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Ethel Clayton

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Ethel Clayton
Clayton in 1910
Born(1882-11-08)November 8, 1882
Champaign, Illinois, U.S.
DiedJune 6, 1966(1966-06-06) (aged 83)
Oxnard, California, U.S.
OccupationActress
Years active1909–1948
Spouses
  • Joseph Kaufman[1]
    (m. 1915; died 1918)
​
​
(m. 1928; div. 1931)​

Ethel Clayton (November 8, 1882 – June 6, 1966) was an American actress of the silent film era.

Early years

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Born in Champaign, Illinois, Clayton attended St. Elizabeth's school in Chicago.[2]

The Woman Beneath (1917)

Career

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Clayton debuted on stage as a professional as a member of the chorus in a production at the Chicago Opera House. After that, she worked with stock theater companies in Milwaukee and Minneapolis.[2]

On stage, Clayton appeared mainly in musicals or musical revues such as Ziegfeld Follies of 1911. In addition to that production, her Broadway credits include Fancy Free (1918), You're in Love (1917), Nobody Home (1915), The Red Canary (1914), The Brute (1912), and His Name on the Door (1909).[3]

Clayton's first film was When the Earth Trembled.[2] Following appearances on screen in short dramas from 1909 to 1912, she made her feature-length film debut in For the Love of a Girl in 1912. Barry O'Neil directed the film, and Clayton later was directed by William Demille, Robert G. Vignola, George Melford and Donald Crisp in subsequent feature films. Like many silent film actors, Clayton's career was hurt by the coming of sound to motion pictures. She continued her career in small parts in films until she retired in 1948.

Personal life

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In 1931, Clayton obtained a California Superior Court order enjoining her former business partner, W.L. Rucker, from disposing of 316 pearls.[4] Clayton and Rucker agreed to purchase a cosmetics business and the pearls had been entrusted to Rucker to raise money. The deal fell through and he refused to return the jewels. Rucker admitted to possessing the pearls but claimed they had been pledged as security for a $125 loan. The pearls were valued at $20,000.[5]

Charles K. French and Ethel Clayton in a scene from Beyond (1921)

Marriages

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Clayton was first married to actor-director Joseph Kaufman[6] until his death in 1918 in the Spanish flu epidemic.[7][8] She later married silent film actor and former star Ian Keith twice and they divorced twice. In both cases Clayton cited cruelty and excessive drinking. Clayton and Keith were first married in Minneapolis in 1928 and first separated on January 13, 1931. [9]

Death

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Clayton died on June 6, 1966, at Guardian Convalescent Hospital[10] in Oxnard, California, aged 83.[11] She was buried at Ivy Lawn Memorial Park in Ventura, California.[citation needed]

For her contributions to the motion picture industry, Clayton has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6936 Hollywood Boulevard.[12]

Filmography

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Silent Film Career
Year Title Role Notes
1909 Justified Mrs. John Seymour short
1909 Gratitude Mrs. Ralph Farson short
1909 The Brothers Ethel Daily short
1909 The Twelfth Juror short
1910 The Tout's Remembrance Agnes Dudley short
1912 For the Love of a Girl Ethel short
1912 A Romance of the Coast Ethel Drayton short
1912 The Doctor's Debt Ethel Jordan short
1912 The Last Rose of Summer Ethel Boradon short
1912 Pilgrim's Progress Elizabeth
1912 Just Maine Folk Ethel short
1912 An Irish Girl's Love Kathleen short
1912 The Wonderful One-Horse Shay Ethel Hubbard short
1912 Home Sweet Home Mabel McCullum short
1913 Art and Honor Grace Hawkins short
1913 His Children Ethel Wynn short
1913 Friend John Ruth Rogers short
1913 Heroes One and All Jane Smiley short
1913 The Faith of a Girl Laura Mills short
1913 A Hero Among Men Ethel Menten short
1913 Home, Sweet Home Nell Barbour short
1913 The Price Demanded Rose Delane short
1913 The New Gown Elsie Biddle short
1913 When Tony Pawned Lousia Louisa short
1913 The Police Inspector short
1913 Mary's Temptation Mary Wilmer short
1913 The Burning Rivet Margaret Sullivan short
1913 Seeds of Wealth Aline Maxwell short
1913 Self-Convicted short
1913 The Scarf Pin Mary Forrest short
1913 A Deal in Oil Ethel Hammond short
1913 His Code of Honor Mary Dennis short
1913 The Momentous Decision Harry's Wife short
1913 When the Earth Trembled Dora Sims Extant
1913 Partners in Crime Esther Jansen short
1913 The Scapegrace Agnes Donald short
1913 The Smuggler's Daughter Jean Girot short
1913 The Doctor's Romance The Nurse short
1914 The Lion and the Mouse Shirley Rossmore/Sarah Green
1914 The Catch of the Season Frances Dean short
1914 The Gamblers Catherine Spencer Darwin short
1914 A Daughter of Eve Janet Dayton short
1914 The House Next Door Ulrica Cotswolt
1914 The Wolf Jules' Sweetheart
1914 The Daughters of Men Louise Stolbeck
1914 The Fortune Hunter Betty Graham
1915 The Attorney for the Defense Ruth Wingate short
1915 The Furnace Man Marjorie Gordon short
1915 His Soul Mate Nellie short
1915 It All Depends Clara Dean short
1915 The Millinery Man Nora Lyman short
1915 A Woman Went Forth Ethel Rogers short
1915 Mazie Puts One Over Mazie short
1915 Here Comes the Bride Reed's Stenographer short
1915 The Blessed Miracle Gail Bowman short
1915 Monkey Business Gerald's Fiancee short
1915 The Unmarried Husband Nell short
1915 Capturing the Cook Mabel Dinsmore short
1915 Just Look at Jake Elsie Bond short
1915 The College Widow Jane Witherspoon Lost
1915 In the Dark Julia Duval short
1915 The Sporting Duchess Lady Muriel Desborough short
1915 The Darkness Before Dawn Elsie Moore short
1915 Money! Money! Money! May short
1915 When the Light Came In Julia short
1915 The Earl's Adventure Sylvia Vantine short
1915 A Day of Havoc Estelle Adair short
1915 The Deception Frances Wharton short
1915 It Was to Be Anne Winton short
1915 The Mirror The Mountain Girl short
1915 In Spite of Him Elsie Biddle short
1915 The Orgy Nan Fuller short
1915 The Great Divide Ruth Jordan Her last film produced

