Lucille La Verne was born on 7 November 1872.
I didn’t know who she was before today. Although she has a fair number of film credits, she wasn’t really a film actor. She was a big star on Broadway and as a touring actor. In fact, she eventually ran her own company.
She started acting as a child. She played Juliet and Lady Macbeth back-to-back at the age of 14. This was the hallmark of her career. She was always a very versatile actor. And she made it to Broadway at the age of 16.
In addition to acting, she wrote and directed plays — including on Broadway.
But I’m talking about her today for one reason. In her best-known film role, Lucille La Verne provided the voice for the Evil Queen in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
I’m not a huge fan of Disney animated features. But the first five of them were amazing. After Snow White, Disney produced Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo, and Bambi. When I was a kid, I found them all terrifying. They are not kid films!
(Note: there is something of an exception. The Reluctant Dragon was a feature. But most of it is live action. The animated part is very light and silly. Interestingly, it is the only early Disney feature that I did not see as a kid!)
Anyway, La Verne performed as the Evil Queen as her final performance. It doesn’t look like she did any more theater. And she definitely didn’t do any more films. But it is a fine performance. In fact, it’s really the only performance in the film that anyone remembers!
So let’s watch Snow White to celebrate Lucille La Verne’s birthday!
Lucille La Verne via IMDb. It is in the public domain.
