Eames, Clare

Eames, Clare (1896–1930), actress. Born in Hartford, Connecticut, and raised in Cleveland, the petite, aristocratic leading lady, who was a niece of soprano Emma Eames, studied in Paris and at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts before making her debut in 1918 in a triple bill that included Eugene O'Neill's Ile. She won critical attention when she played the title role in John Drinkwater's Mary Stuart (1921). Alexander Woollcott observed, “Miss Eames brings much to the part—the keen wit, the entire comprehension, the royal quality. It is only as Mary, the arch fascinator, that she is a little lacking.” Although other critics also lamented the absence of a certain fire or glamour, she kept busy for the remainder of her short career before her early death. Among her notable roles were Miss Tiffany in Fashion, Lady Macbeth opposite James K. Hackett, and Hedda Gabler. Eames also played important parts in two plays by her husband, Sidney Howard: the amoral socialite Carlotta Ashe in Lucky Sam McCarver (1925) and informer Carrie Callahan in Ned McCobb's Daughter (1926).