvey trailer, 1950
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| Born |
Mary Josephine Sherwood
January 3, 1877 |
| Died | March 12, 1957 (aged 80) The Bronx, New York City, U.S.
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| Alma mater | Radcliffe College |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1905–1955 |
| Spouse(s) |
Shelly Hull
(m. 1910; died 1919) |
Josephine Hull (born Mary Josephine Sherwood; January 3, 1877 – March 12, 1957) was a talented American actress. She worked on both the stage and in movies. Josephine Hull had a very successful career that lasted 50 years. She won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the movie Harvey (1950). She had played this role before on the Broadway stage. Sometimes, she was known as Josephine Sherwood.
About Josephine Hull
Josephine Hull was born on January 3, 1877. Her birthplace was Newtonville, Massachusetts. She was one of four children. Her parents were William H. Sherwood and Mary Elizabeth "Minnie" Tewkesbury. She later made herself seem younger than she was. Josephine studied music at the New England Conservatory of Music. She also went to Radcliffe College. Both schools are in the Boston area.
Her Acting Career
On Stage
Josephine Hull started acting on stage in 1905. For several years, she was a chorus girl. She also toured with different acting groups. In 1910, she married actor Shelley Hull. He was the older brother of another actor, Henry Hull. After her husband passed away when he was young, Josephine stopped acting for a while. She returned to acting in 1923. From then on, she used her married name, Josephine Hull. She and Shelley did not have any children.
Her first big success on stage was in 1926. It was in a play called Craig's Wife by George Kelly. This play won a special award called the Pulitzer Prize. George Kelly liked her acting so much that he wrote a part just for her. This was in his next play, Daisy Mayme, also in 1926. Josephine kept working in New York theater throughout the 1920s.
In the 1930s and 1940s, Josephine Hull was in three very popular Broadway plays. She played a quirky mother in You Can't Take It with You (1936). She was a sweet but deadly old lady in Arsenic and Old Lace (1941). And she starred in Harvey (1944). These plays ran for a very long time. They took up ten years of Josephine's career. Her last Broadway play was The Solid Gold Cadillac (1954–55). This play was later made into a movie.
In Movies
Josephine Hull acted in only seven movies. Her first film role was a small part in Get Your Man in 1927. Then she was in The Bishop's Candlesticks in 1929. In 1932, she appeared in two Fox movies. These were After Tomorrow (where she played her stage role again) and Careless Lady.
She could not play her role from You Can't Take It With You in the 1938 movie version. This was because she was still performing the play on stage. Instead, Spring Byington played the part in the film.
Josephine Hull played Aunt Abby in the movie Arsenic and Old Lace (1944). She and Jean Adair played the two Brewster sisters. The movie also starred famous actors like Cary Grant.
Her most famous movie role was in Harvey (1950). For this role, she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. A magazine called Variety praised her acting. They said she was "immense" as the aunt who wanted her brother committed.
After Harvey, Josephine Hull made only one more movie. It was The Lady from Texas (1951). She also appeared in a CBS-TV version of Arsenic and Old Lace in 1949.
Later Life and Death
Josephine Hull passed away on March 12, 1957. She was 80 years old. Her death was caused by a cerebral hemorrhage, which is a type of bleeding in the brain.
See also
In Spanish: Josephine Hull para niños
- List of actors with Academy Award nominations
