Biography
Jean Adair was a Canadian actress. Born Violet McNaughton in Hamilton, Ontario, she appeared under the names Jennet Adair and Jean Adair. She worked primarily on stage from the 1920s, with a New York debut in the 1922 Broadway production of It's a Boy!, and also performed in vaudeville.
Adair originated the role of Martha Brewster in the long-running Broadway production of Arsenic and Old Lace (1941–1944) and reprised it in the 1944 film adaptation directed by Frank Capra. Her other film appearances include uncredited roles in Advice to the Lovelorn (1933) and The Naked City (1948), as well as parts in Living in a Big Way (1947) and Something in the Wind (1947). Her final stage role was as Rebecca Nurse in the original Broadway production of The Crucible (1953). She died in New York City in 1953.
