Maxine Elliott

From Wikipedia

Maxine Elliott (born February 5, 1868 in Rockland, Maine,

USA; died March 5, 1940 in Cannes, France) was an American actress and

businesswoman. As regards her performances, reviewers disagreed "over

whether it was her beauty or her acting ability that attracted attention.

Born Jessie McDermott on February 5, 1868 to Thomas Dermot,

a sea captain and Adelaide Hill, she had one sister Gertrude and at least two

brothers, one of whom was a sailor and lost at sea in the Indian Ocean.

Jessie adopted her stage name Maxine Elliott in 1889, making

her first appearance in 1890 in The Middleman. In 1895, she got her first big

break when Augustin Daly hired her as a supporting actress for his star player,

Ada Rehan. After divorcing her first husband, Elliott married comedian Nat C.

Goodwin in 1898. The two starred together at home and abroad in such hits as

Nathan Hale and The Cowboy and the Lady.

Elliott's last stage appearance was in 1920 in Trimmed in

Scarlett, aged 52. She then retired from acting, announcing that she

"wished to grow middle-aged gracefully". Successful in business and

investment, Elliott had homes in America and in Europe. She died on March 5,

1940, in Cannes, France, a wealthy woman, at the age of 72. She was interred at

Protestant Cemetery in Cannes. She was the subject of a biography titled

"My Aunt Maxine: The Story of Maxine Elliot" c.1964 written by her

niece Diana Forbes-Robertson.