Dorothy Mackaill (March 4, 1903 – August 12, 1990) was a British-American actress, most notably of the silent-film era and into the early 1930s.

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20/09/2019.

Dorothy Mackaill : British-American actress, most notably of the silent-film era and into the early 1930s.

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1. Profile :

*Publicity photo of Mackaill from Stars of the Photoplay, 1924

Born March 4, 1903 Sculcoates, Hull, Yorkshire, England, UK

Died August 12, 1990 (aged 87) Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.

Citizenship British

American

Education Thoresby Primary School

Occupation Actress

Years active 1920–1937; 1976–1980

Spouse(s) Lothar Mendes

(m. 1926-div.1928)

Neil Miller

(m. 1931-div.1934)

Harold Patterson

(m. 1947-div.1948)

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2. Introduction :

Dorothy Mackaill (March 4, 1903 – August 12, 1990) was a British-American actress, most notably of the silent-film era and into the early 1930s.

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3. Early life :

Born in Sculcoates, Kingston upon Hull in 1903 (although she later would claim 1904 or 1905 as her year of birth, including on her petition for naturalization as a United States citizen, giving 1904 as the year), Mackaill lived with her father after her parents separated when she was around eleven years old. She attended Thoresby Primary School. As a teenager, Mackaill ran away to London to pursue a stage career as an actress.

After temporarily relocating to Paris, she met a Broadway stage choreographer who persuaded her to move to New York City where she became involved in the Ziegfeld Follies and befriended future motion picture actresses Marion Davies and Nita Naldi.

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4. Career :

*Dorothy Mackaill (1923)

By 1920, Mackaill had begun making the transition from "Follies Girl" to film actress. That same year she appeared in her first film, a Wilfred Noy-directed mystery, The Face at the Window. Mackaill also appeared in several comedies of 1920 opposite actor Johnny Hines. In 1921 she appeared opposite Anna May Wong, Noah Beery and Lon Chaney in the Marshall Neilan-directed drama Bits of Life. In the following years, Mackaill would appear opposite such popular actors as Richard Barthelmess, Rod La Rocque, Colleen Moore, John Barrymore, George O'Brien, Bebe Daniels, Milton Sills and Anna Q. Nilsson.

In 1924, Mackaill rose to leading-lady status in the drama The Man Who Came Back, opposite rugged matinee idol George O'Brien. Her role of the nightclub chanteuse Marcelle catapulted Mackaill into a genuine Hollywood star, and her career continued to flourish throughout the remainder of the 1920s. In early 1924 she starred in the western film The Mine with the Iron Door, shot on location outside of Tucson, Arizona. That same year the Western Association of Motion Picture Advertisers in the United States presented Mackaill one of its WAMPAS Baby Stars awards, which each year honored thirteen young women who the association believed to be on the threshold of movie stardom. Other notable recipients of the award in 1924 were Clara Bow, Julanne Johnston and Lucille Ricksen.

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5. Later career and retirement :

Mackaill made a smooth transition to sound with the part-talkie The Barker (1928) and had success in talkies for the next couple of years. In September 1928, First National Pictures was acquired by Warner Bros., and her contract with First National was not renewed upon its expiration in 1931. Perhaps her most memorable role of this era was the 1932 Columbia Pictures B film release Love Affair with a young Humphrey Bogart as her leading man. She made several films for MGM, Paramount and Columbia before retiring in 1937 to care for her aging mother.

In 1955, Mackaill moved to Honolulu, Hawaii. She had fallen in love with the islands while filming His Captive Woman in 1929. Mackaill lived at the luxurious Royal Hawaiian Hotel on the beach at Waikiki as a sort of celebrity-in-residence and enjoyed swimming in the ocean nearly every day.

She occasionally came out of retirement to appear in roles for television, notably in two episodes of Hawaii Five-O in 1976 and 1980, which was filmed on location in Hawaii.

