Fanny Janauschek
Francesca Romana Magdalena Janauschek (July 20, 1829 – November 28, 1904) was a Czech born stage actress. Biography. Francesa (Franziska) Janauschek was born on July 20, 1829 in Prague. Her mother worked as a theatre laundress and her father as a tailor. She came to America in 1867 and first performed at the Academy of Music, New York City, on October 9, 1867 managed by Max Maretzek. She spoke no English, only German and often worked with all English speaking casts. In three years time since arriving in the US she mastered enough English dialect to communicate with American  audiences and decided to make America her home. Some of her performances, especially "Medea", were compared to the revered Italian tragedienne Adelaide Ristori. She became famous acting in great Shakespearean parts and other famous parts. She was particularly noted for playing Meg Merrilies, a role Charlotte Cushman made famous. In 1873, Janauschek starred in an adaptation of Charles Dickens's "Bleak House", in which she played both the heroine Lady Dedlock and her murderous French maid Hortense, demonstrating Janauschek's range as an actress. She played this double role in touring companies for decades. In 1900 Janauschek had a stroke  and was paralyzed. She died in 1904 partially blind and bankrupt. Friends and actors gathered a collection to have her buried properly in Evergreen Cemetery, Brooklyn New York. Janauschek had no known offspring.