From Wikipedia
Ethel Clayton (November 8, 1882 — June 6, 1966) was an
American actress of the silent film era.
Clayton's screen debut came in 1909, in a short called
Justified. She jockeyed her early film appearances with a burgeoning stage
career. Her pretty blond looks were reminiscent of the famous Gibson Girl
drawings by Charles Dana Gibson. On the stage she appeared mainly in musicals
or musical reviews such as The Ziegfeld Follies of 1911. These musical
appearances indicate a singing talent Clayton may have possessed but went
unused in her many silent screen performances.
In 1912 she appeared in "The Country Boy" on stage
at the Lyceum Theatre in Rochester New York and made her feature length film
debut in For the Love of a Girl. The film was directed by Barry O'Neil. She was
cast with Harry Myers, Charles Arthur, and Peter Lang. She was also directed by
William Demille, Robert G. Vignola, George Melford, Donald Crisp, Dallas M.
Fitzgerald, and Clifford Sanforth. Like many silent film actors Clayton's
career was hurt by the coming of sound to motion pictures. She continued her
career in small parts in movies until she retired in 1948. Her screen credits
number more than 180.
Clayton was first married to actor-director Joseph Kaufman
until his death in 1918 in the Spanish Influenza epidemic. She later married
silent film actor and former star Ian Keith twice and they divorced twice. In
both cases Clayton cited cruelty and excessive drinking. Clayton and Keith were
first married in Minneapolis in 1928 and first separated on January 13, 1931.
Ethel Clayton died on June 6, 1966 at St. John's Hospital in
Oxnard, California, aged 83. She was buried at Ivy Lawn Memorial Park in
Ventura, California.
For her contributions to the motion picture industry, Ethel
Clayton has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
