Jeanne de Casalis (22 May 1891 – 19 August 1966) was a Basutoland-born British actress of stage, radio, TV and film.
Born in Basutoland as Jeanne Casalis de Pury in 1891, not 1897 as frequently reported (see the Age Fabrication paragraph below), she was educated in France, where her businessman father was the proprietor of one of that country's largest corset retailers, Charneaux. She began her career in music, only later beginning to work onstage in London. She appeared on stage in The Mask of Virtue with Vivien Leigh (1935), and in Agatha Christie's The Hollow (1951). On radio, she created the popular comic character 'Mrs. Feather' and also authored Mrs Feather's Diary (1936) based on her monologues. Her best-known films were Cottage to Let (1941) and Jamaica Inn (1939).
She married English actor Colin Clive, best remembered for Frankenstein (1931), in June 1929, though they were estranged for several years before his death on 25 June 1937 from tuberculosis. Her second husband, whom she married around 1938, was RAF Wing Commander Cowan Douglas Stephenson; they lived at Hunger Hatch near Ashford, Kent. Jeanne de Casalis died on 19 August 1966, aged 69.
Age fabrication As confirmed by her death record,Index of death records of Paddington, September 1966, where Jeanne de Casalis is listed under her last married name, Stephenson, with Jeanne de C as a first name, and where her age is quoted as 74 years, not 69 as would result from her public birth date. She actually had turned 75 three months before. Jeanne de Casalis forged her real birth date 22 May 1891 as 22 May 1897, losing 6 years in the process. The practice of age fabrication is commonplace in the entertainment industry. This forgery was made easy by the similarity between the French writing of "1", which is very close to the British writing of "7".
Partial filmography Settled Out of Court (1925) .... The Wife The Glad Eye (1927) .... Lucienne The Arcadians (1927) .... Mrs. Smith Zero (1928) .... Julia Norton Knowing Men (1930) .... Delphine Infatuation (1930, Short) .... Georgette Nine till Six (1932) .... Yvonne Radio Parade (1933) .... Mrs. Feather Mixed Doubles (1933) .... Betty Irvine Nell Gwynn (1934) .... Duchess of Portsmouth Just like a Woman (1938) .... Poppy Mayne Jamaica Inn (1939) .... Sir Humphrey's friend The Girl Who Forgot (1940) .... Mrs. Barradine Charley's (Big-Hearted) Aunt (1940) .... Lady Lucy Blessington-Smythe (Aunt Lucy) Sailors Three (1940) .... Mrs Pilkington Cottage to Let (1941) .... Mrs. Barrington Those Kids from Town (1942) .... Sheila They Met in the Dark (1943) .... Lady with Dog Medal for the General (1944) .... Lady Frome This Man Is Mine (1946) .... Mrs. Ferguson The Turners of Prospect Road (1947) .... Mrs. Webster Woman Hater (1948) .... Clair
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