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Georgie Drew Mendum

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Georgie Drew Mendum
Mendum circa 1900
Born
Georgiana Drew Mendum

(1876-12-06)December 6, 1876
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
DiedJuly 30, 1957(1957-07-30) (aged 80)
Other nameGeorgia Drew Parsons
Spouse
George Webster Parsons
​
​
(m. 1903⁠–⁠1911)​
MotherLouisa Drew Mendum
Relatives
FamilyDrew family

Georgiana "Georgie" Drew Mendum (December 6, 1876 - July 30, 1957) was an American stage actress. She was a member of the prominent Drew acting family.[1]

Early life and lineage

[edit]

Mendum was born on December 6, 1876 in Philadelphia, Pennslyvannia[2] to Louisa Eliza Drew (1852-1889) and Charles Albert Mendum (1849-1945). She was born to a very successful stage family. Her maternal grandparents were successful stage actors John Drew Sr. and Louisa Lane, while her aunts and uncles were actors John Jr, Sidney, and Georgie Drew - whom she was named after.[3] Her cousins Lionel, Ethel, and John were all members of the prominent Barrymore acting family and her cousins Louise Drew and Sidney Rankin Drew were also actors.[4][5] Mendum had one brother, Edmund, who was an author in the newspaper and published a book, The Barbarian and Other Stories Bedlum Mendum, in 1899.[6]

Her father managed the Arch Street Theatre while his mother-in-law Louisa Lane ran it for a time,[7] before he was fired.[8][9] He also served as manager to actress and socalite Lillie Langtry.[10] The family then moved to Boston where Charles worked as a banker.[11] Mendum was raised separately from her acting family and did not meet Ethel until the mid 1890s. The two would become very close and would often star in the same productions.[6]

Mendum's mother died in Boston in early 1889 when she was 12 years old.[12]

Life and career

[edit]

Mendum made her stage debut in Catherine alongside Annie Russell,[13] and by 1900, she had begun regularly appearing in her Uncle John's work.[14][15] In 1906, she appeared in a production of The Time, the Place and the Girl as Nurse Mollie Kelly at the Alhambra Theatre in Milwaukee. The Milwaukeee Daily News described her performance as "a refreshingly sweet and demure Mollie, and her ready wit and quick apperciation make her a most pleasing comedienne."[16] She would appear in the debut of The Girl Question the following year where she once again received positive reviews.[17]

Mendum and Walter Thomas in Via Wireless (play), circa 1909

Mendum moved to New York City to pursue a stage career. She lived in a boarding house alongside fellow actors, such as her cousin Ethel Barrymore, Maude Adams, and Ida Conquest. Barrymore described Mendum as "awfully good" in theatre.[18]

In 1908, Mendum starred in the original cast of Via Wireless as Mazie O'Brien. The show opened in a try-out at the National Theatre in Washington, D.C on October 19. In attendance were President Roosevelt, his wife, and their daughter were in attendance, as was his secretary William Loeb Jr., and John E. Wilkie, head of the Secret Service.[19] The show moved to Broadway on November 2, playing in the Liberty Theatre, and closed out on January 16, 1909.[20] Due to it is success, the production went on tour to Newark, Philadelphia, and an unlimited engagement in Chicago.[21] Mendum's work as Mazie was described as "splendid".[22]

In 1910, she appeared in the original Broadway production of The Echo[23] as Laura Short in New York's Globe Theatre. The musical opened August 17 and closed two month later on October 1.[24][25][26] The show opened to positive reviews.[27]

While her cousins became film stars, Mendum only appeared very briefly in one film, 1920's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, that starred her cousin John Barrymore in the titular role.[28]

In 1930, she appeared in the original Broadway production of Scarlet Sister Mary as Doll at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre. The production ran just one week, opening November 25 and closing December 1.[29]

Portrait of Mendum, featured in Vanity Fair (magazine), 1916.

