Mary MacArthur

Mary MacArthur (February 15, 1930 – September 22, 1949) was an American actress. Her death from respiratory polio at age 19 led to creation of the Mary MacArthur Memorial Fund, which provided money for research and for treatment of people with that disease.

Early years MacArthur was born on February 15, 1930, in New York City. She was the daughter of playwright Charles MacArthur and actress Helen Hayes. Actor James MacArthur was her brother by adoption. and an arbitration settlement after she suddenly left a Pacific Coast production of Coquette, causing the play to close. The producer said that he should not have to pay the Actors' Equity Association's standard "two weeks' salary in lieu of notice" to the play's cast, because the pregnancy was covered by the contract's "act of God" clause. An arbitration committee awarded the pay to the actors. She first appeared on stage in 1937 at age 7, in a walk-on appearance with a curtsy (but no lines) when Hayes was performing in Victoria Regina. The New York Times reported, "There were telegrams and flowers backstage, a gift from her mother and the company, and a lot of sentiment."

When MacArthur was 17, she said that she had become interested in acting only within the previous two years. She explained, "My father told me it was time I got a career for myself. He said I couldn't write so I'd better try acting. And now I'm just trying to find out whether I'm any good or not."

Career In 1946, MacArthur began a theatrical apprenticeship in acting and stagecraft at the Bucks County Playhouse in New Hope, Pennsylvania. Her professional stage debut occurred there on July 15, 1946, when she performed with Hayes in Alice Sit-by-the-Fire.

A review in The Philadelphia Inquirer called the first-night performance "memorable" and added, "It was probably as trying and triumphant a night as any mother and daughter ever experienced." The trying aspect for MacArthur arose from "her mother's enviable reputation as the 'First Lady of the Theater'", while Hayes wanted "to see her own child captivate and hold an audience".

In 1947, MacArthur, as a member of the supporting cast, toured with Lillian Gish in The Marquise. MacArthur and Hayes appeared again in Alice Sit-by-the-Fire to open the summer 1948 season at the Olney summer theater. When that 10-day run ended, Hayes left to perform in England, while MacArthur remained as resident ingenue. MacArthur and Hayes acted together in The Glass Menagerie in Nyack, New York, in the summer of 1949. The two also appeared together on the radio program Cavalcade of America.

Death MacArthur became ill in the summer of 1949 in Westport, Connecticut, while she was performing with Hayes in a pre-Broadway version of the comedy play Good Housekeeping. The play was to have been the vehicle for MacArthur's New York City stage debut. She was admitted to Lenox Hill Hospital on September 14, 1949, Later reports said that she died of respiratory polio.

Other activities In January 1950, students from the Professional Children's School put on a memorial performance to honor MacArthur. The two-hour variety show, which Life magazine called the "biggest event of the theatrical year, junior division", raised $9,000 for the March of Dimes.