Aline MacMahon

Aline Laveen MacMahon (May 3, 1899 – October 12, 1991) was an American actress. Her Broadway stage career began with a small role in Edgar Selwyn's The Mirage in 1920. She made her screen debut in 1931 and worked extensively in film, theater, and television until her retirement in 1975. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Dragon Seed.

Early life MacMahon was born in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, the only child of William Marcus MacMahon and Jennie (née Simon) MacMahon. Her father was a telegraph operator, arbitrage broker, and writer/editor in the Munsey publishing company, including their flagship publication, Munsey's Magazine. Her father had Scottish and Irish ancestry, while her mother had Russian-Jewish ancestry.

Aline's parents had married on July 14, 1898, in Columbus, Ohio. Her father died on September 6, 1931.

MacMahon appeared on stage as early as 1905. That year the family moved to Brooklyn from McKeesport, and Aline's mother began training her in the art of elocution. Soon Aline was performing at local churches and festivals where she recited poems and played the violin. By 1908 she was well known enough to attract the attention of The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, which reported "a series of songs and dances by Aline MacMahon" to be performed at St. Jude's Church in Brooklyn.

Although she had been earning handsome wages for many years on New York's so-called Strawberry Circuit, MacMahon made her true professional debut in 1914 with a program of readings, recitations, and singing at New York's McAlpin Hotel.

Education MacMahon was raised first in the Pittsburgh suburb of McKeesport, then in Brooklyn, New York. In 1916 the MacMahon family moved to the upper west side of Manhattan, and Aline enrolled in nearby Barnard College. Her Broadway credits would eventually include over 30 shows, with many other off-Broadway and regional stage appearances during her career. Among her more memorable stage appearances were in Beyond the Horizon (1926), The Eve of Saint Mark (1942), The Confidential Clerk (1954), Pictures in the Hallway (1956), and All the Way Home (1960). ), often cast as the acerbic comedienne with a heart of gold or the long-suffering woman unlucky in love. Her biggest professional regret was not getting the starring role of O-Lan in The Good Earth (1937); the part went to Luise Rainer and won her an Academy Award. According to Screen World Presents the Encyclopedia of Hollywood Film Actors, MacMahon in her later film acting career "moved into character roles with ease as she became plumper and more motherly looking."

Personal life On March 28, 1928, MacMahon and Clarence Stein were married after a long courtship. The pair were devoted to each other, but commuting between coasts was a strain on their marriage. As Clarence's health failed in the late 1960s and early '70s, Aline confined herself to working in New York City theatrical productions close to their apartment.

Blacklisted During the 1950s MacMahon was blacklisted as a Communist sympathizer. Her name appeared in the notorious Communist watchlist pamphlet Red Channels. For years, the FBI had been surveilling her and her husband, including the couple's frequent international travel (for example, they sailed around the world in 1935–1936).

Legacy The New York Public Library has a collection of MacMahon's papers that document various aspects of her life. They are housed in the library's Billy Rose Theatre Division.

The first full-length biography of her, Aline MacMahon: Hollywood, the Blacklist, and the Birth of Method Acting, was published in 2022 by University Press of Kentucky.

Partial filmography

Five Star Final (1931) – Miss Taylor The Heart of New York (1932) – Bessie, the Neighbor The Mouthpiece (1932) – Miss Hickey, Day's Secretary Week-End Marriage (1932) – Agnes Davis Life Begins (1932) – Miss Bowers Once in a Lifetime (1932) – May Daniels One Way Passage (1932) – Betty Silver Dollar (1932) – Sarah Martin Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933) – Trixie Lorraine The Life of Jimmy Dolan (1933) – Mrs. Moore aka Auntie Heroes for Sale (1933) – Mary The World Changes (1933) – Anna Nordholm Heat Lightning (1934) – Olga (first leading role) The Merry Frinks (1934) – Hattie 'Mom' Frink Side Streets (1934) – Bertha Krasnoff Big Hearted Herbert (1934) – Elizabeth Babbitt (1934) – Myra Babbitt While the Patient Slept (1935) – Sarah Keate Mary Jane's Pa (1935) – Ellen Preston I Live My Life (1935) – Betty Collins Kind Lady (1935) – Mary Herries Ah, Wilderness! (1935) – Aunt Lily When You're in Love (1937) – Marianne Woods Back Door to Heaven (1939) – Miss Williams Out of the Fog (1941) – Florence Goodwin The Lady is Willing (1942) – Buddy Tish (1942) – Lizzie Wilkins Stage Door Canteen (1943) – Aline MacMahon Seeds of Freedom (1943) – Odessa Citizen Reward Unlimited (1944, short) – Mrs. Scott Dragon Seed (1944) – Ling Tan's Wife Guest in the House (1944) – Aunt Martha The Mighty McGurk (1947) – Mamie Steeple The Search (1948) – Mrs. Deborah R. Murray Roseanna McCoy (1949) – Sarie McCoy The Flame and the Arrow (1950) – Nonna Bartoli The Eddie Cantor Story (1953) – Grandma Esther The Man from Laramie (1955) – Kate Canaday Cimarron (1960) – Mrs. Mavis Pegler The Young Doctors (1961) – Dr. Lucy Grainger Diamond Head (1963) – Kapiolani Kahana I Could Go On Singing (1963) – Ida All the Way Home (1963) – Aunt Hannah For the Use of the Hall (1975, TV) - Bess