Marie Osborne in Little Mary Sunshine (1916)
British postcard in the Pathé Frères Cinema LTD Series. Photo: Pathé. Marie Osborne in Little Mary Sunshine (Henry King, 1916). Caption: The cuddly kid.
Marie Osborne aka Baby Marie (1911-2010) was the first major child star of American silent films.
Marie Osborne was born as Helen Alice Myres in Denver, Colorado, in 1911, as the daughter of Roy and Mary Myres. She soon became — under mysterious circumstances — the child of Leon and Edith Osborn, who called her Marie and added the "e" to the surname, apparently to obscure the adoption. Her foster parents, the Osborns, introduced their daughter to silent films when they left Colorado to work at Balboa Studios in Long Beach, California. Baby Marie made her debut in the short drama film Kidnapped in New York (1914), directed by J. Stuart Blackton. Signed to a lucrative contract with Balboa Films (and working with director Henry King and writer Clara Beranger), by the age of five Marie Osborne was starring in silent films, including her best-remembered movie, Little Mary Sunshine, from 1916, one of her few films which still survive on celluloid, and with King in the male lead. Some of her other films are The Maid of the Wild (Sherwood MacDonald, 1915) with King acting, Sunshine and Gold (King, 1917), When Baby Forgot (Eugene Moore, 1917), Daddy's Girl (William Bertram, 1918) with Lew Cody, Winning Grandma (Bertram, 1918), The Sawdust Doll (Bertram, 1919), and Daddy Number Two (dir. unknown, 1919). At the age of eight, she completed her final film as a child star, Miss Gingersnap in 1919.
In all, Marie Osborne was featured or starred in 29 films in a six-year period, including some 7 films directed by King. Most of her films were produced at Diando Studios, the former Kalem Movie Studio in Glendale, California. She returned to motion pictures 15 years later – at the request of director Henry King – to appear as extra in his 1934 movie Carolina, starring Janet Gaynor and Lionel Barrymore. This movie also featured future child star Shirley Temple in a minor role. Over the next 16 years, Osborne worked as a film extra, e.g. in the 1935 version of The Last Days of Pompeii, or additionally serving as a stand-in for actresses such as Ginger Rogers, Deanna Durbin, and Betty Hutton. After appearing in more than a dozen films, she made her last on-screen appearance in Bunco Squad (1950), starring Robert Sterling and Joan Dixon.
In the 1950s Marie Osborne started a new career as a costumer for Western Costume, a clothing supplier for the motion picture industry. Osborne worked on the wardrobes for such films as Around the World in 80 Days (1956), How to Murder Your Wife (1965), The Godfather: Part II (1974), and Harry and Walter Go to New York (1976). In 1963, Osborne worked as a special costumer for Elizabeth Taylor in the big-budget film, Cleopatra. Osborne retired in 1977, and moved to San Clemente, California. Osborne married Frank J. Dempsey on May 2, 1931. Dempsey was the father of Osborne's only child, Joan (born May 13, 1932). They divorced in 1937. Osborne married 36-year-old actor Murray F. Yeats on June 14, 1945, and moved to Sepulveda, California. She remained married until his death on January 27, 1975. Marie Osborne Yeats died in 2010 in San Clemente, California, six days after her 99th birthday. She was interred at Mission San Luis Rey Cemetery. She was survived by her daughter, Joan, and five grandchildren.
Sources: Wikipedia and IMDb.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
Marie Osborne in Little Mary Sunshine (1916)
British postcard in the Pathé Frères Cinema LTD Series. Photo: Pathé. Marie Osborne in Little Mary Sunshine (Henry King, 1916). Caption: The cuddly kid.
Marie Osborne aka Baby Marie (1911-2010) was the first major child star of American silent films.
Marie Osborne was born as Helen Alice Myres in Denver, Colorado, in 1911, as the daughter of Roy and Mary Myres. She soon became — under mysterious circumstances — the child of Leon and Edith Osborn, who called her Marie and added the "e" to the surname, apparently to obscure the adoption. Her foster parents, the Osborns, introduced their daughter to silent films when they left Colorado to work at Balboa Studios in Long Beach, California. Baby Marie made her debut in the short drama film Kidnapped in New York (1914), directed by J. Stuart Blackton. Signed to a lucrative contract with Balboa Films (and working with director Henry King and writer Clara Beranger), by the age of five Marie Osborne was starring in silent films, including her best-remembered movie, Little Mary Sunshine, from 1916, one of her few films which still survive on celluloid, and with King in the male lead. Some of her other films are The Maid of the Wild (Sherwood MacDonald, 1915) with King acting, Sunshine and Gold (King, 1917), When Baby Forgot (Eugene Moore, 1917), Daddy's Girl (William Bertram, 1918) with Lew Cody, Winning Grandma (Bertram, 1918), The Sawdust Doll (Bertram, 1919), and Daddy Number Two (dir. unknown, 1919). At the age of eight, she completed her final film as a child star, Miss Gingersnap in 1919.
In all, Marie Osborne was featured or starred in 29 films in a six-year period, including some 7 films directed by King. Most of her films were produced at Diando Studios, the former Kalem Movie Studio in Glendale, California. She returned to motion pictures 15 years later – at the request of director Henry King – to appear as extra in his 1934 movie Carolina, starring Janet Gaynor and Lionel Barrymore. This movie also featured future child star Shirley Temple in a minor role. Over the next 16 years, Osborne worked as a film extra, e.g. in the 1935 version of The Last Days of Pompeii, or additionally serving as a stand-in for actresses such as Ginger Rogers, Deanna Durbin, and Betty Hutton. After appearing in more than a dozen films, she made her last on-screen appearance in Bunco Squad (1950), starring Robert Sterling and Joan Dixon.
In the 1950s Marie Osborne started a new career as a costumer for Western Costume, a clothing supplier for the motion picture industry. Osborne worked on the wardrobes for such films as Around the World in 80 Days (1956), How to Murder Your Wife (1965), The Godfather: Part II (1974), and Harry and Walter Go to New York (1976). In 1963, Osborne worked as a special costumer for Elizabeth Taylor in the big-budget film, Cleopatra. Osborne retired in 1977, and moved to San Clemente, California. Osborne married Frank J. Dempsey on May 2, 1931. Dempsey was the father of Osborne's only child, Joan (born May 13, 1932). They divorced in 1937. Osborne married 36-year-old actor Murray F. Yeats on June 14, 1945, and moved to Sepulveda, California. She remained married until his death on January 27, 1975. Marie Osborne Yeats died in 2010 in San Clemente, California, six days after her 99th birthday. She was interred at Mission San Luis Rey Cemetery. She was survived by her daughter, Joan, and five grandchildren.
Sources: Wikipedia and IMDb.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.