Gertrude Claire (July 16, 1852 – April 28, 1928) was an actress of the American stage and Hollywood silent motion pictures.

Biography

Claire was born in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, and began appearing onstage at the age of 16. She played minor roles in New York City. In the coming years she began to play leads. Among the actors of note she played with John Drew Jr.,

Edwin Booth Edwin Thomas Booth (November 13, 1833 – June 7, 1893) was an American actor who toured throughout the United States and the major capitals of Europe, performing Shakespearean plays. In 1869, he founded Booth's Theatre in New York. Some theatri ...

, and

Richard Mansfield Richard Mansfield (24 May 1857 – 30 August 1907) was an English actor-manager best known for his performances in Shakespeare plays, Gilbert and Sullivan operas, and the play '' Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde''. Life and career Mansfield was born ...

. She began work in films while the industry was still based in New York. Then she moved to Hollywood, where she was part of the first motion picture playing company organized there. Claire had roles in 123 films beginning in 1910 and continuing until 1928. Her last appearance in movies was in the

Clara Bow Clara Gordon Bow (; July 29, 1905 – September 27, 1965) was an American actress who rose to stardom during the silent film era of the 1920s and successfully made the transition to "talkies" in 1929. Her appearance as a plucky shopgirl in the ...

feature film ''

Red Hair Red hair (also known as orange hair and ginger hair) is a hair color found in one to two percent of the human population, appearing with greater frequency (two to six percent) among people of Northern or Northwestern European ancestry and ...

'' (1928). On April 28, 1928, Claire died at her home in Hollywood, aged 76. Her funeral was conducted in the chapel of

Hollywood Forever Cemetery Hollywood Forever Cemetery is a full-service cemetery, funeral home, crematory, and cultural events center which regularly hosts community events such as live music and summer movie screenings. It is one of the oldest cemeteries in Los Angeles ...

. She was interred at Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles, California.

Selected filmography

* ''

The Two Brothers The Two Brothers is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, tale number 60. It is Aarne-Thompson type 303, "The Blood Brothers", with an initial episode of type 567, "The Magic Bird Heart". A similar story, of Sicilian origin, wa ...

'' (1910) * ''

Ramona ''Ramona'' is a 1884 American novel written by Helen Hunt Jackson. Set in Southern California after the Mexican–American War, it portrays the life of a mixed-race Scottish– Native American orphan girl, who suffers racial discrimination and ...

'' (1910) * '' The Battle of Gettysburg'' (1913) * ''

The Aryan ''The Aryan'' is a 1916 American silent Western film starring William S. Hart, Gertrude Claire, Charles K. French, Louise Glaum, and Bessie Love. Directed by William S. Hart and produced by Thomas H. Ince, the screenplay was written by C. ...

'' (1915) * ''

The Apostle of Vengeance ''The Apostle of Vengeance'' is a 1916 American silent drama film directed by Clifford Smith and starring William S. Hart, Nona Thomas, and John Gilbert. A Kentucky-born preacher returns home from Vermont in order to settle a feud between two w ...

'' (1916) * '' Peggy'' (1916) * '' The Crab'' (1917) * ''

Wooden Shoes Clogs are a type of footwear made in part or completely from wood. Used in many parts of the world, their forms can vary by culture, but often remained unchanged for centuries within a culture. Traditional clogs remain in use as protective fo ...

'' (1917) * ''

Madcap Madge ''Madcap Madge'' is a 1917 American silent comedy-drama film directed by Raymond B. West and starring Olive Thomas, Charles Gunn, Dorcas Matthews, Aggie Herring, and Jack Livingston. The film was released by Triangle Film Corporation on June 24, ...

'' (1917) * ''

The Mother Instinct ''The Mother Instinct'' is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by Lambert Hillyer and Roy William Neill and starring Enid Bennett, Rowland V. Lee and Margery Wilson.Golden p.33 Cast * Enid Bennett as Eleanor Coutierre * Rowland V. Lee ...

'' (1917) * ''

Happiness Happiness, in the context of Mental health, mental or emotional states, is positive or Pleasure, pleasant emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy. Other forms include life satisfaction, well-being, subjective well-being, flourishin ...

