Samuel Insull - Personal Life

Personal Life

On May 22, 1899, Samuel Insull married a "tiny, exquisitely beautiful and clever" Broadway ingénue actress whose stage name was (Alis) Gladys Wallis (1875–September 23, 1953). Her real name was Margaret Anna Bird. Gladys Wallis was popular with New York audiences and appeared in W. H. Crane's company first in the play For Money in 1892 and in his subsequent productions. Gladys played the role of Maggie Rolan in Brother John (1893); a New York Times reviewer listed her as one of the most popular players, one who "deserved quite all the applause received." Prior to her marriage to Insull, Gladys also appeared on the New York stage in On Probation and Worth a Million. At the height of her fame she was interviewed (rather unsuccessfully) by Frank Norris.

At the time of their marriage, Insull was 41 and Gladys was 24. She had been on the stage from childhood. The Insulls lived outside Libertyville, Illinois, in a Spanish Revival mansion with extensive grounds now known as the Cuneo Museum, in Vernon Hills. They also had an apartment at 1100 North Lake Shore Drive in the city and a furnished suite at the Civic Opera House. The Insulls had one son, Samuel Jr.

Both husband and wife were patrons of the Arts; because of this Insull was instrumental in the building of Chicago's Civic Opera House, which opened November 4, 1929 with Aida; the opera and its cast were chosen by Insull himself. Samuel Insull was also known for his charitable works in other areas; donating large sums of money to local hospitals and then calling on others with similar resources to do the same. He donated freely to African-American charities in Chicago, asking the wealthy to follow his example. At the time the US entered World War I, Insull was named head of the Illinois Defense Council by President Woodrow Wilson; his efforts sold over a million dollars of War Bonds.