Ethel Levey (born Grace Ethelia Fowler; November 22, 1880 – February 27, 1955) was an American actress, dancer, and singer in musical theatre and on the vaudeville stage. She was the first wife of George M. Cohan, and the second wife of aviator Claude Grahame-White.
Early life Levey was born Grace Ethelia Fowler on November 22 1880 in San Francisco, California.Cullen, Frank, Florence Hackman and Donald McNeilly (eds.) "Ethel Levey", Vaudeville Old & New: An Encyclopedia of Variety Performances in America, Psychology Press (2004), pp. 679–680. She was the daughter of David Fowler and Mattie McGee. Her stepfather was Solomon Levy; she used another spelling of his surname as her professional name.
Career
Levey made her professional debut in San Francisco, in Charles H. Hoyt's A Milk White Flag in 1897. She appeared regularly on vaudeville programs in New York and on tour. After marrying George M. Cohan, she continued performing with him, in The Governor's Son (1901 and 1906), Running for Office (1903), Little Johnny Jones (1904), and George Washington Jr. (1906)."Ethel Levey", AllMusic. After their divorce, her Broadway appearances included roles in Nearly a Hero (1908),"Scenes in Sam Bernard's New Piece, 'Nearly a Hero'", Theatre Magazine (April 1908), p. 91 Watch Your Step (1914), Go Easy, Mabel (1922), Sunny River (1941), and Marinka (1945). She was also seen in London, in the revues Hullo Ragtime (1912), Hullo Tango (1913), Look Who's Here! (1916),"Our Captious Critic", The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News (August 5, 1916), p. 646. Follow the Crowd (1916), Three Cheers (1917), Oh! Julie (1920), and Blue Kitten (1925).Slide, Anthony. The Encyclopedia of Vaudeville (University Press of Mississippi 2012): 311-312. Hischak, Thomas. The Oxford Companion to the American Musical (Oxford University Press 2008).
Irving Berlin recalled Levey's slower interpretation of his "Alexander's Ragtime Band": "I remember how upset I was at her rendition of it. The audience, of course, did not agree with me. She was a riot."Hamm, Charles. Irving Berlin: Songs from the Melting Pot: The Formative Years, 1907-1914 (Oxford University Press 1997), p. 136.
She appeared in the film High Stakes (1931) and in a 1940 short comedy, "Tattle Television".
Personal life
Levey married George M. Cohan in 1899, in Atlantic City, New Jersey."Cohans have Separated" Boston Globe (December 28, 1906): 1. via Newspapers.com They had a daughter, Georgette (1900–1988),Georgette Cohan photographs and memorabilia, 1895–1978, New York Public Library, Archives & Manuscripts. before they separated in 1906 and divorced in 1907."Ethel Levey Isn't Earning Any Money Now", Wichita Beacon (October 11, 1913), p. 11. via Newspapers.com She was rumored to be engaged to actor Robert Edeson in 1907."Ethel Levey Injured" Washington Post (August 25, 1907), p. 3. via Newspapers.com"'Strongheart' to Wed Ethel Levey", Daily Arkansas Gazette (March 4, 1907), p. 4. via Newspapers.com There was another rumor that Levey had married a French equestrian, Pierre Crespina, in 1910."Ethel Levey Married Abroad", The New York Times (July 8, 1910), p. 7. via Newspapers.com Levey and her daughter lived in Paris before World War I."American Best Dressed Says Miss Ethel Levey", Brooklyn Daily Eagle (July 18, 1911), p. 18. via Newspapers.com Levey married again, to English aviator Claude Grahame-White, in London in 1916."Ethel Levey Bright of Grahame-White", Boston Globe (December 22, 1916), p. 9. via Newspapers.com"When You're Divorced Your Troubles Begin" The Times (December 11, 1921), p. 51. via Newspapers.com With Grahame-White, she flew over wartime France and regularly commuted by air between Paris and London."About Ethel Levey", Brooklyn Daily Eagle (March 8, 1921), p. 8. via Newspapers.com Grahame-White disliked her continuing stage career;"Grahame-White Detests Stage", Boston Post (March 30, 1921), p. 2. via Newspapers.com the couple divorced in 1939."Ethel Levey to File Petition for Divorce", The New York Times (December 3, 1937), p. 29."Gay 90's Girl Divorced", Daily News (March 31, 1939), p. 570. via Newspapers.com
In 1942 she unsuccessfully sued Warner Brothers for invasion of privacy over Yankee Doodle Dandy, a film biography of George M. Cohan. (His domestic life is highly fictionalized in the film.)John T. Aquino, Truth and Lives on Film: The Legal Problems of Depicting Real Persons and Events in a Fictional Medium (McFarland 2005), p. 31.
Levey died in 1955, aged 74, in New York City."Ethel Levey Dies of Heart Attack; Funeral is Tuesday", The Town Talk (February 26, 1955), p. 18. via Newspapers.com
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