by Lubin. Extant.

1916 Ophelia Ophelia
1916 Dollars and the Woman Madge Hilyer
1916 His Brother's Wife Helen Barton
1916 A Woman's Way Marion Livingstone
1916 Husband and Wife Doris Baker
1916 The Hidden Scar Janet Hall
1916 Beyond the Wall Helen Carlton/Virginia Carlton
1916 The New South Georgia Gwynne, as adult
1917 The Bondage of Fear Vesta Wheatley
1917 The Woman Beneath Betty Fairchild
1917 The Web of Desire Grace Miller
1917 Man's Woman Violet Galloway
1917 Yankee Pluck Polly Pollard
1917 The Stolen Paradise Joan Merrifield Incomplete copy held

by Library of Congress

1917 Souls Adrift Elma Raybourne
1917 The Dormant Power Christine Brent A copy is held at the

EYE Filmmuseum

1917 Easy Money Lois Page
1918 Stolen Hours Diana Lester Copies are held by the LOC

and National Archives of Canada

1918 The Whims of Society Nora Carey
1918 The Witch Woman Marie Beaupre Incomplete copy

held by the LOC

1918 Journey's End Aline Marsden
1918 The Man Hunt Betty Hammond
1918 The Girl Who Came Back Lois Hartner
1918 A Soul Without Windows Hopama
1918 Women's Weapons Anne Elliot
1918 The Mystery Girl Countess Therese/Driver 477
1919 Maggie Pepper Maggie Pepper
1919 Pettigrew's Girl Daisy Heath
1919 The Woman Next Door Mrs. Randolph Schuyler/Vicky Van
1919 Men, Women, and Money Marcel Middleton
1919 A Sporting Chance Carey Brent
1919 More Deadly Than the Male Helen O'Hara
1920 The Thirteenth Commandment Daphne Kip
1920 Young Mrs. Winthrop Constance Winthrop
1920 A Lady in Love Barbara Martin
1920 The Ladder of Lies Edith Parrish
1920 Crooked Streets Gail Ellis A copy is held at the LOC
1920 A City Sparrow Milly West
1920 The Sins of Rosanne Rosanne Ozanne A copy is held at the LOC
1921 Suppose Nobody Cared Stenographer
1921 The Price of Possession Helen Carston
1921 Sham Katherine Van Riper
1921 Wealth Mary McLeod
1921 Beyond Avis Langely A copy is held at the LOC
1921 Exit the Vamp Marion Shipley
1922 Her Own Money Mildred Carr
1922 The Cradle Margaret Harvey A copy is held at the LOC
1922 For the Defense Anne Woodstock
1922 If I Were Queen Ruth Townley
1923 Can a Woman Love Twice? Mary Grant
1923 The Remittance Woman Marie Campbell
1925 The Mansion of Aching Hearts Pauline Craig
1925 Wings of Youth Katherine Manners Lost
1925 Lightnin' Margaret Davis A copy is held by MoMA
1926 The Bar-C Mystery Mrs. Lane Lost
1926 The Merry Widower The Hunter's Wife
1926 Sunny Side Up Cissy Cason
1926 Risky Business Mrs. Stoughton
1926 His New York Wife Alicia Duval
1927 The Princess from Hoboken Mrs. O'Brien Lost
1927 The Princess on Broadway Mrs. Seymour Lost
1928 Mother Machree unknown role Incomplete
Sound Film Career
Year Title Role Notes
1929 Hit the Deck Mrs. Payne Sound debut
1930 Call of the Circus The Woman
1932 Hotel Continental Mrs. Underwood
1932 Thrill of Youth Alice Fenwick
1932 The Crooked Circle Yvonne
1932 The All American Mrs. Bowen
1933 Secrets Audrey Carlton
1933 Private Jones Mrs. Winthrop (uncredited)
1933 The Whispering Shadow The Countess Helen Chapters 5-8
1933 Let's Fall in Love Star (uncredited)
1936 Yours for the Asking Casino Patron (uncredited)
1936 Hollywood Boulevard Ethel Clayton (uncredited)
1936 Easy to Take Relative (uncredited)
1936 The Accusing Finger Unknown role (uncredited)
1937 Rich Relations Mrs. Blair
1937 Waikiki Wedding Tourist (uncredited)
1937 King of Gamblers Matron (uncredited)
1937 Make Way for Tomorrow Customer (uncredited)
1937 Turn Off the Moon Lady (uncredited)
1937 Easy Living Unknown role (uncredited)
1937 Exclusive Matron (uncredited)
1937 Artist and Models Seamstress (uncredited)
