Nora Swinburne » Wiki

Nora Swinburne Actress - Born 24 Jul 1902 Bath, England UK

Bio The daughter of a toy manufactuer, British actress Nora Swinburne was on stage from age 10, then went on to polish her skills at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. She became a favorite in silent films upon her debut in 1920's Saved From the Sea, maintaining her popularity into the talkie era. Occasionally spelling her British work with American pictures, Ms. Swinburne appeared in such Hollywood-financed films as Dinner at the Ritz (1937) and The Citadel (1938), but remained in England for the War Years. She worked steadily as a character actress in several international productions of the '50s, looking stately but radiant in such costume epics as Quo Vadis (1951) and Helen of Troy (1955). Active in films until the early '70s, Nora Swinburne was long married to another well-known British film actor, Esmond Knight, with whom she acted in Helen of Troy and Anne of a Thousand Days (1969).

Biography by Hal Erickson

http://www.allmovie.com/artist/nora-swinburne-p69385

Nora Swinburne Actress - Born 24 July 1902 Bath, Somerset, England, UK [now Bath and North East Somerset, England, UK]

Died 1 May 2000 in London, England, UK (natural causes)

Birth Name Leonora Mary Johnson

Height 5' 5½" (1.66 m)

Mini Bio (1)''' Known for her genteel ways and stately beauty in tea service drama, British actress Nora Swinburne was born Elinore Johnson on July 24, 1902, in Bath, England. Performing on stage as both actress and dancer from the age of 10, her father, Henry Swinburne Johnson, manufactured toys for a living. She was a member of Clive Currie's Young Players in 1914 and appeared in shows during that year. Educated at Rosholme College, she trained for the arts at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Building up her stage reputation with such pieces as "Suzette" (1917), "Yes, Uncle!" (1918), "Scandal" (1919), and the title role in "Tilly of Bloomsbury" (1921), her attractiveness proved quite suitable for films, entering silent pictures in 1920. She appeared in a handful of sophisticated fare throughout the early part of the decade such as Branded (1920), The Fortune of Christina McNab (1921), Hornet's Nest (1923), and A Girl of London (1925). Divorced from actor Francis Lister, she was married to actor Edward Ashley at the time she met Esmond Knight while appearing in the play "Wise Tomorrow" in 1937. Actually, both actors were married at the time, but they engaged in a long, discreet affair until both were free. They finally married in the late 1940s and enjoyed a long union together. They would appear in several plays over the years from "Autumn Crocus" (1939) to "The Cocktail Party" (1974). Ms. Swinburne enjoyed great theatrical success playing the role of Dinah Lot in the play "Lot's Wife" (1938), which she subsequently reproduced under her own management, and later replaced Diana Wynyard in the memorable war drama "Watch on the Rhine" in 1943. By the advent of sound, Ms. Swinburne had been related to opulent supports in films, usually appearing as ladylike mothers or socialite types in plush Gainsborough dramas. Some of her later films would include Perfect Understanding (1933), The Citadel (1938), The Man in Grey (1943), Man of Evil (1944), Jassy (1947), Christopher Columbus (1949), Quartet (1948), The River (1951) (with husband Knight), Quo Vadis (1951) (as Pomponia), Helen of Troy (1956) (as Hecuba), Decision at Midnight (1963) (again with Knight), Interlude (1968) and Anne of the Thousand Days (1969). An avid gardener by nature, Ms. Swinburne would die of old age in 2000, thirteen years after husband Knight.

- IMDb Mini Biography By: Gary Brumburgh / [email protected]

Esmond Knight (4 October 1946 - 23 February 1987) ( his death)

Edward Ashley (1934 - 1938) ( divorced) ( 1 child)

Francis Lister (1924 - 1932) ( divorced)

Trivia (4) 1. Mother, with Edward Ashley, of son Francis. 2. Step-mother of Rosalind Knight. 3. She died only four days before her ex-husband Edward Ashley. 4. Died within months of death of friends Joan Marion and Jane Welsh.

Leonora Mary Johnson (24 July 1902 – 1 May 2000), known professionally as Nora Swinburne, was an English actress. She is best known for her appearances in many British films.

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