Betty Compton

Not to be confused with Betty Compson, Betty Comden, or Joyce Compton.
Betty Compton
Born
Violet Halling Compton

(1906-05-13)May 13, 1906
Sandown, Isle of Wight, England
Died(1944-07-12)July 12, 1944
Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
Occupation(s)Stage, film actress
Spouse(s)Edward D. Dowling (1931-1931, divorced)
Jimmy Walker (1933-1941; divorced)
Theodore Temple Knappen (1942-1944; her death)
Children3

Betty Compton (born Violet Halling Compton; May 13, 1906[citation needed] – July 12, 1944), was an English actress and singer, who married New York City mayor Jimmy Walker in 1933.

Compton was born Violet Halling Compton[1] in Sandown, Isle of Wight. She moved to Canada with her parents when she was seven years old.[2] She studied singing in New York City with Estelle Liebling.[3]

A member of the Ziegfeld Follies, she appeared in the original stage production of Funny Face (1927) alongside Fred Astaire and Adele Astaire, as well as Oh, Kay! in 1926.

Compton married film dialog director Edward D. Dowling on February 16, 1931, in Cuernavaca, Mexico, and they were divorced in that city on March 20, 1931. She had received a divorce from a previous marriage in 1923.[4] She married Walker on April 18, 1933, in Cannes, France.[5] She and Walker adopted a son, James J. Walker II, and a daughter, Mary Ann Walker.[6] In 1940, Compton began divorce action against Walker.[7] The divorce would become official on March 15, 1941 in Key West.[7] On May 11, 1942, Compton married West Point graduate and consulting engineer Theodore Knappen in Jersey City. That was her fourth wedding.[8] She and Knappen had a son, Theodore Compton Knappen.[7] This would be the only child Compton would give birth to.[7]

According to Knappen, Compton had been ill since the birth of their son on January 19, 1944.[7] On July 12, 1944, Compton died[6] in Doctors Hospital, New York, aged 38.[7]

  1. ^ "Walker banns posted". The New York Times. April 5, 1933. p. 12. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
  2. ^ "Betty Compton diees; former actress, 37". The New York Times. July 13, 1944. p. 17. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
  3. ^ Dean Fowler, Alandra (1994). Estelle Liebling: An exploration of her pedagogical principles as an extension and elaboration of the Marchesi method, including a survey of her music and editing for coloratura soprano and other voices (PhD). University of Arizona.
  4. ^ "Betty Compton Gets Mexican Divorce Decree; Actress Wed to Film Director in February". The New York Times. April 2, 1931. p. 34. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
  5. ^ "Walker married to Betty Compton". The New York Times. April 19, 1933. p. 3. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
  6. ^ a b "Betty Compton left estate to husband". The New York Times. July 27, 1944. p. 19. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
  7. ^ a b c d e f "Betty Compton, 2nd Wife Of Jimmie Walker, Dies" (Archive). Daily News. Newspapers.com. July 13, 1944. Retrieved September 26, 2024.
  8. ^ "Betty Compton Wed Again". The New York Times. May 12, 1942. p. 22. Retrieved May 7, 2021.