Ruth Hussey

Who was Ruth Hussey?

Ruth Carol Hussey (October 30, 1911 – April 19, 2005) was an American actress best known for her Academy Award-nominated role as photographer Elizabeth Imbrie in The Philadelphia Story. Hussey was born in Providence, Rhode Island on. Her father, George R. Hussey, died of the Spanish flu in 1918 when she was seven years old. Ten years later, her mother, Julia Corbett Hussey, married a family friend, William O'Rourke, who had worked at the family's mail-order silver enterprise. She had an older brother, Robert, and a younger sister, Betty. After receiving her early education in Providence public schools, Hussey studied art at Pembroke College and graduated in 1936. She received a degree in theatre from the University of Michigan and worked as an actress with a summer-stock company in Michigan for two seasons. She also attended Boston Business College.

She was later known as Ruth Carol O'Rourke, her stepfather's surname.

Historical significance

She did not win roles for any of the plays for which she had auditioned at Pembroke. After working as an actress in summer stock, Hussey returned to Providence and was a fashion commentator on a local radio station.