Rita Gould

Rita Gould (August 8, 1890 – March 15, 1981) was an American singer and actress born in Odessa, in the Russian Empire, the daughter of Lazarus Rosenblum and Rose Bars. Her career spanned stage, film, and radio across several decades, and she was additionally recognized for her distinctive costumes and her work as a Christian evangelist in her middle years.

Gould's stage career began in the 1910s, with Broadway appearances between 1914 and 1919 that included the production Aphrodite and the Ziegfeld Follies of 1918. She also appeared in Maid in America in 1916 and became associated with the wartime song "Send Me Away With a Smile" in 1917. During World War I she toured France for eighteen months under the Over There League of the YMCA, performing for American troops, and subsequently entertained veterans at hospitals and events throughout the United States. In 1919 she gave a command performance before King George V and Queen Mary in London. She continued performing in vaudeville through the 1920s, appearing on bills across the country, and in 1921 toured with a song cycle written by Frances Nordstrom.

Her film work began in her forties and extended into the 1950s. Her screen credits include Kiss and Make-Up (1934), Girls' Dormitory (1936), He Couldn't Say No (1938), Red Barry (1938), So's Your Uncle (1943), South of Dixie (1944), Her Lucky Night (1945), The Vicious Circle (1948), and The Big Combo (1955). She was also frequently heard on radio and hosted her own radio program, and took an early interest in televising revue-style entertainment.

Gould was noted for her striking stage costumes, among them a frock of tangerine-colored velvet and another of red and white checked taffeta. Her 1922 stage act included fashioning a turban-style hat on stage to wear while singing. By 1940, while living in Hollywood, she had begun designing and selling crocheted hats and turbans in unusual styles, sometimes accompanied by matching accessories.

Gould married several times. In 1930 she was named in a scandal when fellow performer Natalie Chadwick accused her of stealing the affections of criminal Joseph Sheldon. She promoted the writings of Scottish evangelist Henry Drummond during her years as a Christian evangelist. She died in Los Angeles on March 15, 1981, at the age of 90.