Hester Sondergaard
Sondergaard in Jigsaw (1949)
Born(1903-07-05)July 5, 1903
DiedFebruary 26, 1994(1994-02-26) (aged 90)
Alma materUniversity of Minnesota
OccupationActress
Spouse
(after 1949)
RelativesGale Sondergaard (sister)

Hester Sondergaard (July 5, 1903 – February 26, 1994)[1] was an American actress.

Early years

Born in Litchfield, Minnesota,[2] Sondergaard was the daughter of Hans T. Søndergaard, a dairy instructor at a university, and the sister of actress Gale Sondergaard.[3] When she was a child, she played violin with Midwestern Chautauqua companies.[2] She attended the University of Minnesota,[4] where she was active in productions of the Masquers Club.[3]

Career

Sondergaard's first professional speaking part came in 1924.[3] After college, she acted with the Wisconsin Players and in venues that included the Civic Repertory Theater in New York.[4] Her Broadway credits include Galileo (1947), My Heart's in the Highlands (1939), Marching Song (1937), Bitter Stream (1936), Mother (1935), and Black Pit (1935).[5]

On radio, Sondergaard was an organizer of The American School of the Air.[4] She also acted on Portia Faces Life, Road of Life, Wendy Warren and the News,[2] and We Love and Learn.[6] An article in the December 1949 issue of Radio and Television Mirror magazine described Sondergaard as having "one of the largest repertories [sic] of dialects of any actress", being able to sound authentic in roles using any of 11 accents.[2]

Sondergaard taught dramatics at the Dramatic School of New York.[4]

Personal life

In 1949, Sondergaard married politician Hugh De Lacy.[7]

References

  1. "Hester, the other Sondergaard daughter".
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Hester Sondergaard". Radio Television Mirror. 32 (7): 71. December 1949. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 "University Girl to Have Speaking Part at Shubert". Star Tribune. Minnesota, Minneapolis. February 24, 1924. p. 49. Retrieved July 30, 2019 via Newspapers.com.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Sorensen, Sterling (April 12, 1935). "Drama in Madison: Stage and Screen". The Capital Times. Wisconsin, Madison. p. 6. Retrieved July 30, 2019 via Newspapers.com.
  5. "("Hester Sondergaard" search results)". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on July 30, 2019. Retrieved July 30, 2019.
  6. "In New Role". The Capital Times. Wisconsin, Madison. August 2, 1944. p. 7. Retrieved July 30, 2019 via Newspapers.com.
  7. "On Honeymoon". Reno Gazette-Journal. Nevada, Reno. July 11, 1949. p. 2. Retrieved July 30, 2019.
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