Vernon and Irene Castle were a husband-and-wife team of ballroom dancers of the early 20th century, who appeared on Broadway and in silent films. They are credited with reviving the popularity of modern dancing. Vernon Castle (2 May 1887 – 15 February 1918) was born William Vernon Blyth in Norwich, Norfolk, England. Irene Castle (17 April 1893 – 25 January 1969) was born Irene Foote in New Rochelle, New York.The couple reached the peak of their popularity in Irving Berlin's first Broadway show, Watch Your Step (1914), in which they refined and popularized the Foxtrot. They also helped to promote ragtime, jazz rhythms and African-American music for dance. Irene became a fashion icon through her appearances on stage and in early movies, and both Castles were in demand as teachers and writers on dance.After serving with distinction as a pilot in the Royal Flying Corps during World War I, Vernon died in a plane crash on a flight training base in Texas in 1918. Irene continued to perform solo in Broadway, vaudeville and motion picture productions over the next decade. She remarried three times, had children and became an animal-rights activist. In 1939, her life with Vernon was dramatized in The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle.
She has a daughter named Barbara McLaughlin Kreutz. She was born in January, 1925. She died on November 20, 2003. She had a Masters Degree in Comparative Literature and PHD in History. She was Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Bryn Mawr. Irene's son, William McLauglin, was born in July, 1929.
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She has four grandchildren from daughter Barbara: Nicky, Gregg, Charlotte and Libby. She also has nine great grandchildren.
Actress
Title
Year
Status
Character
Slim Shoulders
1922
Naomi Warren
No Trespassing
1922
Mabel Colton
French Heels
1922
Palma May
The Broadway Bride
1921
The Amateur Wife
1920
Justine Spencer
The Invisible Bond
1919
Marcia Crossey
The Firing Line
1919
Sheila Cardross Malcourt
The Common Cause
1919
France (prologue)
The Girl from Bohemia
1918
Alice Paige
The First Law
1918
Norma Webb
The Mysterious Client
1918
Jeanne Darcy
The Hillcrest Mystery
1918
Marion Sterling
Convict 993
1918
Roslyn Ayre
Vengeance Is Mine
1917
Paula Farrington
Sylvia of the Secret Service
1917
Sylvia
The Mark of Cain
1917
Alice (as Mrs. Vernon Castle)
Stranded in Arcady
1917
Lucy Millington (as Mrs. Vernon Castle)
Patria
1917
Patria Channing / Elaine
The Whirl of Life
1915
Irene Castle
Writer
Title
Year
Status
Character
The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle
1939
based on stories: "My Husband" and "My Memories of Vernon Castle" by
$6 Million
