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Draft:Judith Raeburn

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Judith Raeburn was born Gertrude Blanche Larzelere on October 23, 1888 in Cincinnati, Ohio to Washington Irving Larzelere and Lillian B. (Davis) Larzelere. She grew up to be one of the innumerable actors that trod the boards prior to the advent of mass media.

Education/Early Life

Little is known of her early life except that she graduated from the prestigious Schuster School (known as the Schuster-Martin School of Drama) in 1906[1] with a specialty in "Elocution". The Cincinnati Directory listed her as an "Elocutionist" in Cincinnati in 1909[2]. At about this time, she had success with the play "Isle of Spice"[3] which launched her career.

Career

Theater, during her heyday, consisted of various companies that performed in well defined geographic areas. It seems that Miss Raeburn's was largely the southeast though she did stray to Oregon and the Dakotas. She appears to have been very active between 1909 and 1920, after which she appears to have vanished from the notices. Durning that period she appeared in the aforementioned "Isle of Spice", "The Country Editor", "The Corner Grocery", "At Sunrise", "The Final Settlement" and "Freckles which was her signature play wherein she portrayed "The Swamp Angel".

The actress Judith Raeburn in an ad for the play "Freckles"

Marriage/Later Life

Judith Raeburn (as Gertrude Blanche Larzelere, she never legally changed her name) married Darrell Hepburn Lyall (3/13/1876 - 6/16/1953), a fairly well known actor and theatrical promoter on 4/11/1908 in Jackson, Missouri. After 1920, she and her husband made their home in Chicago, not attracting any public attention.

Death/Interment

Judith Raeburn (AKA Gertrude Blanche “Trudy” Larzelere Lyall) died on 9/2/1952 In Chicago. She was interred in the Show Folks section of the Oakridge-Glen Oak Cemetery[4]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Schuster School". Cincinnati Commercial Tribune. January 15, 1911. p. 26. Retrieved January 29, 2023.
  2. ^ "Alphabetic listing". Cincinnati Directory. 1909. p. 1067.
  3. ^ "The Best Show that is Playing This Season". Corvallis (Oregon) Gazette. July 30, 1914. p. 17. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
  4. ^ "Find a Grave". Find a Grave. February 13, 2023. Retrieved February 13, 2023.

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