'' (1917) * ''

'Blue Blazes' Rawden ''Blue Blazes' Rawden'' is a 1918 American silent drama film directed by William S. Hart and written by J.G. Hawks. The film stars William S. Hart, Maude George, Robert McKim, Gertrude Claire, Robert Gordon, and Jack Hoxie. The film was releas ...

'' (1918) * '' When Do We Eat?'' (1918) * '' Hard Boiled'' (1919) * '' Little Comrade'' (1919) * ''

The Petal on the Current ''The Petal on the Current'' is a lost 1919 American drama film directed by Tod Browning. Plot Based upon a description in a film magazine, Stella Schump (MacLaren) is a working girl who, on the advice of a friend Cora (Ridgeway), who is attemp ...

'' (1919) * '' Stepping Out'' (1919) * '' Widow by Proxy'' (1919) * ''

Jinx A jinx (also jynx), in popular superstition and folklore, is a curse or the attribute of attracting bad or negative luck. The word ''"jynx"'' meaning the bird wryneck and sometimes a charm or spell has been in use in English since the seventeent ...

'' (1919) * ''

Blind Man's Eyes ''Blind Man's Eyes'' is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by John Ince and starring Bert Lytell, Frank Currier, and Naomi Childers, based on the 1916 novel '' The Blind Man's Eyes'' by Edwin Balmer and William MacHarg. It was released ...

'' (1919) * ''

Romance and Arabella ''Romance and Arabella'' is a 1919 American silent romantic comedy film directed by Walter Edwards and starring Constance Talmadge, Harrison Ford, and Monte Blue Gerard Montgomery Blue (January 11, 1887 – February 18, 1963) was an Ame ...

'' (1919) * ''

Dollar for Dollar ''Dollar for Dollar'' is a 1920 American silent drama film produced, directed by, and starring stage star Frank Keenan. It was written by Ethel Watts Mumford and distributed through Pathé Exchange. It was filmed at various locations in the Uni ...

'' (1920) * ''

The Cradle of Courage ''The Cradle of Courage'' is a 1920 American silent drama film directed by Lambert Hillyer and written by Frederick Bradbury and Lambert Hillyer. The film stars William S. Hart, Ann Little, Tom Santschi, Gertrude Claire, Frank Thorwald, and Ge ...

'' (1920) * ''

Her Beloved Villain ''Her Beloved Villain'' is a lost 1920 American comedy film directed by Sam Wood and written by Alice Eyton. The film stars Wanda Hawley, Ramsey Wallace, Templar Powell, Tully Marshall, Lillian Leighton and Gertrude Claire. The film was rele ...

'' (1920) * ''

The Money Changers ''The Money Changers'' is a 1920 American silent drama film directed by Jack Conway and starring Robert McKim, Claire Adams, and Roy Stewart. It is based on a 1908 novel by Upton Sinclair. Cast * Robert McKim as Hugh Gordon * Claire Adams ...

'' (1920) * ''

The Forbidden Thing ''The Forbidden Thing'' is a 1920 American silent drama film directed by Allan Dwan and starring James Kirkwood, Helen Jerome Eddy and Marcia Manon.Lombardi p.113 Cast * James Kirkwood as Abel Blake * Helen Jerome Eddy as Joan * Marcia Mano ...

'' (1920) * '' Madame Peacock'' (1920) * ''

Greater Than Love ''Greater Than Love'' is a 1921 American silent drama film directed by Fred Niblo. An incomplete print of the film exists in the Library of Congress.''Catalog of Holdings The American Film Institute Collection and The United Artists Collection a ...

'' (1921) * '' The Sin of Martha Queed'' (1921) * '' The Fox'' (1921) * ''

The Invisible Power ''The Invisible Power'' is a 1921 American crime film, crime melodrama film directed by Frank Lloyd and released by Goldwyn Pictures. Plot As described in a film magazine, Sid Chambers (Peters), a thief, is released from prison and rejoins his p ...

'' (1921) * ''

Hail the Woman ''Hail the Woman'' is a 1921 American silent drama film directed by John Griffith Wray. Produced by Thomas Ince, it stars Florence Vidor as a woman who takes a stand against the hypocrisy of her father and brother, played by Theodore Roberts a ...

