For the suspense/mystery author see Mildred B. Davis

Mildred B. Davis

Mildred B. Davis is an American novelist whose books generally fall into the suspense/mystery genre.Katherine Roome, her daughter, and a published author herself, helped Mildred break a 30-year publishing silence by working with her to turn some previously unpublished manuscripts into the Murder...

Mildred Hillary Davis (February 22, 1901 – August 18, 1969) was an American actress who appeared in many of Harold Lloyd

Harold Lloyd

Harold Clayton Lloyd, Sr. was an American film actor and producer, most famous for his silent comedies....

's classic silent comedies and eventually became his wife.

Early life and career

Davis was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

 and educated at the "Friends School" there. After several years spent studying, she traveled to Los Angeles in the hopes of securing a role in a film. After appearing in several small roles, she caught the attention of Hal Roach

Hal Roach

Harold Eugene "Hal" Roach, Sr. was an American film and television producer and director, and from the 1910s to the 1990s.- Early life and career :Hal Roach was born in Elmira, New York...

, who pointed her out to comedian Harold Lloyd

Harold Lloyd

Harold Clayton Lloyd, Sr. was an American film actor and producer, most famous for his silent comedies....

. Lloyd was looking for a leading lady to replace Bebe Daniels

Bebe Daniels

Bebe Daniels was an American actress, singer, dancer, writer and producer. She began her career in Hollywood during the silent movie era as a child actress, became a star in musicals like 42nd Street, and later gained further fame on radio and television in Britain...

, and cast Davis in his comedy short From Hand to Mouth

From Hand to Mouth

From Hand to Mouth is a 1919 short comedy film featuring Harold Lloyd. A print of the film survives in the film archive of the British Film Institute.-Cast:* Harold Lloyd - The Boy in the Glasses* Mildred Davis - The Girl...

in 1919. It would be the first of fifteen films they would star in together.

On Saturday, February 10, 1923, she married Harold Lloyd. After their marriage Lloyd announced that Davis would not appear in any more motion pictures. After much persuasion on Davis' part she received Lloyd's consent for her return to the screen in Too Many Crooks, which Lloyd produced through his production company.

Personal life and death

Her brother was actor Jack Davis

Jack Davis (actor)

Jackie Davis , a native of Los Angeles, California, was an American child actor, notable for appearing in Hal Roach's Our Gang series. His sister Mildred Davis also acted; she appeared in Roach comedian Harold Lloyd's films as his leading lady...

 of Our Gang

Our Gang

Our Gang, also known as The Little Rascals or Hal Roach's Rascals, was a series of American comedy short films about a group of poor neighborhood children and the adventures they had together. Created by comedy producer Hal Roach, the series is noted for showing children behaving in a relatively...

, and later a prominent Beverly Hills physician. She and Harold Lloyd had three children including Harold Lloyd Jr.

Harold Lloyd Jr.

Harold Clayton Lloyd, Jr. was an American actor and singer.-Career:The second child and only son of the silent film comedian Harold Lloyd and actress Mildred Davis, Lloyd made several B-movies in the 1950s and 60s, including The Flaming Urge and Frankenstein's Daughter...

. Davis was very active in Beverly Hills, and as hostess at the Lloyds' estate, Greenacres

Harold Lloyd Estate

The Harold Lloyd Estate, also known as Greenacres, is a large mansion and landscaped estate located in the Benedict Canyon section of Beverly Hills, California. Built in the latter 1920s by silent film star Harold Lloyd, it remained Lloyd's home until his death in 1971. The estate originally...

, where she particularly enjoyed rose gardening.

Although the Lloyd marriage was held up to the public as ideal, there were problems with Lloyd's workaholism and infidelities. Despite this, the couple remained very close for their entire life together. In later life she suffered with bouts of alcoholism

Alcoholism

Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...

 and depression, but found comfort in her strong friendships with actresses Marion Davies

Marion Davies

Marion Davies was an American film actress. Davies is best remembered for her relationship with newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst, as her high-profile social life often obscured her professional career....

 and Colleen Moore

Colleen Moore

Colleen Moore was an American film actress, and one of the most fashionable stars of the silent film era.-Early life:...

. She also developed a long lasting friendship with Lloyd's assistant Roy Brooks, who lived with them at Greenacres for over forty years.

Davis died from a coronary

Myocardial infarction

Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...

 following a series of strokes in Santa Monica, California

Santa Monica, California

Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...

