Rorke, Kate (1866–1945)

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Rorke, Kate (1866–1945)

English actress. Born Feb 22, 1866, in London, England; died July 31, 1945, in Little Hadham, Hertfordshire, England; dau. of John and Lucy (Whithall) Rorke; sister of Mary Rorke (actress); m. E.W. Gardiner (died 1899); m. Dr. Douglas Cree.

Made stage debut in London as one of the schoolchildren in Olivia (1878); under the management of Charles Wyndham, appeared at the Criterion for a number of years; came to prominence as Lucy Preston in The Silver Shield (1885); other plays include The Profligate, Lady Bountiful, A Fool's Paradise, Diplomacy, Dr. and Mrs. Neill, The Sin of St. Hulda (title role), Moths, Honor (title role), Candida (title role), and A Pair of Spectacles; toured England and US with Beerbohm Tree.