Tragic OLIVE BORDEN In YELLOW FINGERS / 1926 / Fox Films / Photo By Autrey
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:38530704 | Size: 8 x 10 |
| Original/Reproduction: Original | Modified Item: No |
| Year: Pre-1940 | Style: Black & White |
| Object Type: Photograph | Industry: Movies |
Up for auction:OLIVE BORDEN in YELLOW FINGERS.
On the front, bottom right - AUTREY
On the back - CREDIT FOR THIS PORTRAINT WILL BE APPRECIATED BY FOX FILMS / WILLIAM FOX, PRODUCER / LOS ANGELES, CALIF. / and in pencil - OLIVE BORDEN IN "YELLOW FINGERS"This 8" x 10" is in wonderful condition.
Who was OLIVE BORDEN?OLIVE BORDEN. Born July 14, 1906 in Richmond, VA. Died on October 1, 1947 in LA, CA of a stomach ailment.FROM IMDB:Considered one of the most beautiful actress...es of the silent era, Borden was a 'Mack Sennet' bathing beauty at 15 and reached the peak of her career in 1926 when she made 11 films for Fox Studios and was earning $1, 500 a week. Refusing to take a salary cut, Borden abruptly left Fox in 1928 and made only a few pictures for other studios before retiring from films in 1938. In 1943 she joined the WACS and after her discharge returned to Hollywood in a failed attempt to revive her career. At the time she was quoted as saying, "Since I got out of the Army I've gone from job to job. Something always goes wrong." By 1946 she was found scrubbing floors for a living and in 1947, at the age of 40, died of a "stomach ailment" at the Sunshine Mission - a home for destitute women on Los Angeles' Skid Row.
- IMDb Mini Biography By DJWILLSOlive Borden was beautiful and talented but she became one of Hollywood's most tragic tales. She came to Hollywood in 1922 with her widowed mother. Olive started her career as a Mack Sennett bathing beauty and was named a Wampas baby star in 1925. She made eleven films at Fox studios where she earned $1, 500 a week. Olive became a popular on screen vamp and her jet black hair was her trademark. She hired Jimmie Fiddler as her agent and was nicknamed "The Joy Girl". Olive lived a lavish lifestyle with limos, mansions, servants, and a dozen fur coats. In 1927 she left Fox after a salary dispute. She later worked for Columbia and RKO studios. Like many other silent stars she had a hard time making the transition to talkies. Her last film was made in 1934. There were two failed marriages and a broken engagement to actor George O'Brien. During World War 2 she worked as a nurse. By the age of 41 she was a penniless alcoholic. Her final years were spent in a Los Angeles mission. Sadly many of Olive Borden's silent films have been lost and this lovely star has been forgotten.
- IMDb Mini Biography By CAROLE MCDONALDSpousesJohn Moeller - 11/2/34 - 1941 divorced
Theodore Spector - 3/24/31 - 11/21/32 annulled
Trade MarksJet black hair
Wearing a lucky pansy ring
TriviaOne of the thirteen WAMPAS Baby Stars of 1925.
Olive never took off her lucky pansy ring. It was made out of a stickpin that had belonged to her late father. The ring and a scrapbook from her career were the only possessions Olive had when she died.
Olive was engaged to actor George O'Brien in 1929. She was also romantically involved with director Marshall Neilan.
Olive was a distant cousin of the notorious Lizzie Borden.
While volunteering as a WAC during World War 2 she received an army citation for bravery in turning over an enemy ammunition truck.
As a struggling actress she was discovered twice, first by Mack Sennett who made her a bathing beauty and later by producer Paul Bern who became her boyfriend.
Her first marriage to Theodore Spector was annulled when she discovered he was married to another woman. A few years later the wife of actor Ralph Emerson accused Olive of having an affair with him.
Her mother Sibbie was a conservative Christian who never drank and didn't want Olive to be an actress. Towards the end of her life Olive claimed she had also "found religion".
Olive played the piano and spoke French. She was afraid of the water because she could not swim.
Before she became a star, Olive worked as a telephone operator and opened a candy store with her mother.
By 1942 Olive had filed for bankruptcy and was working at Macy's department store. She joined the WAC's but was honorably discharged after suffering a severe foot injury.
A simple funeral was held at the Sunshine Mission for Women where its founder, Pastor Essie Binkley West, performed last rites, saying "She played her greatest role when she became a star for Jesus". No one from her glory days in Hollywood was there, but a fairly large crowd came from the surrounding community of Skid Row.
Olive made headlines in 1935 when she was named as the other woman in actor Ralph Emerson's divorce. She and Ralph costarred in Dance Hall and had an affair in 1934. When his wife found out she filed for divorce and told the court that Ralph cheated on her with Olive. The bad publicity hurt Olive's reputation and she never made another film.
Personal QuotesIf I don't like a story or a part I just don't do it. But when I get something I like I work like the devil. Consequently I am accomplishing far more than I ever did before and I'm not working half as hard.
Almost any girl taken from obscurity and spot-lighted, highly paid and catered to, would go haywire. Precious few have escaped the stage of distorted viewpoint, unless they had very wise management.
Look here, I was never a grand lady. I was always just a crazy kid. I couldn't be what they wanted me to be. And the more I tried the bigger fool I was. How could I have dared myself such grand airs when I was making such bad pictures? I'm not that exotic, vampish type. I don't want to be a great dramatic actress. I'm not sophisticated. Why should I play sophisticated roles?
When I left the Fox lot about a year ago I was so nervous I didn't know if I was temperamental or not. So I moved to the beach for three months and became just a kid again, doing the things kids like to do and enjoying myself generally. Then I came back and want to work because I wanted to prove to myself that I am not temperamental.
I wanted money, a lot of it. Why? I don't know except that earning it pleases ego, spending it whets vanity. It adds to that absurd importance. With the inflated estimation of self, the more money you get, the more you want, to increase prestige. And it is handy to purchase places and such trinkets.More from WIKI: During her acting career, Borden was one of the highest paid stars. She spent her money freely and by the late 1930s, she was broke. Borden then found work as a postal clerk and mail carrier and also worked as a nurse's aide. In December 1942, Borden joined the the Women's Army Corps, the only place women could serve in the Army at that time where she served as an ambulance driver and received an Army citation for bravery in turning over an enemy ammunition truck. Her Army career ended in 1944, with an honorable discharge after she was hospitalized in Walter Reed Medical Center with a severe foot injury. After her discharge, she attempted an unsuccessful comeback in films.Borden struggled with alcoholism and numerous health problems. She spent her final years in the skid row section of Los Angeles working and living at the Sunshine Mission, a home for women alongside her mother Sibbie, who got Borden the work.Olive Borden died on October 1, 1947 from complications of pneumonia at the age of 41. The only possession she had when she died was a signed photo of herself. Borden's funeral was held on October 3 at the Sunshine Mission home for women where she had worked and lived since 1945. The mission's founder, Essie Binkley West, officiated at the service. Thank you for stopping by. I am sure that Olive would love to live with you. The last place she called
home was a shelter. We'll both thank you. I will happily combine shipping.