Personal life

[edit]

She married actor George Webster Parsons in 1903. Mendum filed for divorce in June 1911 on the grounds of infidelity.[30] She was granted the divorce in October by Judge Charles McDonald, after presenting evidence she had gathered from following him to Chicago after hearing rumors of his infidelity. There she learned that he had a second apartment with another woman claiming to be his wife.[31][32]

Legacy

[edit]

The 1902 biography of Maude Adams By the Stage Door by Ada Patterson and Victory Bateman was dedicated to Mendum.[33][34] Her portrait serves as the cover.[35]

Theatre

[edit]
Year Title Role Theatre Notes Ref
1896 The Rivals Lydia [36]
1900 The Tyranny of Tears [37]
1902 Would You for Five Million? [38]
1904 Glad of It [39]
1905 The Belle of Richmond [40]
1906 The Time, the Place and the Girl Mollie Kelly Alhambra Theater, Milwaukee [16]
1907 The Girl Question Jo Forster Alhambra Theater, Milwaukee Original cast [17]
1908 The Girl Question Jo Forster Chickering Hall [41]
1908-1909 Via Wireless Mazie O'Brien Liberty Theatre Original cast [20]
Tour [22]
1910 The Echo Laura Short Globe Theatre Original Broadway cast [25]
1912 A Modern Eve Eve Bucklen Theatre American debut cast [42]
1913 The Strange Woman Lyceum Theatre Original cast [43]
1915 A Modern Eve Madame Ninche-Cascdier Tour Original cast [44][45]
1923 Neighbors Mrs. Blackmore 48th Street Theatre Original cast [46]
1924 Close Harmony Harriet Graham Gaiety Theatre Original cast [47][48]
1926 Still Waters Mrs. Kewback Henry Miller's Theatre [49]
1928 The Kingdom of God Innocent Ethel Barrymore Theatre [50]
1930 Scarlet Sister Mary Doll Ethel Barrymore Theatre Original cast [29]
1932 Encore Tour [15]
1934 L'Aiglon An Old Woman Broadhurst Theatre [51]
1940 The School for Scandal Mrs. Candour [52]

References

[edit]

