| Fay McKenzie's parents, Bob and Eva McKenzie, were prolific perfomers in stock theater and vaudeville, and wound up in Hollywood. Fay was born 1918 in Los Angeles, and her movie career began as a kid in silents.
In the 1930s, she had minor roles in various movies including westerns with Buck Jones, George O'Brien, Tex Ritter, Reb Russell, and Hoot Gibson. Around the age of 15, she got promoted to heroine in mid 1930s low budget oaters starring Wally Wales and Buddy Roosevelt. And billed as "Fay Shannon", she was the female lead to Bob Baker in GHOST TOWN RIDERS (Universal, 1938). And she co-starred with Ken Maynard in DEATH RIDES THE RANGE (Colony, 1940). And we can't forget Fay as "Linda Clayton" in the dreadful anti-cannabis ASSASSIN OF YOUTH (BCM Prod., 1937).
During her growing up years, Fay learned to sing and dance. And in early 1940 - mid 1941, she had multiple roles in the musical revue "Meet The People", which premiered in Los Angeles, and then toured to Denver, Chicago, other locales. And Fay was one of the stars of the Broadway production which ran from December, 1940 - May, 1941 at the Mansfield Theater in New York City. The New York Times had an article about casting for "Meet The People":
"Twenty-year-old Fay McKenzie, the lush young lady now playing the role of Miss Hollywood, had been appearing in the leads of films produced by minor independents on the Coast and has been turning down contracts with a pretty thumb ever since she's been with the show." The broadway run of "Meet The People" ended on May 10, 1941 and Fay returned to Los Angeles ... and got a job offer. She signed a Term Players contract(s) at Republic Pictures that ran from August 14, 1941 through May 27, 1943. Trade publications had coverage:
August 20, 1941 Film Daily: "Republic has signed Fay McKenzie to a long-term contract. She was 'Miss Hollywood' in the stage production of 'Meet the People'. Her first assignment is that of Autry's leading lady in 'Down Mexico Way.' "
To fans of the B western, Fay is remembered as the heroine in five Gene Autry oaters: DOWN MEXICO WAY (Republic, 1941), SIERRA SUE (Republic, 1941), HOME IN WYOMIN' (Republic, 1942), HEART OF THE RIO GRANDE (Republic, 1942), and COWBOY SERENADE (Republic, 1942). In addition to the Autrys, Fay did a few other Republic films including REMEMBER PEARL HARBOR (Republic, 1942) with Don Barry.
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 Although some of the data is incomplete or inaccurate, the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) has information on Fay McKenzie, second husband Tom Waldman, sisters Ella and Ida Mae: Fay McKenzie: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0571517/ Tom Waldman (1922 - 1985): https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0907209/ Fay's sister Ida Mae McKenzie (1911 - 1986): https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0571534/ Fay's sister Ella McKenzie (1911 - 1987): https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0571514/ February 19, 1918 Los Angeles birth certificate for Eunice Fay McKenzie: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QGLW-FWLL?lang=en 1930 census - owning their home in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California were 47 year old Robert B. McKenzie (born Ireland; occupation "Director - Motion Pictures"), his 40 year old wife Eva (born Ohio; no occupation), 11 year old daughter Fay (born California; no occupation), 19 year old twin daughter Ella M. (born Oregon; no occupation), and 19 year old twin daughter Ida M. (born Oregon; no occupation): https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XCFL-TKM?lang=en 1940 census - owning their home in Beverly Hills Judicial Township, Los Angeles, California were 56 year old Robert McKenzie (born Ireland; occupation "Actor - Motion Picture Studio"), his 50 year old wife Eva (born Ohio; occupation "Actress - Motion Picture Studio"), 29 year old daughter Ida May (born Oregon; no occupation listed), and 22 year old daughter Fay (born California; occupation "Actress - Theater"; completed 4 years of high school). Their census info is on two census takers worksheets: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K97C-NGS?lang=en 1950 census - living together at 1158 Fifth Avenue, #4D, New York City were Fay Waldman (occupation "Actress - Movies, Theater") her husband Thomas Waldman (occupation "Script Writer - Radio Broadcast"), her mother Eva, sister Ella, and Ella's husband Billy Gilbert (occupation "Actor - Theatre, Movies"). Gilbert was head of the household: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6XYW-LH5J?lang=en The Hollywood Reporter and Antelope Valley Press, Palmdale, California websites have death announcements for Fay: https://www.avpress.com/news/newsline/fay-mckenzie-101-actress-on-screen-for-a-century/article_2f05f070-67e0-11e9-9a06-a7d521f48e30.html https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/fay-mckenzie-dead-gene-autrys-star-5-movie-westerns-was-101-1203849 Find A Grave reports that Fay was cremated and ashes given to family or friend: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/198575544/faye-mckenzie
