Lynn Fontanne

Lore & Background

Fontanne was born Lillie Louise Fontanne in Woodford, Essex, the youngest of three daughters. She received her first training from the leading actress Ellen Terry, who gave lessons to promising young players. Fontanne made her first appearance at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, at Christmas 1905 in the chorus of the pantomime Cinderella, and subsequently walked on in productions starring Lewis Waller, Sir Herbert Tree, and Lena Ashwell. She first appeared in New York in 1910 at Nazimova's 39th Street Theatre as Harriet Budgeon in Mr Preedy and the Countess.

After returning to London, she toured and played in several productions, including a success as Liza and Mrs Collison in Knoblock's My Lady's Dress in 1914. She became engaged to a young lawyer, Teddy Byrne, but he was killed in action in 1916 during the First World War. Shortly before his death, she accepted an offer to join Laurette Taylor's company in New York, where Taylor and her husband fostered her career. In 1921 she had her first big success in the lead role of George S. Kaufman and Marc Connelly's comedy Dulcy.

Fontanne married Alfred Lunt in May 1922. In 1924 they joined the company of the Theatre Guild, appearing in Ferenc Molnár's The Guardsman. They acted together in three plays by Bernard Shaw and in Eugene O'Neill's Strange Interlude. They introduced a naturalistic new way of delivering dialogue, sometimes speaking while another actor was still speaking, which made their scenes more vivid and real. In 1928 they co-starred in Caprice, which marked the start of their inseparable theatrical partnership: from then on they always appeared together.

Reader's Guide

Fontanne and her husband Alfred Lunt, known collectively as 'The Lunts', were celebrated on both sides of the Atlantic for their stylish performances in light comedies by Noël Coward, S. N. Behrman, Terence Rattigan, and others, as well as romantic plays by writers such as Robert E. Sherwood. Although they also appeared in classics like The Taming of the Shrew and The Seagull, experimental drama by Eugene O'Neill, and dark comedy by Friedrich Dürrenmatt, their reputation rested primarily on sophisticated comedies. Their partnership with Noël Coward produced the hugely successful Design for Living (1932), which broke box-office records and earned them among the highest salaries on Broadway at the time. The Lunts were strong believers in touring, taking many of their Broadway hits to remote locations as well as larger American cities. They retired from the stage in 1960 and lived at their home in Genesee Depot, Wisconsin. Fontanne outlived her husband by six years, dying at the age of 95. Their naturalistic delivery of dialogue, including speaking while another actor was still speaking, influenced theatrical performance.

Did You Know?

• Fontanne received her first training as an actress from Ellen Terry.
• She made her first appearance at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, at Christmas 1905 in the chorus of the pantomime Cinderella.
• She was engaged to a young lawyer, Teddy Byrne, who was killed in action in 1916 during the First World War.
• Fontanne and Lunt introduced a naturalistic way of delivering dialogue, sometimes speaking while another actor was still speaking.