Lillian Powell
Lillian Powell | |
|---|---|
Los Angeles, California | |
| Occupation(s) | Dancer, teacher and television actress |
Lillian Ruth Powell (May 29, 1896 – May 31, 1992) was a Canadian-born American
Life and career
She was born in
By 1918, Powell was a dancer with
In 1922, Powell performed Shawn's Bubble Dance and one of his Egyptian dances (with Martha Graham) in short silent films by Hugo Riesenfeld in his attempt to synchronize a dance routine on film with a live orchestra and on-screen conductor.[7] On April 15, 1923, Powell appeared in a short film Lillian Powell Bubble Dance, presented in a program of 18 short films made in the Lee DeForest Phonofilm sound-on-film process at the Rivoli Theater in New York City. The films were co-presented by Riesenfeld who was musical director of the Rivoli. A copy of this film was found in 1976 in Australia, and was restored by the National Film and Sound Archive.[8]
In the late 1920s Powell was a dancer with Jack Klein (or Kline) and the Californians, a West Coast vaudeville act.[9]
Miss Lillian Powell, formerly of the big-time Eastern circuits, proved not only one of the most exquisite girls in physical charms, but also the most salient example of dancing grace ever seen in a West Coast theater here. Her numbers include an Oriental
Beverly Hills, when the son of King George visited Pickfair. Miss Powell is modest, clever and graceful beyond compare and deserves her high reputation as a danseuse. She wears lovely gowns, and in one number appeared especially radiant in a white wig.—Bakersfield Californian, November 24, 1928[10]
By her mid-thirties, Powell was teaching at a Los Angeles area dance studio while continuing to performing on stage at concerts and community events. In 1933, she was a premier dancer with the Michio Itō Dance Company touring Canada and the United States.[11] By her early forties, she had become a physical education teacher with a Los Angeles school district.[12]
In 1954 Powell began acting in television productions. Over a near twenty-year span she played frequent guest or reoccurring roles on such series as
Throughout her career, Powell was frequently used by Jack Webb, creator of Dragnet, appearing in fourteen episodes of Dragnet, six episodes of Noah's Ark, an episode of Adam-12 and a minor rôle in his film The Last Time I Saw Archie.[13]
Powell retired in 1970 and died in 1992 in Los Angeles at the age of 96.[14]
See also
References
- ^ Lillian Ruth Powell, 1936, U.S., Naturalization Records - Original Documents, 1795–1972 (World Archives Project) Ancestry.com
- ^ Lilian R. Powell, Ventura, age 4, 1900 US Census; Lillian R. Powell (adopted daughter), San Diego, age 14, 1910 US Census
- ^ Music Furnishes Background for Berkeley-Portland Romance. Oakland Tribune (Oakland, California), January 27, 1920, p.11
- ^ Pantages Bill is Lively Offering. Oakland Tribune (Oakland, California), September 9, 1918, p. 4
- ^ Elaborate Spectacular Pantages Attraction. Winnipeg Free Press (Winnipeg, Manitoba), December 30, 1919, p. 4
- ^ Dance Drama is Artistic Triumph. San Antonio Evening News (San Antonio, Texas), June 7, 1920, p. 5
- ^ Music Films. The Ogden Standard-examiner (Ogden Utah), May 21, 1922, p.5
- ^ IMDB entry
- ^ Advertisement. Bakersfield Californian (Bakersfield, California), November 23, 1928, p. 11
- ^ Vaudeville Bill. Bakersfield Californian (Bakersfield, California), November 24, 1928, p. 6
- Lethbridge, Alberta), September 27, 1933, p. 7
- ^ Lillian Powell, Los Angeles, 1930-1940 US Census
- ^ Lillian Powell - Internet Movie Database accessed October 24, 2012
- ^ California and Social Security Death Index