{{short description|American interior designer (1905–1974)}} {{Infobox person | name = Jimmie Shields | birth_name = James Shields Fickeisen | birth_date = {{Birth date|1905|05|24|df=y}} | birth_place = Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States | death_date = {{death date and age|1974|03|06|1905|05|24|df=yes}} | death_place = Los Angeles, California, United States | education = | alma_mater = | occupation = {{Hlist | Actor | Interior Designer}} | years_active = 1926–1974 | agent = | spouse = | partner = William Haines (1926–1973) | children = | relatives = }}

'''Jimmie Shields''' (born '''James Shields Fickeisen'''; May 24, 1905 – March 6, 1974) was an American interior designer and film actor, best known as the longtime partner of silent film star William "Billy" Haines.<ref name=WomanWorld/> Their relationship, which lasted nearly 50 years, is frequently cited by historians as the first "openly gay" relationship in Hollywood history.<ref>{{cite web|last1 = Longworth|first1 = Katrina|title = MGM Stories Part Five: William Haines and Hollywood's First Openly Gay Marriage|url = http://www.youmustrememberthispodcast.com/episodes/youmustrememberthispodcastblog/2015/10/6/mgm-stories-part-five-william-haines-and-hollywoods-first-openly-gay-marriage|website = You Must Remember This| date=October 12, 2015 |access-date = February 18, 2016}}</ref>

== Early life == Shields was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Irwin Fickeisen and Ida Belle Shields.<ref name=DavidK.Frasier/> Following his parents' divorce, he adopted his mother's maiden name as his surname.<ref name=DavidK.Frasier/> He was the older child between an middle younger sister, Virginia "Jenny" Fickeisen Conrad, and a younger brother, Joseph Sherwin Haselden. He served in the U.S. Navy from April 1924 until October 1925, when he received an honorable discharge after contracting meningitis.<ref name=DavidK.Frasier>{{cite book|title=Suicide in the Entertainment Industry: An Encyclopedia of 840 Twentieth Century Cases.|page=291|publisher=David K. Frasier|date=2002}}</ref>

== Relationship with William Haines == Shields met Haines in New York City in early 1926.<ref name=WomanWorld/> Haines, then a rising star at MGM, convinced Shields to move to Los Angeles, where he helped him find work as a film extra and stand-in at MGM.<ref name=WomanWorld>{{cite web|url=https://www.womansworld.com/entertainment/celebrities/william-haines-the-pioneer-silent-film-star-who-gave-up-fame-for-love|title='I Am Already Married': Silent Film Star William Haines' Defiant Love Story With Jimmie Shields|website=Woman's World|date=October 11, 2025}}</ref>

In 1933, studio head Louis B. Mayer reportedly gave Haines an ultimatum: enter a "lavender marriage" to conceal his sexuality or lose his career.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2001/film/reviews/out-of-the-closet-off-the-screen-the-william-haines-story-1200469499/|title=Out of the Closet, Off the Screen: The William Haines Story|website=Variety|date=August 10, 2001}}</ref> Haines chose to stay with Shields, effectively ending his time as a leading man in Hollywood.<ref name=WomanWorld/> The couple remained together for 47 years, earning the nickname "the happiest married couple in Hollywood" from their close friend Joan Crawford.<ref>{{harvnb|Golden|2001|p=45}}</ref>

== Interior design career == After leaving the film industry, the pair founded William Haines Designs, a premier interior decorating firm.<ref name=WomanWorld/> While Haines was the public face, Shields was a vital partner in the business.<ref name=WomanWorld/> Their Hollywood Regency style became highly influential, with a client list that included Joan Crawford, Gloria Swanson, Carole Lombard, and Frank Sinatra also political figures including Ronald Reagan and Nancy Reagan during Reagan's tenure as Governor of California.<ref name=WomanWorld/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://ew.com/movies/hollywood-history-william-haines-first-out-gay-star-chose-love/|title=How Hollywood's first out gay star chose love over career|website=Entertainment Weekly|date=June 4, 2021}}</ref>

They decorated the Winfield House, the U.S. Ambassador's residence in London.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/arts-and-culture/a32476902/billy-haines-hollywood-decorator-true-story/|title=How Billy Haines Became Hollywood's Leading Decorator (and Refused to Live in the Closet)|website=Town & Country|date=May 16, 2020}}</ref>

== Personal life == In 1936, the couple survived a violent attack at their beach home in Manhattan Beach by a mob, reportedly members of the Ku Klux Klan, after a neighbor made unfounded accusations against Shields.<ref name=WomanWorld/><ref>{{cite book|title=Suicide in the Entertainment Industry: An Encyclopedia of 840 Twentieth Century Cases.|page=292|publisher=David K. Frasier|date=2002}}</ref>

== Death == William Haines died of lung cancer on December 26, 1973.<ref>{{harvnb|Adrich|Wotherspoon|2002|p=235}}</ref> Shields, who was reportedly struggling with the onset of Alzheimer's disease and profound grief, took his own life on March 6, 1974, by an overdose of sleeping pills.{{sfn|Mann|1998|p=386}}<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 28, 1973 |title=William Haines, 73, Film Comedian, Dies |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1973/12/28/archives/william-haines-73-film-comedian-dies.html |access-date=January 17, 2024|work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> His suicide note stated, "I now find it impossible to go it alone, I am much too lonely".<ref>{{harvnb|Stern|2009|p=204}}</ref> He was interred next to Haines at Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery in Santa Monica.<ref>Wilson, Scott. ''Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons'', 3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Location 19262). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition.</ref>

== Cited sources == * {{cite book|last1=Adrich|first1=Robert|last2=Wotherspoon|first2=Garry|date=2002|title=Who's Who in Gay and Lesbian History: From Antiquity to World War II|edition=2nd|publisher=Psychology Press|isbn=0-415-15983-0}} * {{cite book|last=Dennis|first=Jan|date=2003|title=Manhattan Beach Police Department|publisher=Arcadia Publishing|isbn=0-738-52089-6}} * {{cite book|last=Golden|first=Eve|date=2001|title=Golden Images: 41 Essays on Silent Film Stars|publisher=McFarland|isbn=0-786-40834-0}} * {{cite book|last=Mann|first=William J.|author-link=William J. Mann|date=1998|title=Wisecracker: The Life and Times of William Haines, Hollywood's First Openly Gay Star|location=New York, NY|publisher=Viking|isbn=978-0670871551|oclc=243900007|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/wisecrackerlifet00mann}} * {{cite book|last=Prono|first=Luca|date=2008|title=Encyclopedia of Gay and Lesbian Popular Culture|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-33599-0|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofga0000pron}} * {{cite book|last=Stern|first=Keith|date=2009|title=Queers in History: The Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Historical Gays, Lesbians and Bisexuals|publisher=BenBella Books|isbn=978-1-935-25183-5}}

== References == {{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheilds, Jimmie}} Category:1905 births Category:1974 deaths Category:20th-century American male actors Category:American male film actors Category:American interior designers Category:American male silent film actors Category:American gay actors Category:Burials at Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery, Santa Monica Category:LGBTQ people from California Category:20th-century American LGBTQ people Category:Male suicides Category:LGBTQ architects Category:20th-century American designers