Shirley Warde

Shirley Warde
Warde c. 1921
Born	Washington Heights, Manhattan, United States
Occupation(s)	Actress Playwright
Years active	1917-1965
Notable work	Smooth as Silk (actress) Deep Yellow (actress) Trick for Trick (writer)

Shirley Warde was an American actress and playwright who starred in theater productions throughout the 1910s through the 1930s, movie productions from the 1930s through the 1940s, and produced theater and radio play scripts for most of her life from the 1920s onwards. Born and raised in New York City, she attended the Ethical Culture School for theater from a young age and began starring in shows even while still a teenager. She received multiple female lead character roles and was well known for her ambition to produce and direct theater as well.

While publishing short stories in popular magazines, Warde also began focusing more on script writing, officially abandoning theater in 1934 to move into radio production. This also led her to join the Writers' War Board during World War II. Throughout her adult life, she also heavily participated in the Baháʼí Faith, eventually traveling to Belize in the 1960s as a missionary and deciding to remain there as a local playwright.