Vera James Munro (born Vera Gwendoline James, 2 April 1892 – 19 October 1980) was a New Zealand actress who worked in theatre and film. In 1929 she appeared in the first all-talking, all-colour feature length movie ever made, Warner Bros On with the Show!, and was already well known for starring in A Girl of the Bush in 1921.
Biography
James was born Vera Gwendoline James on 2 April 1892, the daughter of William Francis James and Alice Jane James (née Hill) of Dunedin, New Zealand.[1][2] She moved to Australia in 1919 and appeared in two films for Franklyn Barrett.[3] The first was A Girl of the Bush,[4][5] which was screened in both Australia and New Zealand.[6] Her performance in the lead role was widely praised for the versatility of her acting, her mimicry, feats of horsemanship, and her good looks.[7] She had learned to ride horses and swim in order to land the role.[8] The second film was Know Thy Child,[9] in which James' character was first shown at the age of seventeen, then aged twenty-five, and finally aged about forty; "in each age she plays the part with restraint and dramatic skill".[10]
After these successes, James moved to Hollywood in 1922,[11] with her new husband, Arthur Henry Munro,[12][13] who she had married on 29 June 1921 at the Presbyterian Church, Neutral Bay, Sydney.[14] In Hollywood, James appeared in a B-Western, McGuire of the Mounted (1923), playing a member of a drug smuggling gang who was married to the hero while he was doped.[15][16] She was cast in Bavu (1923), and appeared in pre-release publicity images,[17][18][19] but does not appear in the cast list of the final release. James also had supporting roles in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923),[19][5]The Radio Detective (1925) (a serial),[5][20]Three Wise Men (1925) with Janet Gaynor and Ben Corbett,[21]Fade-Away Foster (1926),[5] and On with the Show! which was the first all-colour, all-talking full-length movie in history.[12][19] She was one of the few New Zealand actors to find some fame in Hollywood at the time.[22]
In 1928 she appeared in a production of the operetta The Desert Song. The Los Angeles Times described her as "not only pleasing to gaze upon, but is possessed of a beautiful contralto voice".[23]
In 1929, she travelled back to Australia and New Zealand, intending to return to Hollywood the following year.[19][24][25] However, there is no evidence that she did.[1][12][19] She was offered parts after returning to Australia, but always turned them down.[26] She went on to manage a beauty salon in Sydney.[8] She died on 19 October 1980 in Sydney.[26]
^"Footlight flashes". Truth. No. 1626. New South Wales, Australia. 6 March 1921. p. 11. Retrieved 16 November 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
^"Theatredom and Movie Gossip". The Call. No. 408. Western Australia. 10 March 1922. p. 7. Retrieved 16 November 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
^"Marriages". Otago Daily Times. 9 July 1921. p. 8. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
^Kelly, Mary (14 July 1923). "McGuire of the Mounted". Moving Picture World: 157. Retrieved 17 November 2018.
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