Links
The Internet Broadway Database has Fay in two New York City plays - "Meet The People" ran from December 25, 1940 - May 10, 1941 and "Burlesque" ran from July 1, 1947 - January 10, 1948 (Playbill info from both plays are further down this webpage): https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/fay-mckenzie-105606
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McKenzie Family ... and a mystery.  (From 1919 Camera Yearbook, available at the Internet Archive) L-R: wife Eva, daughter Ella (born April 9, 1911), daughter Ida Mae (born January 15, 1911), Bob, and newborn daughter Fay (born 1918). There's a mystery that I haven't been able to resolve. Some bios on the McKenzie family mention that daughters Ida Mae and Ella were twins. That's questionable. While both were born in 1911, Ida Mae MAY be the daughter of Eva's deceased sister. And Bob and Eva MAY have adopted Ida Mae. No question that Ella was Fay's sister as ancestry.com had her birth certificate which confirmed Bob and Eva were her birth parents. | |
 Bob McKenzie - mid 1940s  | Fay McKenzie's parents were Robert Baxter McKenzie (1880 - 1949) and Eva Belle (Nee Heazlitt) McKenzie (1889 - 1967). They were busy performers in stock theater and vaudeville before settling down in Hollywood, and their company was "McKenzie's Merry Makers", and "The McKenzie Players". Bob's SOUND film career amounted to about 250 films, and about a third were westerns. He had a unique voice, often wore a suit, and portrayed a sheriff, judge, banker, etc. Some words and phrases that describe his screen roles are: nervous, worried, pompous, blowhard ... and "sweatin' bullets". Eva's Hollywood career amounted to about 130 silent and sound films in 1915 - 1949.  Eva McKenzie - 1934 |
 (Courtesy of Les Adams) Above - hero Wally Wales holds a very young Fay McKenzie in a lobby card and crop/blowup from the 18 minute short SUNDOWN TRAIL (William Pizor/Imperial, 1934). On the far left are Herman Hack and Fred Parker and far right is Jack Kirk. Out cold on the floor are no-goods Sherry Tansey and Barney Beasley.  (Courtesy of Les Adams) Blond Fay McKenzie and Wally Wales in SUNDOWN TRAIL (William Pizor/Imperial, 1934). She was about 16 years old when this was filmed.  (From Old Corral collection) L-to-R are a young Fay McKenzie, Buddy Roosevelt, Frances Morris, and George Chesebro in BOSS COWBOY (Superior, 1934).  (From Old Corral collection) Ken Maynard is pounding away on Charlie King while Fay McKenzie looks on in this lobby card from DEATH RIDES THE RANGE (Colony, 1940).  (From Old Corral collection) Above from L-to-R are Kermit Maynard, Smiley Burnette, Gene Autry, Fay McKenzie, Frank M. Thomas, Robert Homans, and Jack Kirk in a lobby card from SIERRA SUE (Republic, 1941). Frank M. Thomas was the father of Frankie Thomas, star of the cliffhanger TIM TYLER'S LUCK and TV's TOM CORBETT, SPACE CADET.  (From Old Corral collection) Above are Jean Porter (cowboy hat and buckskin jacket), heroine Fay McKenzie (white blouse & green scarf), Edith Fellows (blue blouse), Gene Autry and Smiley Burnette. The tall galoot in the back row center is 'Cactus Mack' McPeters and a youthful singer/songwriter Johnny Bond is on the far right. Lobby card from HEART OF THE RIO GRANDE (Republic, 1942) which is among the last batch of films that Autry did at Republic prior to entering World War II military service.  Above cropped from a Broadway Playbill for "Meet The People" which ran from December 25, 1940 - May 10, 1941 at the Mansfield Theater in New York City. It was a musical revue with about two-dozen sketches performed by a large cast. And Fay McKenzie was in about a half-dozen of the sketches. The play opened with Fay starring as the "Princess" in Act 1, sketch #1, "The Legend of the Sleeping Beauty". Other roles were "Miss Hollywood" as well as background singing and dancing or milling around in a crowd scene. (Take a gander at other cast members listed above - there's Nanette Fabare (Nanette Fabray), Peggy Ryan (frequent dance partner with Donald O'Connor), and Barney Phillips (had eye in his forehead in Twilight Zone episode "Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up".))  (From Old Corral collection) Above from a Broadway Playbill that was in my parents memorabilia. Bert Lahr starred in "Burlesque", and the play ran for over a year at New York's Belasco Theater. Opening night was Dec 25, 1946 and it closed January 10, 1948. Lahr's leading lady through June, 1947 was Jean Parker. Fay McKenzie replaced Parker and was leading lady from July 1, 1947 - January 10, 1948. That was during her breakup with hubby Steve Cochran. After the New York run ended, Fay hit the road with the touring company - in late January, 1948, they played the Locust Street Theater, Philadelphia; February, 1948 was the Cass Theater in Detroit; and the Selwyn Theater in Chicago in March, 1948. |
