ÆPARA èPAR@ ` ·TEXT ` ∞Lawrence, Gertrude1898╨1932singer and actorBorn in London on July 4, 1898, Gertrud Alexandra Dagmar Lawrence Klasen (she later changed the spelling of her first name) was the daughter of music hall performers, and from an early age she was trained to follow their career. She made her stage debut in December 1908 in a pantomime Dick Whittington in Brixton. Subsequently she appeared in Babes in the Wood, 1910, The Miracle, 1911, Hannele, 1913, and other musicals and plays, and for a time she toured in minor revues. In 1916 she began appearing in AndrÄ Charlot╒s intimate revues in London: Some, 1916, Cheep, 1917, Tabs, during which she stepped into the lead when Beatrice Lillie fell ill, 1918, and Buzz-Buzz, 1919. For two years she performed in nightclubs, but in 1921 she returned to Charlot to replace Beatrice Lillie in A to Z, in which she introduced ╥Limehouse Blues,╙ her first hit song. She appeared with Noel Coward, whom she had known for ten years, in his London Calling, 1923, and in January 1924 made her New York debut as one of the stars of Charlot╒s Revue, with Lillie and Jack Buchanan, at the Times Square Theatre. In 1926 she starred in George and Ira Gershwin╒s Oh Kay!, which moved to London the next year, and in 1928 in their Treasure Girl. In 1928 she played her first straight dramatic role in Icebound in London, and in 1929 she appeared opposite Leslie Howard in Candle-Light. Lawrence╒s greatest role was in Noel Coward╒s Private Lives, written with her in mind, in which she opened opposite the author at the Phoenix Theatre, London, in September 1930. Both the play and the stars set the tone that would characterize comedies of manners for a decade or more: sophistication, brittle wit, and chic. Private Lives was a great success in New York as well from its opening in January 1931 at the Times Square. In 1933 she appeared in Cole Porter╒s musical Nymph Errant, and in 1936 she rejoined Coward in his Tonight at 8:30 (originally Tonight at 7:30 in its London production). She later appeared in Rachel Crothers╒s Susan and God, 1937, Skylark, 1939, and the Moss Hart╨Kurt Weill musical Lady in the Dark, which was another triumph for her, 1941. Throughout her career, her singing and dancing, both accomplished but not exceptional, merely supported her compelling stage presence, what Coward called her ╥star quality.╙ On the strength of it she remained for a quarter-century one of the most popular stars on the American and British stages. During World War II she was active in the Stage Door Canteen and entertained troops in Europe and the Pacific. In 1945 she published an autobiography, A Star Danced. After the war she appeared in September Tide, 1948, a film version of The Glass Menagerie, 1950, and others, and in March 1951 she opened on Broadway in Rogers and Hammerstein╒s The King and I. During the run of that musical she died in New York City on September 6, 1952.Movie: Lawrence in the 1934 movie ╥No Funny Business,╙ directed by John Stafford and W. Victor Hanbury. ^styl ` D ! ¬ 5¬ 5¬ / !I N !I ^ !I ë !I Ü !I ó !I ¡ !I ╡ !I ╝ !I X !I \ !I d !I i !I q !I u !I ╟ !I ╨ !I F !I L !I Å 5¬ É !I ╪ !I µ !I 1 !I @ !I ░ !I ╖ !I ≤ !I !I : !I B !I ü !I ì !I É 5¬ æ !I ┐ !I ╠ !I ╪ !I σ !I F 5¬ G !I u !I ü !I ¬ !I ╣ !I ╞ !I ╒ !I !I ▐ !I !I ' !I / !I 6 !I c !I s !I
