Antoinette Perry, Namesake of the Tony Awards

As a child, Antoinette Perry adored her aunt and uncle. Mildred Hall and George Wessells were both actors. She would sometimes travel with them on their acting tours.

Once home, the little girl would stage plays on her front lawn, no doubt wanting to recapture her experience with her aunt and uncle.

Perry was an only child and her father refused to allow his daughter to study acting. He did agree to allow her to study voice and piano, though, which probably didn't hurt her in the long run.

Perry auditioned for the female lead role in "The Music Master." She got the part and played opposite David Warfield, a popular actor in the early 1900's. So impressed was Warfield with Perry that he arranged an audition for her in "A Grand Army Man." Again, the two played opposite each other.

Perry married Frank Freuauff from her hometown of Denver, Colorado. Freuauff merged Denver Gas and Electric with Cities Service, now CITGO.

Perry left theater to be a housewife and mother but couldn't resist remaining involved with the theatrical community. She was a silent partner with Brock Pemberton, a Broadway producer. She financed his production of "Miss Lulu Bett" a Pulitzer Prize winning play. Husband Freuauff discovered his wife's dabbling in theatrical production, but was happy to discover they were successful investments.

But when he died in 1922 of a heart attack, he left Perry with a $13 million estate.

Perry resumed her acting career until a stroke left part of her face paralyzed. Drawing on her past experience with Pemberton, Perry turned to directing instead.

Perry and Pemberton were an unstoppable twosome. They were extremely close friends, talking on the phone each night and partnering on plays with Pemberton as producer and Perry as director. Movie rights were sold for their very successful play "Strictly Dishonorable" and everything was going well.

Even though the stock market crashed and left Perry $2 million in debt, she was able to borrow money to finance more plays. She and Pemberton did 17 plays in 13 years. The play "Harvey" won a Pulitzer Prize, it was a successful movie starring actor Jimmy Stewart.

The American Theatre Wing, of which Perry was a member, was established by playwright Rachel Crothers in 1917. This organization pitched in for two war efforts: World War I and World War II.

It was Perry who came up with the idea of the Stage Door Canteen. Uniformed servicemen could visit the Stage Door Canteen and be served non-alcoholic beverages by the likes of Dorothy Lamour and other screen stars while they relaxed and enjoyed entertainment.

It didn't take long for other Canteens to spring up in other cities in the United States as well as in Paris. Proceeds from the canteens supported shows for overseas troops and led to a movie "Stage Door Canteen" in 1943.

After the war, the American Theatre Wing Professional Training School was established. Some of the troops wanted to get into theater after the war and the school provided the training and experience they needed to do so. The school boasts almuni such as Tony Randall, Lee Marvin and Charleton Heston.

Perry had envisioned a school for theatrical actors. She would not live to see its success. One day before her birthday, as her daughters were preparing for a celebration for their mother, Perry died of a heart attack.

Pemberton and Perry's many other friends in the theatrical community wanted to honor her in some way. A group of thespians suggested an annual awards ceremony, honoring the best in theater. Perry's chosen nickname had been Tony and thus the awards were named "Tony" awards.

Today the Tony award is a medallion with a resemblance of Perry on one side and the comedy and tragedy masks on the other side.

The great Helen Hayes, only one of a handful of actors to work with Perry, stated, "Tony was a gifted and versatile actress, and one of the best directors the American theater has produced. What made her wonderful to work for was how she gave actors the opportunity to express themselves. She didn't impose her will on them." [1]

The website antoinetteperry.com is currently under construction.

Sources:

[1] Tony website

historynet.com