Florence Gilbert
Encyclopedia
Florence Gilbert was an American film actress of the silent 1920s. She supported actors William Fairbanks
and Jack Hoxie
.
Gilbert was born and mostly raised in Chicago
her mother took her and brother Eddie to Los Angeles
when she was 14 (c. 1918) but reportedly looked a few years older, and got her into film after Monty Banks
spotted her. In Hollywood she worked for Christy and Fox Studios making over 50 appearances from 1920.
Around 1926, when The Johnstown Flood
was released she married entrepreneur Ashton Dearholt
and bore him two children, Lee & Caryl Lee. She left show business permanently to tend home and family but she remained socially connected to the film community through her professional friendships and marriages.
in Guatemala
with co-star Ula Holt in tow and insisted that Holt be able to live in the Dearholt home.
She subsequently married Tarzan creator Edgar Rice Burroughs
, 28 years her senior, who had admired her in films and had recently also separated from his wife. However, she later left this marriage. By her account, after a period of happiness, during which the couple moved to Hawaii
, Burroughs began drinking, treated her coldly, and was verbally hostile towards her son, while lavishing affection on her daughter. Florence Gilbert's third husband was Albert S. Chase who legally adopted both her children.
Daughter Caryl Lee eventually became an animal trainer in Hollywood, using the name Cindy Cullen.
William Fairbanks
William Fairbanks was an American actor. He appeared in over 65 silent movies in the early 20th century.He was born Carl Ullman in St. Louis, Missouri, the son of Charles and Emma E. Ullman. His father was born in Bavaria, Germany, emigrated to the U.S. and became a naturalized citizen, and his...
and Jack Hoxie
Jack Hoxie
Jack Hoxie was an American rodeo performer and motion picture actor whose career was most prominent in the silent film era of the 1910s through the 1930s...
.
Gilbert was born and mostly raised in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
her mother took her and brother Eddie to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
when she was 14 (c. 1918) but reportedly looked a few years older, and got her into film after Monty Banks
Monty Banks
Montague Banks was a comedian and film director. In the 1920s, he worked in Hollywood, starring in many silent short comedies and in the feature-length action thriller Play Safe...
spotted her. In Hollywood she worked for Christy and Fox Studios making over 50 appearances from 1920.
Around 1926, when The Johnstown Flood
The Johnstown Flood (1926 film)
The Johnstown Flood is an American silent epic film drama directed by Irving Cummings. The film stars George O'Brien, Florence Gilbert and Janet Gaynor. This is a surviving film with a print held at George Eastman House, Rochester.-Cast:...
was released she married entrepreneur Ashton Dearholt
Ashton Dearholt
Ashton Dearholt was an American actor of the silent era. He appeared in 75 films between 1915 and 1938.He was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and died in Los Angeles, California.-Selected filmography:...
and bore him two children, Lee & Caryl Lee. She left show business permanently to tend home and family but she remained socially connected to the film community through her professional friendships and marriages.
Personal life and marriages
She divorced Dearholt after he returned from filming The New Adventures of TarzanThe New Adventures of Tarzan
The New Adventures of Tarzan is a 1935 American film serial in 12 chapters. It is a more authentic version of the character than most other adaptations, with Tarzan as a cultured and well educated gentleman as in the original Edgar Rice Burroughs novels. It was filmed during the same period as the...
in Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
with co-star Ula Holt in tow and insisted that Holt be able to live in the Dearholt home.
She subsequently married Tarzan creator Edgar Rice Burroughs
Edgar Rice Burroughs
Edgar Rice Burroughs was an American author, best known for his creation of the jungle hero Tarzan and the heroic Mars adventurer John Carter, although he produced works in many genres.-Biography:...
, 28 years her senior, who had admired her in films and had recently also separated from his wife. However, she later left this marriage. By her account, after a period of happiness, during which the couple moved to Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, Burroughs began drinking, treated her coldly, and was verbally hostile towards her son, while lavishing affection on her daughter. Florence Gilbert's third husband was Albert S. Chase who legally adopted both her children.
Daughter Caryl Lee eventually became an animal trainer in Hollywood, using the name Cindy Cullen.