 in 1969.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role
1916	Marriage à la Carte
1917	What'll We Do with Uncle?
	Fighting Mad	Lily Sawyer
1918	Bud's Recruit Bud's Recruit Bud's Recruit is a 1918 short comedy film directed by King Vidor. A print survives at the UCLA Film and Television Archive.-Cast:* Wallace Brennan - Bud Gilbert* Robert Gordon - Reggie Gilbert* Ruth Hampton - Edith* Mildred Davis - Edith's sister...	Edith's sister
	A Weaver of Dreams	Margery Gordon
1919	All Wrong	Betty Thompson
	Start Something
	All at Sea
	Call for Mr. Caveman
	Giving the Bride Away
	Looking for Trouble
	Tough Luck
	From Hand to Mouth From Hand to Mouth From Hand to Mouth is a 1919 short comedy film featuring Harold Lloyd. A print of the film survives in the film archive of the British Film Institute.-Cast:* Harold Lloyd - The Boy in the Glasses* Mildred Davis - The Girl...	The Girl
1920	Red Hot Hottentotts
	Why Go Home?
	The Floor Below
	His Royal Slyness His Royal Slyness His Royal Slyness is a 1920 short comedy film featuring Harold Lloyd. It was remade in 1927 as Long Fliv the King which featured Oliver Hardy.-Cast:* Harold Lloyd - The American Boy* Mildred Davis - Princess Florelle...	Princess Florelle
	Getting His Goat
	Haunted Spooks Haunted Spooks Haunted Spooks is a 1920 silent comedy film starring Harold Lloyd and Mildred Davis.- Plot :The action in Haunted Spooks is sparked by Harold's romantic problems. The opening sequence has him disappointed in love and trying, with notable lack of success, to commit suicide...	The Girl
	An Eastern Westerner An Eastern Westerner An Eastern Westerner is a 1920 short comedy film featuring Harold Lloyd.-Cast:* Harold Lloyd - The Boy* Mildred Davis - The Girl* Noah Young - Tiger Lip Tompkins, The Bully, Leader of the Masked Angels* James T...	The Girl
	High and Dizzy High and Dizzy High and Dizzy is a 1920 short comedy film starring Harold Lloyd. The plot revolves around a young woman who sleepwalks and the doctor who is attempting to treat her...	The Girl
	Get Out and Get Under Get Out and Get Under Get Out and Get Under was a 1920 silent comedy film, which starred Harold Lloyd with Mildred Davis, and was directed by Hal Roach.The car in the movie, to which Lloyd was alternately devoted or frustrated, appears to be a 1920 Ford Model T....	The Girl
	Number, Please? Number, Please? Number, Please? is a 1920 short comedy film featuring Harold Lloyd.-Plot:While at an amusement park, trying vainly to forget the girl he has lost, a young man sees the girl with her new boyfriend . When her dog gets loose in the park, both suitors have to help her catch it...	The Girl
1921	Humor Risk Humor Risk Humor Risk was the first Marx Brothers film. The short film was never released and is now considered a lost film. The print may have been accidentally thrown away when left in the screening box overnight...
	Now or Never Now or Never (film) Now or Never is a 1921 short comedy film starring Harold Lloyd.The plot involves traveling with a child on a train.Harold's car is a 1919 Mercer series 5 Raceabout.-Cast:* Harold Lloyd - The Boy* Mildred Davis - The Girl...	The Girl
	Among Those Present Among Those Present Among Those Present is a 1921 short comedy film starring Harold Lloyd and Mildred Davis.-Cast:* Harold Lloyd - The Boy* Mildred Davis - The Girl* James T. Kelley - Mr. O'Brien, the Father* Aggie Herring - Mrs. O'Brien, the Mother...	Miss O'Brien, The Girl
	I Do I Do (1921 film) I Do is a 1921 short comedy film featuring Harold Lloyd. This short is notable for having a cartoon wedding in the first scene.-Cast:* Harold Lloyd - The Boy* Mildred Davis - The Girl* Noah Young - The Agitation* Jackie Morgan - The Disturbance...	Wife
	Never Weaken Never Weaken Never Weaken is a 1921 silent comedy film starring Harold Lloyd and directed by Fred Newmeyer.It was Lloyd's last short film, running to three reels, before he moved permanently into feature-length production. It was also one of his trademark 'thrill' comedies, featuring him dangling from a tall...	The Girl
	A Sailor-Made Man A Sailor-Made Man A Sailor-Made Man is a 1921 comedy film directed by Fred Newmeyer and starring Harold Lloyd.-Plot:The film begins with "The Boy" , an idle, wealthy playboy, relaxing at a lavish country club, where he suddenly decides to ask "The Girl" to marry him...	The Girl
1922	Grandma's Boy Grandma's Boy (1922 film) Grandma's Boy is a 1922 Family comedy film starring Harold Lloyd. The film was highly influential, helping to pioneer feature-length comedies which combined gags with character development.-Plot:...	His Girl
	Doctor Jack Doctor Jack Dr. Jack is the title of a 1922 comedy movie starring Harold Lloyd. It was produced by Hal Roach and Directed by Fred Newmeyer. The story was by Jean Havez, Hal Roach, and Sam Taylor. The film was released on November 26 1922.- Plot :...	The Sick-Little-Well-Girl
1923	Safety Last! Safety Last! Safety Last! is a 1923 romantic comedy silent film starring Harold Lloyd. It includes one of the most famous images from the silent film era: Lloyd clutching the hands of a large clock as he dangles from the outside of a skyscraper above moving traffic. The film was highly successful and critically...	The Girl
	Temporary Marriage	Hazel Manners
	Condemned	The Girl
1927	Too Many Crooks	Ceia Mason
1949	The Devil's Sleep	Tessie T. Tesse

External links

• Mildred Davis Photo gallery