Yvonne Howell

Yvonne Howell
Born
Julia Rose Shevlin

(1905-07-31)July 31, 1905
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
DiedMay 27, 2010(2010-05-27) (aged 104)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
OccupationAmerican film actress
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1930; div. 1947)​
ChildrenGeorge Stevens Jr.
MotherAlice Howell

Yvonne Howell (born Julia Rose Shevlin; July 31, 1905 – May 27, 2010) was an actress whose career began in silent films.

Early life

Julia Rose Shevlin was born in Chicago. Her parents were vaudeville performer and silent actress Alice Howell and Benjamin Vincent Shevlin.

Career

Howell made films during the silent era, including Fashions for Women (1927) directed by Dorothy Arzner, and Somewhere in Sonora (1927), a Western starring Ken Maynard. With the advent of sound pictures, she hoped that her distinctive "giggle" would get her roles, but she only appeared in one film after 1930, Working Girls (1931).

During World War II, Howell worked as a nurse's aide at Army hospitals in California.

Personal life

In 1930, she became the first wife of then cameraman George Stevens, an Academy Award-winning film director. They divorced in 1947. Their son, George Stevens Jr., was founding director of the American Film Institute. Howell died at age 104 on May 27, 2010, from cardiac arrest, at her residence of Hollywood.

Filmography

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Bernstein, Adam. Yvonne Stevens, 1920s silent-film comedic and dramatic actress, dies at age 104, Washington Post, June 3, 2010
  2. ↑ Slide, Anthony (August 29, 2016). She Could Be Chaplin!: The Comedic Brilliance of Alice Howell. University Press of Mississippi. ISBN 978-1-4968-0842-4. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  3. ↑ "Giggles Way Into Talkies". The Fresno Morning Republican. September 5, 1929. p. 1. Retrieved July 2, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "Giggles Win Role; Yvonne Howell to Have Part in Paramount Production". Pasadena Star-News. August 22, 1929. p. 21. Retrieved July 2, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Wedding Bells Ring at Studio". Los Angeles Evening Citizen News. August 28, 1930. p. 6. Retrieved July 2, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ Editorial correction Los Angeles Times, June 15, 2010; page A4
  7. ↑ Obituary, Los Angeles Times, June 8, 2010; page AA6.