Gladys Constance Cooper was born in Lewisham, London, 1888, one of the three daughters of Charles William Frederick Cooper, a journalist, and Mabel Barnett. As a young child, the beauty she would later become, was obvious by the age of six when she appeared as a photographic child model.

Gladys began her 66-year theatrical acting career began with her first stage appearance, 1906, in the London theater at the age of 17. The following year, she became a chorus girl at The Gaiety and returned the following year as a 'traveling newspaper beauty' in Havana.

In 1917, Gladys Cooper became co-manager, with Frank Curzon, of the Playhouse Theatre. Being one of only two women involved in such a role, Gladys continued to appear in a number of the plays she helped to produce, even finding time for a few film appearances. Gladys Cooper took sole control of the Playhouse Theater in 1927, leaving in 1933.

In 1934 she crossed the Atlantic to make her debut on New York's Broadway. She stayed in New York for an extended period of time, making appearances in Shakespearean roles. It wasn't long before Hollywood moguls discovered her and a new career in movies took off. She appeared in over thirty movies, received three Oscar nominations, and worked with leading actors Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine, and Betty Davis.

Gladys remained busy even past the age of sixty. She was no stranger to the newest medium of television, making numerous guest appearances during the fifties and sixties, including three appearances in the television series "The Twilight Zone".

At nearly the age of eighty, she was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE). She died from pneumonia at the age of 82 in Henley-on-Thames, England, ending her career as a widely respected mistress of her craft.

Gladys Cooper was the most popular of all the picture-postcard beauties during the First World War, as well as, one of the most fashionable ladies of her day. Thousands of postcard images were made of her and are as collectible today as they were during her own time.