Ada May Weeks Explained

Ada May Weeks
Other Names:Ada May, Ada Mae Weeks, Ada May Potter, Ada May Castegnaro
Birth Date:March 8, 1896
Birth Place:Oyster Bay, New York
Death Date:April 25, 1978
Death Place:New York City
Occupation:Actress, dancer, musical comedy performer

Ada May Weeks Potter Castegnaro (March 8, 1896[1] – April 25, 1978), sometimes billed as Ada May or Ada Mae Weeks, or referred to as the Countess Castegnaro, was an American actress and dancer, on stage, film, and radio.

Early life

Weeks was born in Oyster Bay, New York, the daughter of Charles Meeks and Ada M. Thomson Weeks.[2] She started dancing as a very young child.[3] Her sisters Marion, Grace, and Ruth also became actresses.[4]

Career

Weeks was a dancer, actress, and musical comedy performer. She used the name "Ada May" on advice from Zelda Sears. Her stage credits included roles in Around the Map (1915 –1916, as understudy for Marilyn Miller), Come to Bohemia (1916), Miss Springtime (1916 –1917), Miss 1917 (1917), Listen, Lester (1918–1919, dancing with Clifton Webb),[5] [6] Jim Jam Jems (1920–1921), The O'Brien Girl (1921 –1922), Lollipop (1924),[7] Rio Rita (1927–1928),[8] and The Good Fairy (1932–1933).[9] She appeared in the films The Dancing Town (1928), The Shaming of the True (1930), Dance, Girl, Dance (1933), and Monsieur Verdoux (1947), and was seen on television in Fireside Theatre (1950). She also performed on radio programs.[10]

In 1920, Weeks sued impresario John Cort for back pay.[11] She also sought a court order to keep Cort from claiming she was under contract to him; his claims were preventing her from finding another theatrical role.[12]

Personal life

Weeks married twice. Her first husband was American sportsman and big game hunter Wilson Potter;[13] they married in 1924[14] [15] and divorced in 1932.[16] [17] [18] Her second husband was an Italian film editor, Count Mario Castegnaro; they married in California in 1946.[19] [20] They were still married when she died in 1978, aged 82 years, at her home in New York City.[21] [22]

Notes and References

  1. Weeks's birth year is sometimes given as 1898; 1896 is the year given on her gravestone, on IMDB, and in other sources.
  2. News: 1917-11-18 . Four Little American Girls' Fight for Scotland's Proudest Duchy . 53 . The San Francisco Examiner . 2022-07-02 . Newspapers.com.
  3. News: Makay . Marion P. . 1924-02-18 . Star of 'Lollipop' First Danced at Oyster Bay When Five Years Old . 18 . The Brooklyn Daily Eagle . 2022-07-02 . Newspapers.com.
  4. January 16, 1918 . Bubble and Squeak: Stories from Everywhere . The Tatler . 67 . 94.
  5. February 1919 . Theatre in Review: A Singing Trio . Forum . 61 . 249.
  6. Book: Webb, Clifton . Sitting Pretty: The Life and Times of Clifton Webb . 2011-05-17 . Univ. Press of Mississippi . 978-1-4968-0064-0 . en.
  7. Book: Bordman, Gerald . American Musical Theater: A Chronicle . 2001-03-01 . Oxford University Press . 978-0-19-977117-2 . 432 . en.
  8. News: 1926-11-13 . Ada-May Hired for Ziggy Show . 21 . Daily News . 2022-07-02 . Newspapers.com.
  9. David S. Shields, "Ada May", Broadway Photographs.
  10. Hall . Edwin . 1922 . An Interview with Ada May Weeks . The Wireless Age . 10 . 40.
  11. News: 1921-05-02 . Miss Weeks Sues Cort for $1,200 Stage Pay . 27 . Daily News . 2022-07-02 . Newspapers.com.
  12. News: 1921-01-20 . Seeks to Restrain Cort; Justice Ford Reserves Decision on Ada May Weeks's Application . en-US . The New York Times . 2022-07-01 . 0362-4331.
  13. News: 1946-06-13 . Col. Wilson Potter; Big-Game Hunter Obtained Heads for Smithsonian Institution . en-US . The New York Times . 2022-07-02 . 0362-4331.
  14. News: 1924-05-29 . Betrothed . 1 . Lincoln Journal Star . 2022-07-02 . Newspapers.com.
  15. News: 1924-05-28 . Ada May Dances Her Way into Society as Wife of Millionaire . 19 . Star-Gazette . 2022-07-02 . Newspapers.com.
  16. News: 1932-06-14 . Ada May Sues Col. Potter; Actress Brings Philadelphia Action to Divorce Game Hunter . en-US . The New York Times . 2022-07-02 . 0362-4331.
  17. News: 1933-10-14 . Ada May Gets Divorce; Grounds Not Revealed In Suit Against Capt. Potter of Philadelphia . en-US . The New York Times . 2022-07-02 . 0362-4331.
  18. News: 1932-06-12 . Rumors of Year Turn into Truth as Ada May, Musical Comedy Star, Asks Divorce from Clubman . 1 . The Philadelphia Inquirer . 2022-07-02 . Newspapers.com.
  19. News: 1946-04-22 . Count and Actress Marry at Laguna . 11 . The Los Angeles Times . 2022-07-02 . Newspapers.com.
  20. News: 1946-04-16 . Tea Leads Actress and Count to Troth . 9 . The Los Angeles Times . 2022-07-02 . Newspapers.com.
  21. News: 1978-04-27 . Ada May Weeks . en-US . The New York Times . 2022-07-02 . 0362-4331.
  22. News: 1978-04-27 . Ada May Weeks . 88 . Daily News . 2022-07-02 . Newspapers.com.

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