Lois Neilson (September 7, 1895 – July 9, 1990) was an American silent movie actress who became actor and comedian Stan Laurel's first wife. She was born in

Tulare, California Tulare ( ) is a city in Tulare County, California. The population was 68,875 at the 2020 census. It is located in the heart of the San Joaquin Valley, eight miles south of Visalia and sixty miles north of Bakersfield. The city is named for t ...

. Her family moved to

Santa Cruz, California Santa Cruz ( Spanish for "Holy Cross") is the county seat and largest city of Santa Cruz County, in Northern California. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 62,956. Situated on the northern edge of Monterey Bay, Santa Cruz is a po ...

in 1909, where she entered high school in 1910. She acted in high school drama productions alongside

ZaSu Pitts Zasu Pitts (; January 3, 1894 – June 7, 1963) was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas, including Erich von Stroheim's epic 1924 silent film ''Greed'', and comedies, transitioning successfully to mostly comedy films with the ...

. Pitts invited Neilson to join her in Hollywood in 1918, where she began to appear in silent films. She and Laurel both appeared in ''

Do You Love Your Wife? ''Do You Love Your Wife?'' is a 1919 American film starring Stan Laurel. Cast * Stan Laurel as The janitor * Bunny Bixby * Mary Burns * Mildred Forbes * William Gillespie * Bud Jamison * Gus Leonard * Belle Mitchell * Marie Mosquini * Lois Neil ...

'' in 1919. Neilson and Laurel began sharing her apartment in 1925, and married on August 13, 1926. Their daughter, also named Lois, was born on December 10, 1927. Their son, also named Stanley, was born two months premature in 1930, and lived for only nine days. Neilson and Laurel divorced in December 1934. Through her daughter, she was the mother-in-law of Western actor

Rand Brooks Arlington Rand Brooks Jr. (September 21, 1918 – September 1, 2003) was an American film and television actor. Early life Brooks was born in Wright City, Missouri. He was the son of Arlington Rand Brooks, a farmer. His mother and he moved ...

, best known for his role of Lucky Jenkins in the Hopalong Cassidy "B" films. She died in Los Angeles at the age of 94 from natural causes. Daughter Lois died in 2017 at age 89.

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Neilson, Lois 1895 births 1990 deaths People from Tulare, California American film actresses American silent film actresses 20th-century American actresses