'' (1921) * ''

Society Secrets ''Society Secrets'' is a 1921 American silent satire film, directed by Leo McCarey. It stars Eva Novak, Gertrude Claire, and George Verrell, and was released in February 1921. It marked McCarey's directorial debut. He didn't make a further featu ...

'' (1921) * ''

The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe ''Robinson Crusoe'' ( es, Aventuras de Robinson Crusoe; also released as ''Adventures of Robinson Crusoe'') is a 1954 adventure film directed by Luis Buñuel, based on the 1719 novel of the same name by Daniel Defoe. It stars Dan O'Herlihy as ...

'' (1922) * ''

Forget Me Not Forget-me-not refers to any member of the flowering plant genus ''Myosotis'', particularly: * Flowers in the genus ''Myosotis'' * ''Myosotis sylvatica'' or wood forget-me-not * ''Cynoglossum amabile'' or Chinese forget-me-not Forget me not may a ...

'' (1922) * ''

Human Hearts ''Human Hearts'' is an album by the indie pop band Maritime Maritime may refer to: Geography * Maritime Alps, a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps * Maritime Region, a region in Togo * Maritime Southeast Asia * The Maritime ...

'' (1922) * '' Oliver Twist'' (1922) * ''

Environment Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally * Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...

'' (1922) * ''

The Super-Sex ''The Super-Sex'' is a 1922 American silent comedy film directed by Lambert Hillyer and starring Robert Gordon, Charlotte Pierce and Tully Marshall.Munden p.778 Cast * Robert Gordon as Miles Brewster Higgins * Charlotte Pierce as Irene Hayes ...

'' (1922) * '' Ridin' Wild'' (1922) * '' Double Dealing'' (1923) * ''

Itching Palms ''Itching Palms'' is a 1923 American silent comedy horror film directed by James W. Horne and starring Tom Gallery, Herschel Mayall and Virginia Fox.Munden p.389 Cast * Tom Gallery as Jerry * Herschel Mayall as Jerry's Father * Virginia ...

'' (1923) * '' Ladies to Board'' (1924) * '' The Heart Bandit'' (1924) * '' Daughters of Today'' (1924) * ''

Wine of Youth ''Wine of Youth'' is a 1924 American silent comedy drama film directed by King Vidor, and released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, shortly after the merger which created MGM in April 1924. Vidor did not consider it important enough to mention in his aut ...

'' (1924) * '' The Wedding Song'' (1925) * '' His Majesty, Bunker Bean'' (1925) * ''

Tumbleweeds A tumbleweed is a kind of plant habit or structure. Tumbleweed, tumble-weed or tumble weed may also refer to: Films * ''Tumbleweeds'' (1925 film), William S. Hart film * ''Tumbling Tumbleweeds'' (1935 film), Gene Autry film * ''Tumbleweed'' (1 ...

'' (1925) * ''

Her Sister from Paris ''Her Sister from Paris'' is a 1925 American silent comedy film based upon the play ''The Twin Sister'' by Ludwig Fulda. It was directed by Sidney Franklin and stars Constance Talmadge, Ronald Colman, and George K. Arthur. Unlike many silen ...

'' (1925) * ''

Romance Road ''Romance Road'' is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by Fred Windemere and starring Raymond McKee, Billy Bletcher and Margery Meadows.Munden p.664 Plot summary Cast * Raymond McKee as Patrick O'Brien * Billy Bletcher as Patrick's P ...

'' (1925) * ''

The Little Irish Girl ''The Little Irish Girl'' is a 1926 American silent romantic drama film produced and distributed by Warner Bros., directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring Dolores Costello. Based on the story ''The Grifters'', written by Edith Joan Lyttleton, it ...

'' (1926)

References

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

, ''Actress' Funeral Arranged'', April 29, 1928, Page F8.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Claire, Gertrude 1852 births 1928 deaths 19th-century American actresses American stage actresses 20th-century American actresses American silent film actresses Actresses from Chicago Burials at Hollywood Forever Cemetery