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6. Personal life :

1. Mackaill was married three times. Her first marriage was to German film director Lothar Mendes, on November 17, 1926. They divorced in August 1928.

2. On November 4, 1931, she married radio singer Neil Albert Miller. They divorced in February 1934. 

3. Her third and final marriage was to horticulturist Harold Patterson in June 1947. She filed for divorce in December 1948. Mackaill had no children.

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7. Naturalization as United States citizen :

Mackaill became a naturalized United States citizen in 1926, giving 1904 as her year of birth, and her age as 22.

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7. Death :

Mackaill resided in Honolulu, Hawaii, during the last 35 years of her life. She died there of liver failure in her room at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel on August 12, 1990. She was cremated and her ashes were scattered at sea off Waikiki Beach.

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8. Filmography :

Film :

Year Film Role Notes

1920 The Face at the Window

Torchy Short film

Torchy's Millions Short film

1921 Torchy's Promotion Short film

Bits of Life Lost film

The Lotus Eater Uncredited

Lost film

1922 Isle of Doubt Eleanor Warburton

A Woman's Woman Sally Plummer

The Streets of New York Sally Ann

The Inner Man Sally

1923 Mighty Lak' a Rose Rose Duncan Lost film

The Broken Violin Constance Morley

The Fighting Blade Thomsine Musgrove

The Fair Cheat Camilla

His Children's Children Sheila

Twenty-One Lynnie Willis

1924 The Next Corner Elsie Maury Lost film

What Shall I Do? Jeanie Andrews

The Man Who Came Back Marcelle

The Painted Lady Violet

The Mine with the Iron Door Marta Hillgrove

1925 The Bridge of Sighs Linda Harper Lost film

One Year to Live Marthe Lost film

Chickie Chickie Lost film

The Making of O'Malley Lucille Thayer Lost film

Shore Leave Connie Martin

Joanna Joanna Manners Lost film

The Dancer of Paris Consuelo Cox Lost film

1926 Ranson's Folly Mary Cahill

Subway Sadie Sadie Hermann Lost film

Just Another Blonde Jeanne Cavanaugh Alternative title: The Girl from Coney Island

1927 The Lunatic at Large Beatrix Staynes Lost film

Convoy Sylvia Dodge Lost film

Smile, Brother, Smile Mildred Marvin Lost film

The Crystal Cup Gita Carteret Lost film

Man Crazy Clarissa Janeway Lost film

1928 Ladies' Night in a Turkish Bath Helen Slocum

Lady Be Good Mary Lost film

The Whip Lady Diana

Waterfront Peggy Ann Andrews

The Barker Lou

1929 His Captive Woman Anna Janssen

Children of the Ritz Angela Pennington Lost film

Two Weeks Off Kitty Weaver Lost film

Hard to Get Bobby Martin Lost film

Alternative title: Classified

The Great Divide Ruth Jordan

The Love Racket Betty Brown Lost film

1930 Strictly Modern Kate Lost film

The Flirting Widow Celia

The Office Wife Anne Murdock

Man Trouble Joan

Bright Lights Louanne Alternative title: Adventures in Africa

1931 Once a Sinner Diana Barry

Kept Husbands Dorothea "Dot" Parker Brunton

Party Husband Laura

Their Mad Moment Emily Stanley Alternative title: Basquerie

The Reckless Hour Margaret "Margie" Nichols

Safe in Hell Gilda Carlson - aka Gilda Erickson

1932 Love Affair Carol Owen

No Man of Her Own Kay Everly

1933 Neighbors' Wives Helen McGrath

Curtain at Eight Lola Cresmer Alternative title: Backstage Mystery

The Chief Dixie Dean

1934 Picture Brides Mame Smith

Cheaters Mabel

1937 Bulldog Drummond at Bay Doris Thompson

Television :

Year Title Role Notes

1953 Studio One in Hollywood Episode: "The Magic Lantern"

1976-1980 Hawaii Five-O Various roles 2 episodes

THE END.

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