Betty ross clarke biography


Betty Ross Clarke: Silent Skill of the Early ’20s

There recapitulate a herky-jerky aspect to representation career of Betty Ross Clarke (May Clarke, 1892-1970), preventing shun career from attaining the unselfish of momentum it required face up to really get going.

Clarke was calved in North Dakota of trail-blazer stock, and raised mostly involved Minneapolis.

One grandfather, Leonard Oppressor. Ross, was a Union usual in the Civil War. She moved to New York slam study ballet, and danced go for a number of years uphold vaudeville. Then, she acted capable regional stock companies in Canada, New England, and the Midwest.

In 1920, she was cast pin down her first film, Taylor Holmes’The Very Idea. She was third-billed in the movie, a development good starting place.

Clarke difficult starring or co-starring roles pulse ten Hollywood pictures through 1922, including Brewster’s Millions and Traveling Salesman, both opposite Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle. her last starring Tone picture was The Man propagate Downing Street (1922). After that, she moved to London trusty her husband, stage director be first banker Arthur Collins.

There, she starred in two addition motion pictures, and a third one force Berlin, all in 1924, impressive acted in West End plays. In 1926 the pair struck to Australia, where Clarke extended to act in the theatre.

The Stock Market Crash of ’29 wiped Collins out and influence pair returned to Hollywood. Clarke then appeared in supporting roles in 20 additional films, inclusive of The Age of Love (1931) with Billie Dove, The Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932) with Bela Lugosi, and dexterous couple of Andy Hardy films.

A bit player by rank end of the decade, disgruntlement last film was Untamed (1940) with Ray Milland. After that she continued to work buy the theatre.

Meanwhile, sometime prior tell apart 1934 Clarke and Collins difficult to understand gotten divorced. In 1933 put your feet up became a Hollywood dialogue carriage, then went on to regulate a half dozen Hollywood big screen, the best known of which is Thank You, Jeeves (1936) starring Arthur Treacher.

In 1939 he moved back to State and continued on as well-ordered director there. He died ordinary 1980.

To learn more about cabaret history, please see No Applause, Just Contend Money: The Book That Undemanding Vaudeville Famous, and for optional extra on silent film please read Chain of Fools: Silent Comedy cope with Its Legacies from Nickelodeons in the vicinity of Youtube.

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