Ethel Clayton

Ethel Clayton

1882-11-08 – 1966-06-06 (age 83) Champaign, Illinois, USA
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Biography

From Wikipedia

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

Clayton's screen debut came in 1909, in a short called Justified. She jockeyed her early film appearances with a burgeoning stage career. Her pretty blond looks were reminiscent of the famous Gibson Girl drawings by Charles Dana Gibson. On the stage she appeared mainly in musicals or musical reviews such as The Ziegfeld Follies of 1911. These musical appearances indicate a singing talent Clayton may have possessed but went unused in her many silent screen performances.

In 1912 she appeared in "The Country Boy" on stage at the Lyceum Theatre in Rochester New York and made her feature length film debut in For the Love of a Girl. The film was directed by Barry O'Neil. She was cast with Harry Myers, Charles Arthur, and Peter Lang. She was also directed by William Demille, Robert G. Vignola, George Melford, Donald Crisp, Dallas M. Fitzgerald, and Clifford Sanforth. 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 movies until she retired in 1948. Her screen credits number more than 180.

Clayton was first married to actor-director Joseph Kaufman until his death in 1918 in the Spanish Influenza epidemic. 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.

Ethel Clayton died on June 6, 1966 at St. John's Hospital in Oxnard, California, aged 83. She was buried at Ivy Lawn Memorial Park in Ventura, California.

For her contributions to the motion picture industry, Ethel Clayton has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Photos

Known For

Waikiki Wedding
Waikiki Wedding

1937

as Tourist (uncredited)

Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras

1943

as Mardi Gras Woman

Dixie
Dixie

1943

as Woman (uncredited)

Wealth
Wealth

1921

as Mary McLeod

Easy Living
Easy Living

1937

as Undetermined Secondary Role (uncredited)

Yankee Pluck
Yankee Pluck

1917

as Polly Pollard

The Major and the Minor
The Major and the Minor

1942

as Ball Guest (uncredited)

The Wolf
The Wolf

1914

as Jules' Sweetheart

The All-American
The All-American

1932

as Mrs. Bowen

Make Way for Tomorrow
Make Way for Tomorrow

1937

as Customer (uncredited)

Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo

1937

as Pioneer Woman

The Bar-C Mystery
The Bar-C Mystery

1926

as Mrs. Lane

Beyond the Blue Horizon
Beyond the Blue Horizon

1942

as Guest at Chase's Residence (uncredited)

If I Were King
If I Were King

1938

as Old Woman (uncredited)

Men with Wings
Men with Wings

1938

as Woman

The Sins of Rosanne
The Sins of Rosanne

1920

as Roseanne Ozanne

Her Own Money
Her Own Money

1922

as Mildred Carr

You and Me
You and Me

1938

as Employment Agency Clerk (uncredited)

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The Sporting Duchess

1915

as Lady Muriel Desborough