Spring Byington was an American actress best known for her portrayal of kind, polite, wise, and motherly roles in theatre, film, and television. At age 31, Byington made her Broadway debut in A Beggar on Horseback (1924), giving the world a small taste of her comedic talent. She performed in many Broadway shows after that, including The Merchant of Venice (1928), in which she played Nerissa. Byington was finally noticed by the film industry in 1933, when RKO cast her as Marmee in Little Women (1933). In this film (which is still widely considered the best film version of Louisa May Alcott's novel), Byington played the mother to a young Katharine Hepburn, playing Jo. After this performance, Byington never returned to Broadway. From there on out, however, Byington's roles were often limited to matronly characters who rarely allowed her to exhibit her extensive talents as an actress. She continued this pattern in the fields of radio and television as her film career waned.
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Examples of Work:
The Merchant of Venice (1928) Little Women (1933) You Can't Take It with You (1938) Louisa (1950 December Bride (1954) |
Angeline Nunes co-authored The Original Method and Self-Instructor on the Ukulele with A. A. Santos. Published in 1915, this was the first ukulele method written (actually co-written) by a woman. Angeline Nunes was the daughter-in-law of Hall of Fame Inductee Manuel Nunes, the ukulele maker.
The method book, published by Santos-Nunes Studios in Honolulu, is one of very few ukulele methods that actually was published in Hawaii. It is also unusual as it is the only ukulele method that uses the Maderian machete tuning, DGBD. All others use the modern GCEA (or ADF#B) tuning that was adapted from the tuning of the first four strings of the five-string Portuguese instrument known as the rajão. This method was Nunes' only published work associated with the instrument. Her career was as a school teacher - she taught a variety of subjects but specialized in music. |