// Workers AI · dad joke modeIs Joyce Mathews a math whiz? Does she add up?
Joyce Mathews | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Mathews in 1951 | |
| Born | Jane Mathews December 5, 1919 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | January 17, 1999 (aged 79) Laguna Beach, California, U.S. |
| Occupations | Actress, dancer, showgirl |
| Years active | 1932–1951 |
| Spouses |
|
| Children | 1 (adopted daughter) |
Joyce Mathews (born Jane Mathews; December 5, 1919 – January 17, 1999) was an American actress, dancer, and showgirl who appeared in films, on Broadway, and in early television productions from the late 1930s through the 1950s. She was known for her stage and screen work as well as for her marriages to comedian Milton Berle, theatrical producer Billy Rose, and actor Don Beddoe.
Early life
[edit]Mathews was born Jane Mathews on December 5, 1919, in New York City. She later attended the Ida M. Fisher School in Miami Beach, Florida, where she studied art before entering show business.[1] She subsequently changed her first name from Jane to Joyce.[1]
Career
[edit]Mathews began her entertainment career in the late 1930s as a dancer at Nicky Blair’s Paradise nightclub in New York.[2]
She appeared in several motion pictures, including The Big Broadcast of 1938 and Artists and Models Abroad (1938).[3] Additional film credits included All Women Have Secrets (1939), Sudden Money (1939), and Mister Universe (1951).
On Broadway, she appeared in the musical Hold On to Your Hats, associated with Al Jolson.[2][4] By the early 1950s, she was also working in television.[3]
She was often described variously as a “showgirl” and an “actress,” reflecting her work across nightclub, stage, and screen productions.[5]
Personal life
[edit]Her first marriage was to Gonzales Gomez.[3][1]
Mathews married comedian Milton Berle on December 5, 1941, in Beverly Hills, California.[6] The couple divorced in 1947, remarried in June 1949, and divorced again in 1950 in the Virgin Islands.[1][3] They adopted a daughter, Victoria.[7]
In July 1951, Mathews was hospitalized following a reported suicide attempt at the New York apartment of theatrical producer Billy Rose.[1][5][3] Rose at the time was still married to Eleanor Holm.[8][9]
Mathews married Rose July 2, 1956 and they divorced July 23, 1959.[10] They then remarried on December 29, 1961,[11] only to divorce again on February 10, 1964, exactly two years before he died.[12]
In 1974, Mathews married actor Don Beddoe.[13][14]
By 1977, she owned and operated a travel agency in California.[14]
Mathews lived in California in her later years. She died on January 17, 1999, in Laguna Beach, California, at the age of 79.
Filmography
[edit]Film
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1932 | Jewel Robbery | Maid | Uncredited |
| 1933 | Sitting Pretty | Blonde Chorus Girl | Uncredited |
| 1936 | College Holiday | Dancer | Uncredited |
| 1936 | The Champ's a Chump | Student | Uncredited (Short) |
| 1937 | Wells Fargo | Pioneer Girl | Uncredited |
| 1937 | Daughter of Shanghai | Girl | Uncredited |
| 1937 | Bulldog Drummond's Revenge | Minor Role | Uncredited |
| 1937 | True Confession | Girl in Cocktail Lounge | Uncredited |
| 1937 | Thrill of a Lifetime | Chorus Girl | Uncredited |
| 1938 | Bluebeard's Eighth Wife | Undetermined Role | Uncredited |
| 1938 | Dangerous to Know | Minor Role | Uncredited |
| 1938 | Tip-Off Girls | Tessie | Uncredited |
| 1938 | The Big Broadcast of 1938 | Chorus Girl | Uncredited |
| 1938 | The Buccaneer | Undetermined Role | Uncredited |
| 1938 | Artists and Models Abroad | Jersey | |
| 1938 | Arrest Bulldog Drummond | Undetermined Secondary Role | Uncredited |
| 1938 | Say It in French | Girl | Uncredited |
| 1938 | The Arkansas Traveler | Girl | Uncredited |
| 1938 | Sing You Sinners | Hat-Check Girl | Uncredited |
| 1938 | You and Me | Sales Clerk | Uncredited |
| 1938 | Cocoanut Grove | Dancer | Uncredited |
| 1938 | College Swing | Student | Uncredited |
| 1939 | Midnight | Girl | Uncredited |
| 1939 | King of Chinatown | Nightclub Girl | Uncredited |
| 1939 | Cafe Society | Girl | Uncredited |
| 1939 | St. Louis Blues | Dancer | Uncredited |
| 1939 | Boy Trouble | Patricia Fitch | |
| 1939 | Disbarred | Cigarette Girl | Uncredited |
| 1939 | All Women Have Secrets | Peggy | |
| 1939 | $1,000 a Touchdown | Lorelei | |
| 1939 | Honeymoon in Bali | Girl with Umbrella | Uncredited |
| 1939 | Night Work | Patricia Fitch | |
| 1939 | Million Dollar Legs | Bunny Maxwell | |
| 1939 | Sudden Money | Yolo | |
| 1939 | I'm from Missouri | Bit Role | Uncredited |
| 1940 | The Way of All Flesh | Telegraph Girl | Uncredited |
| 1940 | Those Were the Days! | Telephone Operator | Uncredited |
| 1941 | Ball of Fire | Chorus Girl | Uncredited |
| 1947 | A Double Life | Janet | Uncredited |
| 1949 | The Barkleys of Broadway | Genevieve | Uncredited |
| 1951 | Mister Universe | Maroni's Moll |
Television
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Armstrong Circle Theatre | Episode appearance | 1 episode |
| 1950 | The Silver Theatre | Episode appearance | 1 episode |
| 1951 | Somerset Maugham TV Theatre | Hostess | 1 episode |
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 "Berle's Ex Tries Suicide In Billy Rose's Bathroom". The Miami Herald. July 16, 1951. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 "Joyce Mathews Wanted Career—Now Is That a Crime?". The Atlanta Journal. July 18, 1951. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Milton Berle's Ex-Wife Tries to Kill Herself in Billy Rose's Apartment". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. July 16, 1951. p. 17 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Joyce Mathews – Broadway Cast & Staff | IBDB". ibdb.com. Retrieved March 23, 2026.
- 1 2 "Wrist-Slashing By Joyce Mathews Revives Story Of Rift Between Roses". The Miami News. July 16, 1951. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Radio Star Marries Show Girl". The Dispatch. Moline, Illinois. December 6, 1941. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Showgirl Denies Rose Romance". News-Press. Fort Myers, Florida. July 17, 1951. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Billy Rose Nettled by High Cost of Romance". Daily News. New York. June 15, 1952. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Wife's Verbal Punches Clip Rose and Joyce". Daily News. New York. August 8, 1952. p. 437 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Joyce Mathews, Billy Rose, Wed in Brief Rites". Blackwell Journal-Tribune. June 3, 1956. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Joyce Mathews, Billy Rose Rewed". Post-Bulletin. December 30, 1961. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Wilson, Earl (June 10, 1963). "Joyce Mathews Will Be Husband's Guest". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. p. 28 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Bater film booked". The Cincinnati Post. November 6, 1974. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 "Joyce married again". Springfield Leader and Press. Springfield, Missouri. May 8, 1977. p. 78 – via Newspapers.com.
- Pollack, Deborah C. (August 12, 2019). Vintage Miami Beach Glamor: Celebrities & Socialites in the Heyday of Chic. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4396-6604-3.
External links
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