Catherine Dale Owen: Movies & Filmography

Catherine Dale Owen (July 28, 1900 – September 7, 1965) was an American stage and film actress whose career flourished during the early sound era of Hollywood. Born in Louisville, Kentucky, Owen received her early education at private schools in Philadelphia and Bronxville, New York, before pursuing formal training at the prestigious American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City. Her natural beauty was recognized early in her career, and in 1925, she was acclaimed as one of the ten most beautiful women in the world, a distinction that helped launch her into the entertainment industry. She was first discovered by Laura MacGillivray, the wife of Actors Equity president Frank Gillmore, which led to her Broadway appearances in the 1920s. Throughout the 1920s and early 1930s, Owen appeared in notable Broadway productions including The Mountain Man, The Whole Town's Talking, Trelawny of the Wells, The Love City, and The Play's the Thing, establishing herself as a talented stage performer. Owen transitioned to film in 1929, making her cinematic debut as Princess Orsolini opposite John Gilbert's Captain Kovacs in His Glorious Night. In 1930, she starred in Lawrence Tibbett's film debut, The Rogue Song, and also appeared alongside Edmund Lowe in Born Reckless, cementing her presence in early talkies. Her final film appearance came in 1931 with Defenders of the Law, after which she gradually retired from acting, with 1935 marking the end of her active career. Beyond her professional accomplishments, Owen's likeness was immortalized in caricature by Alex Gard for Sardi's, the famous New York City theater district restaurant, and this artwork now resides in the collection of the New York Public Library. In her personal life, Owen married Milton F. Davis Jr., the son of Brigadier General Milton F. Davis, in 1934, though the marriage ended in divorce in March 1937. She subsequently married advertising executive Homer P. Metzger on June 5, 1937, in New York City, and together they had one son, Robert Owen Metzger, born in October 1939. Owen's life ended on September 7, 1965, at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, after she suffered a stroke at her home on September 3 and slipped into a coma. She was 65 years old at the time of her death and was laid to rest at Old Tennent Cemetery, leaving behind a legacy as a captivating actress of stage and screen during a transformative period in American entertainment history.