Elisabeth Risdon

Elisabeth Risdon, born Daisy Cartwright Risdon on 26 April 1887 in London, England, was an English actress whose career spanned both the stage and screen. She appeared on Broadway from 1912 to 1935 and went on to make more than 140 film appearances between 1913 and 1952. She died on 20 December 1958 at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, California, following a cerebral hemorrhage.

Risdon was the daughter of John Jenkins Risdon and Martha Harrop Risdon. She graduated from the Royal Academy of Arts in 1918 with high honours. Her work on stage brought her to the attention of George Bernard Shaw, who cast her in leading roles in his major productions. Among her Broadway credits connected to Shaw's work were Fanny's First Play, Misalliance, and Heartbreak House. Beyond her association with Shaw, she served as leading lady opposite actors including George Arliss, Otis Skinner, and William Faversham, and she maintained a long contractual relationship with the Theatre Guild.

Her Broadway career encompassed a wide range of productions across more than two decades. Early credits from 1912 include The Poetasters of Ispahan, Beauty and the Jacobin, and Fanny's First Play. She continued with Seven Days' Leave, Muggins, Humpty Dumpty, and Dear Brutus in 1918, followed by Footloose and Heartbreak House in 1920. The Nightcap came in 1921, and The Lady in 1923. In 1924 she appeared in both Artistic Temperament and Cock O' the Roost. The year 1925 brought three productions: Thrills, The Enchanted April, and Lovely Lady. She followed those with A Proud Woman and The Silver Cord in 1926, then Right You Are If You Think You Are and The Springboard in 1927, and We Never Learn in 1928. Her later Broadway work included For Services Rendered and Uncle Tom's Cabin in 1933, Big Hearted Herbert in 1934, and Laburnum Grove in 1935.

Risdon arrived in the United States in 1912, having already made 13 silent films in England. Her first sound film was Guard That Girl in 1935. In her earlier screen work she took on society parts, while in later years she transitioned to character roles.

In her personal life, Risdon married silent film director George Loane Tucker in 1916; he died in 1921. She later married actor Brandon Evans in 1938, who died in April 1958, several months before her own death that December.