General references

[edit]
  • Barrymore, Ethel (1955). Memories: An Autobiography. Harper. ISBN 978-1299688919. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ Kelly, Rivka (2014). THE DUCHESS: AN ANALYSIS OF THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF LOUISA LANE DREW (PDF). Scholarworks: University of Vermont.
  2. ↑ "Comedienne from Acting Family". Newspapers.com. The Plain Dealer. December 15, 1912. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  3. ↑ "Ethel Barrymore's Cousin". Newspapers.com. The Inter Ocean. July 23, 1905. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  4. ↑ "Louisa Lane". History of American Women. May 15, 2012. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  5. ↑ "The Name of Drew: Something About the Stars at the Aster". Newspapers.com. The Brooklyn Citizen. October 27, 1918. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  6. 1 2 Barrymore 1955, p. 4-5.
  7. ↑ "Mar 21, 1880, page 5 - The Philadelphia Times at Newspapers.com™". Newspapers.com. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
  8. ↑ "Charles A. Mendum Held. Former Theatrical Manager Charged with Misusing the Mails". Newspapers.com. New York Herald. September 10, 1910. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  9. ↑ "Arch Street Theatre-Testimonial to Manager Mendum Next Monday Evening". Newspapers.com. The Plain Dealer. October 25, 1914. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Charge Fraud to C.A. Mendum". Newspapers.com. The Boston Globe. October 14, 1910. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  11. ↑ Barrymore 1955, p. 4.
  12. ↑ "Stage Notes". Newspapers.com. The Bay City Times. July 7, 1889. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Daisy May Writes of the Newest Society Idols". Newspapers.com. The Montgomery Advertiser. January 8, 1899. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  14. ↑ "Stage Gossip". Newspapers.com. Reading Times. October 25, 1900. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  15. 1 2 "Drew Joins Barrmore in New Play 'Encore'". Newspapers.com. The Morning News. November 16, 1932. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  16. 1 2 "At the Playhouse". Newspapers.com. Milwaukee Daily News. August 13, 1906. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  17. 1 2 ""Girl Question" Scores Big Hit". Newspapers.com. The Milwaukee Sentinel. August 11, 1907. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  18. ↑ Barrymore 1955, p. 47-48.
  19. ↑ ""Via Wireless" A Lively Play". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore, Maryland. October 20, 1908. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. 1 2 "Two Great Scenes In "Via Wireless"". The Brooklyn Times. Brooklyn, New York. November 3, 1908. p. 19 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ↑ "Walter Thomas and Georgia Drew Mendum in "Via Wireless"". Newspapers.com. The Star-Ledger. January 9, 1909. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  22. 1 2 ""Via Wireless," Frederic Thompson's Latest, with Clever Georgia Drew Mendum, Draws Good Audience at the Newark Theatre". Newspapers.com. The Star-Ledger. January 19, 1909. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  23. ↑ "Elsie Janls in "The Slim Princess."; Georgia Mendum Gives Housewarming". The New York Times. September 9, 1910. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
  24. ↑ "The Echo – Broadway Musical – Original | IBDB". www.ibdb.com. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  25. 1 2 "The Echo Original Broadway Musical Cast 1910 | Broadway World". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  26. ↑ "Bessie McCoy Appears In "The Echo."; Rehearsals of "Welcome to Our City."". The New York Times. August 11, 1910. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  27. ↑ "LOTS OF CHARM TO "THE ECHO" AT GLOBE; A Genuine Musical Comedy Frolic Which Lots of Clever People Help to Success". The New York Times. August 18, 1910. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  28. ↑ "DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE (1920) – Episode 160 – Decades of Horror: The Classic Era". Decades of Horror. September 22, 2023. Archived from the original on May 23, 2024. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  29. 1 2 "Scarlet Sister Mary". Playbill. Retrieved May 2, 2026.
  30. ↑ "Niece of John Drew Granted Divorce". Newspapers.com. The Pittsburgh Press. October 7, 1911. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  31. ↑ "Mrs. Parsons Gets Divorce". Illinois Digital Newspaper Collections. Rock Island Argus. October 17, 1911. Retrieved May 2, 2026.
  32. ↑ "Acts Sleuth; Wins Divorce: Georgia Drew Mendum, Actress Trails Erring Spouse". Newspapers.com. Chicago Tribune. October 17, 1911. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  33. ↑ Patterson, Ada; Bateman, Victory (1902). By the Stage Door. Grafton Press.
  34. ↑ "Book News". Newspapers.com. Buffalo Post. November 3, 1902. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  35. ↑ "Sep 27, 1902, page 7 - The Atlanta Journal at Newspapers.com™". Newspapers.com. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  36. ↑ "Georgia Medum Belieres; All Actors Good Natured". Newspapers.com. Chicago Tribune. March 21, 1909. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  37. ↑ "John Drew Sale". Newspapers.com. The Patriot-News. April 18, 1900. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  38. ↑ "Local Theatrical Outlook". Newspapers.com. The Buffalo Sunday Morning. September 14, 1902. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
  39. ↑ "Jan 09, 1904, page 22 - The Toronto Star at Newspapers.com™". Newspapers.com. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
  40. ↑ "Jul 03, 1905, page 7 - San Francisco Chronicle at Newspapers.com™". Newspapers.com. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  41. ↑ "The Girl Question (1908)". www.spectra.theater. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  42. ↑ ""A Modern Eve" and It's American Producer". Newspapers.com. The Truth. March 29, 1912. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  43. ↑ "The Strange Woman (1913)". www.spectra.theater. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  44. ↑ "A Modern Eve (1915)". www.spectra.theater. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  45. ↑ "Story of "A Modern Eve' - Musical Comedy Treat of Season". Newspapers.com. Apr 02, 1915. April 2, 1915. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  46. ↑ "Neighbors (1923)". www.spectra.theater. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  47. ↑ "Close Harmony (1924)". www.spectra.theater. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  48. ↑ "Here is Realism". Newspapers.com. The Brooklyn Daily Times. December 2, 1924. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
  49. ↑ "Still Waters (1926)". www.spectra.theater. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  50. ↑ "The Kingdom of God (1928)". www.spectra.theater. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  51. ↑ "L'Aigon (1934)". www.spectra.theater. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  52. ↑ Athinson, Brooks (June 23, 1940). "LADY TEAZLE; Note on Summer and the Drama, Inspired By 'The School for Scandal'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
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