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Thread: Christine McIntyre

  1. #1
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    Christine McIntyre

    Date of Birth

    16 April 1911, Nogales, Arizona, USA


    Date of Death

    8 July 1984, Van Nuys, California, USA (cancer)


    Mini Biography

    One of five children, Christine Cecilia McIntyre was born in Nogales, Arizona, on April 26, 1911, to John and Edna (nee Barnaby) McIntyre. In the early 1930s, Christine received a Bachelor of Music degree at Chicago Musical College, where she honed her operatic soprano voice (which can be heard in a handful of her movies); she also began her radio career in Chicago. By 1936, she was acting on the professional stage in L.A., starring in plays such as "The Bird of Paradise" with actors like Pierce Lyden. She broke into movies with a small role in Swing Fever (1937), signing for feature films with RKO. This led to a series of B westerns with stars like Buck Jones, Johnny Mack Brown, and Ray Corrigan. Then, in 1944, with her hair newly dyed blonde, she was discovered by producer Hugh McCollum at Columbia Pictures and signed a ten-year contract to do shorts for the studio. Over the next decade, she worked with comedians such as Andy Clyde, Hugh Herbert, and Shemp Howard (solo), not to mention both Joe Besser and Joe DeRita. However, she will forever be remembered for her prolific work with The Three Stooges. A favorite concert piece of hers, Johann StrauĂ?' "Voice of Spring," was the basis for the 1945 Stooges short Micro-Phonies (1945), considered by many Stooge fans as the trio's finest effort and which also provides the best example of Christine's beautifully pure operatic soprano voice as she sings the above-mentioned aria (which Curly Howard, as "Senorita Cucaracha," hilariously lip-synchs to). Always focused, always a presence onscreen, Christine developed into a first-rate comedic actress--her timing was impeccable and she wasn't afraid to get "down and dirty" with slapstick experts such as the Stooges (she even beat up poor Shemp Howard in the classic Brideless Groom (1947), then knocked him through a door), and it was merely through unfortunate twists of fate that she never segued over into television at the same time that funnywomen Lucille Ball and Imogene Coca were making their small-screen marks. Though Christine's career at Columbia consisted mostly of comedy shorts, she did show up in occasional features, often westerns. In 1953, near the end of her Columbia contract, she married radio producer/writer/actor J. Donald Wilson (not to be confused with Jack Benny's announcer Don Wilson), and soon after retired from show business. Christine and J. Donald spent the next 30 years developing joint careers in real estate. The former actress passed away in Van Nuys, California, on July 8, 1984, six months after her husband.

  2. #2
    SquirrelNutZipper Guest
    Thanks Rebekah, she's one of those actresses that everyone knows by face but the name isn't as recognizable.

    A truly pretty woman.

  3. #3
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    Your welcome! She also had a beautiful voice.

  4. #4
    crimson and clover Guest
    At first I thought this thread said Christine McVie of Fleetwood Mac

  5. #5
    Sam Guest


    McIntyre was also a gifted comedienne. She had amazing screen presence and managed to fit right in with the roughneck Stooges. Her performance as Miss Hopkins in Brideless Groom featured a knockabout scene in which she beats voice instructor Shemp Howard into submission. Director Edward Bernds remembers:
    “"In the story, Shemp had a few hours in which to get married if he wanted to inherit his uncle's fortune. He called on Christine McIntyre, who mistook him for her cousin (Basil) and greeted him with hugs and kisses. Then the real cousin phoned and she accused Shemp of kissing her, as it were, under false pretenses. At this point, she was supposed to slap Shemp around. Lady that she was, Chris couldn't do it right; she dabbed at him daintily, afraid of hurting him. After a couple of bad takes, Shemp pleaded with her. 'Honey,' he said, 'if you want to do me a favor, cut loose and do it right. A lot of half-hearted slaps hurts more than one good one. Give it to me, Chris, and let's get it over with.' Chris got up her courage and on the next take, let Shemp have it. 'It' wound up as a whole series of slaps—the timing was beautiful; they rang out like pistol shots. Shemp was knocked into a chair, bounced up, met another ringing slap, fell down again, scrambled up, trying to explain, only to get another stinging slap. Then Chris delivered a haymaker—a right that knocked Shemp through the door. When the take was over, Shemp was groggy, really groggy. Chris put her arms around him and apologized tearfully. 'It's alright, honey,' Shemp said painfully. 'I said you should cut loose and you did. You sure as hell did!'"

    Watch starting at 4:42 and you'll see most of it.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsUZ8iLA-Is
    Last edited by Sam; 07-25-2009 at 02:47 PM.

  6. #6
    Sam Guest


    She was quite a beauty, and a lovely singer!

  7. #7
    radiojane Guest
    I'm a terrible person (and not a particularly bright one). I had a mental moment and got really excited when I saw this thread because I went to school with the most loathsome girl by the same name. (not that I wish her dead or anything...)

    Come to think of it I remember seeing this actress and thinking that she looked a lot like Ginger Rogers from some angles and Eve Arden from others.

  8. #8
    lucilleball861911 Guest
    imagine she and Lucille Ball along with Vivian Vance as a trio??? a recipe for laughter

  9. #9
    Sam Guest
    I' love to have her mistake Lucy as her cousin Basil and cut loose on her the way she did on Shemp!

  10. #10
    lucilleball861911 Guest
    Quote Originally Posted by Sam View Post
    I' love to have her mistake Lucy as her cousin Basil and cut loose on her the way she did on Shemp!
    if Lucy and Christine and Vivian Vance were female versions of the 3 Stooges who would be the Moe Larry and Curly Character??

  11. #11
    Sam Guest
    Vivian would be Larry, Lucy would be Curly, and Christine would be Moe.

  12. #12
    joS3ph Guest
    Interestingly, I just searched for this thread because I was going to add one had there not been one. Mrs. McIntyre was quite a beautiful lady with an extravagant voice.


    Still photo from the Three Stooges short "Society Mugs,"
    circa 1946.
    Last edited by joS3ph; 06-13-2011 at 06:16 AM.

  13. #13
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    Very beautiful lady.

  14. #14
    Forever-27 Guest
    I had a feeling after the Dent thread someone would unbury hers. She was a cute one and added alot to the stooges shorts. I think the best stooge short with her was Microphonies.

    One of Curlys last good shorts filmed after his stroke. She performed great in it. As always the stooges didnt disappoint either.

    There was a great western stooge short she was awsome in also, she bumps her head on the lamp as she faints and moves over, faints again. Brillant !
    Last edited by Forever-27; 06-13-2011 at 10:08 PM.

  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by joS3ph View Post
    Interestingly, I just searched for this thread because I was going to add one had there not been one. Mrs. McIntyre was quite a beautiful lady with an extravagant voice.


    Still photo from the Three Stooges short "Society Mugs,"
    circa 1946.
    Thank you for posting this...what a lovely woman.

  16. #16
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    She added glamour and grace to the stooges mayhem, whether Dapper's moll or old man Flint's old soon to be young again wife was always a joy to watch.

  17. 12-21-2017, 07:47 AM

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