Dalrymple, Jean

Producer, theatrical agent; interviewee b. 1910.

Theater impresario and publicist.

Jean Van Kirk Dalrymple (b. Sept 2, 1902 Morristown, NJ; d. Nov 15, 1998 New York, NY) was an actress, writer, lecturer and producer.

As the daughter of George H. Dalrymple, a concert manager who arranged tours for artists in this country and in Latin America, her interest in the arts was ensured. Her professional career began at the age of 9 with a short story entitled The Spinning Top, continued on with writing sketches for vaudeville, progressed to screen writing (e.g. It Happened in New York, written with Ward Morehouse) and, ultimately, wrote several books on theater and her life within this world (e.g. September Child in 1963 and From the Last Row in 1975). For a time she worked with John Golden, then established her own office as publicist and manager in 1937. She was a publicist or personal manager for such artists as Jose Iturbi, Tallulah Bankhead and Leopold Stokowski. In the late 1940s she produced several shows on Broadway, most notably a revival of Burlesque (1946) and Red Gloves (1948). She was associated with the City Center since its inception (1943), but not until she was named to its board of directors did she start to mount productions there, including King Lear, Mister Roberts and a series of plays with José Ferrer (Cyrano de Bergerac, The Shrike, Richard III, and Charley's Aunt). From 1957 to 1968, Dalrymple was general director of the City Center Light Opera Company, mounting forty-seven revivals of thirty different musicals, the most frequently staged of which were Brigadoon and South Pacific. Dalrymple's strong influence within the theater world prepared her for her role as coordinator of the U.S. Performing Arts Program for the Brussels World's Fair in 1958. Her success in this position ensured a managerial role with the New York's World Fair in 1964/1965. On a personal note, Miss Dalrymple was married in 1932 to Ward Morehouse, New York Sun drama critic. The marriage ended in divorce in 1937. In 1951, she was married to Major General Philip de Witt Ginder. On November 7 1968, Ginder died. Jean Dalrymple passed away on November 15, 1998.

Jean Van Kirk Dalrymple (b. Sept 2, 1902 Morristown, NJ; d. Nov 15, 1998 New York, NY) was an actress, writer, lecturer and producer. As the daughter of George H. Dalrymple, a concert manager who arranged tours for artists in this country and in Latin America, her interest in the arts was ensured. Her professional career began at the age of 9 with a short story entitled The Spinning Top, continued on with writing sketches for vaudeville, progressed to screen writing (e.g. It Happened in New York, written with Ward Morehouse) and, ultimately, wrote several books on theater and her life within this world (e.g. September Child in 1963 and From the Last Row in 1975). For a time she worked with John Golden, then established her own office as publicist and manager in 1937. She was a publicist or personal manager for such artists as Jose Iturbi, Tallulah Bankhead and Leopold Stokowski. In the late 1940s she produced several shows on Broadway, most notably a revival of Burlesque (1946) and Red Gloves (1948). She was associated with the City Center since its inception (1943), but not until she was named to its board of directors did she start to mount productions there, including King Lear, Mister Roberts and a series of plays with José Ferrer ( Cyrano de Bergerac, The Shrike, Richard III, and Charley's Aunt ). From 1957 to 1968, Dalrymple was general director of the City Center Light Opera Company, mounting forty-seven revivals of thirty different musicals, the most frequently staged of which were Brigadoon and South Pacific .

Dalrymple’s strong influence within the theater world prepared her for her role as coordinator of the U.S. Performing Arts Program for the Brussels World’s Fair in 1958. Her success in this position ensured a managerial role with the New York’s World Fair in 1964/1965.

On a personal note, Miss Dalrymple was married in 1932 to Ward Morehouse, New York Sun drama critic. The marriage ended in divorce in 1937. In 1951, she was married to Major General Philip de Witt Ginder. On November 7 1968, Ginder died. Jean Dalrymple passed away on November 15, 1998.