1937 Blonde Trouble Townswoman (uncredited)
1937 Souls at Sea Passenger (uncredited)
1937 Partners in Crime Minor role (uncredited)
1937 Hold 'Em Navy Girl
1937 Bulldog Drummond's Revenge Minor role (uncredited)
1937 Well's Fargo Pioneer Woman (uncredited)
1938 The Buccaneer Woman selecting perfumes (uncredited)
1938 The Big Broadcast of 1938 Woman (uncredited)
1938 Scandal Street Minor role (uncredited)
1938 Bulldog Drummond's Peril Minor role (uncredited)
1938 Cocoanut Grove Unknown role (uncredited)
1938 You and Me Employment Agency Clerk (uncredited)
1938 Men with Wings Woman (uncredited)
1938 Sing, You Sinners Minor role (uncredited)
1938 If I Were King Old Woman (uncredited)
1938 The Arkansas Traveler Townswoman (uncredited)
1938 Say It in French Minor role (uncredited)
1938 Ride a Crooked Mile Prison Visitor (uncredited)
1938 Artists and Models Abroad Woman (uncredited)
1938 Tom Sawyer, Detective Minor role (uncredited)
1938 Paris Honeymoon Unknown role (uncredited)
1939 Ambush Bank Customer (uncredited)
1939 Boy Trouble Small Town Woman (uncredited)
1939 St. Louis Blues Dancer (uncredited)
1939 Cafe Society Woman (uncredited)
1939 The Sap Takes a Wrap Mrs. Wallace Short
1939 King of Chinatown Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
1939 I'm from Missouri Minor role (uncredited)
1939 Geronimo Settler (uncredited)
1940 Love Thy Neighbor Minor role (uncredited)
1941 West Point Widow Nurse (uncredited)
1941 New York Town Minor role (uncredited)
1942 Beyond the Blue Horizon Guest at Chase's Residence (uncredited)
1942 The Major and the Minor Cadet Ball Guest (uncredited)
1942 Lucky Jordan Minor role (uncredited)
1943 Lady Bodyguard Woman (uncredited)
1943 Dixie Woman (uncredited)
1943 Mardi Gras Mardi Gras Woman Short (uncredited)
1943 True to Life Minor role (uncredited)
1944 Henry Aldrich's Little Secret Minor role (uncredited)
1947 The Perils of Pauline Lady Montague in Show Final Role (uncredited)

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Actor world pays homage at bier of Joseph Kaufman". The Washington Times. D.C., Washington. February 8, 1918. p. 12. Retrieved November 1, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ a b c Lowrey, Carolyn (1920). The First One Hundred Noted Men and Women of the Screen. Moffat, Yard. p. 34. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
  3. ^ "Ethel Clayton". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
  4. ^ The New York Times, "Sues For 316 Pearls", March 26, 1931, Page 56.
  5. ^ "$125 for $20,000". Norwich Sun NY, Apr 11. 1931. p. 4.
  6. ^ "Ethel Clayton Obituary (date of first marriage)". Lowell Sun, June 12. 1966. p. 8.
  7. ^ "Ethel Clayton acted with Joseph Kaufman in The Great Divide". Corsicana Daily Sun, Texas, Nov 1. 1916. p. 8.
  8. ^ "Joseph Kaufman obit". The Washington Times. February 8, 1918. p. 12. Retrieved October 17, 2020.
  9. ^ "Ethel Clayton Divorces". Joplin News Herald, August 20. 1931.
  10. ^ "The life of Ethel Clayton". Oxnard Press Courier, Mar 4. 1966.
  11. ^ "Ethel Clayton Obituary". Oxnard Press Courier, June 12. 1966.
  12. ^ "Ethel Clayton". Hollywood Walk of Fame. October 25, 2019. Archived from the original on August 14, 2020. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  • The New York Times, "Decree To Ethel Clayton", February 27, 1932, Page 20.
  • The New York Times, "Film Couple Re-Divorced", July 20, 1932, Page 20.
  • The New York Times, "Ethel Clayton", June 12, 1966, Page 86.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ethel Clayton.

Ziegfeld girl

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