|
|
|
Mary Culver
|
|
born:
10 July 1897 Illinois, United States of America |
died:
01 November 1972 Anacortes, Washington, United States of America (heart attack, age 75) |
|
Blonde American actress. The May 1923 issue of The Standard Casting Directory lists her among "Character Women (Young)" (also listed in the same category are Babe London and Esther Ralston). Her parents were Alice Maud (née McAchran, 1858-1913) and Frank William Hornish (1860-1901), who married on 2 January 1884 in Mattoon, Illinois. She had two older brothers, Otho McAchran Hornish (1885-1939) and Garness Clarence Hornish (1888-1955). On 22 September 1913, 15 (actually 16)-year old Mary married actor Darrell Foss (1892-1962), five years her senior. The marriage quickly soured, with Mary alleging less than a year later that Foss and his relatives conspired to put her in a detention home. Mary said the marriage was to ward off a statutory charge against Foss, and that the strain was exacerbated by the loss of their child (a California Birth Index entry exists for a child with the surname Foss, mother's name Horvick [sic], b. 15 January 1914 in Los Angeles County, California; currently have not found a death record). Divorce suits were filed by each party during 1915 and 1916 until Foss was granted the decree in March 1916 with the judge determining Mary had deserted Foss. On 3 August 1918, Mary married Fredrick Culver Beers (1895-1946), later a studio casting director. Evidently, Mary got her professional surname from the middle name of her husband (which was the maiden name of Beers' mother). In November 1924, Beers filed for divorce from Mary and sued director/composer Victor Schertzinger for alienation of affections, a suit worth $250,000, alleging that the composer lured Mary away from him in September; Schertzinger denied the allegations. The divorce decree was granted to Beers in April 1925; in September, Beers dropped the suit against Schertzinger. Two decades later, Beers died from injuries inflicted by two robbers, one dressed as a policeman. Sometime between 1925 and 1940, Mary married a Mr. Brush; they were divorced by 1940. In that year's U.S. Census (9 Apr 1940), Mary Oma Brush is managing the Mitchell Hotel in Los Angeles; in 1935, she resided in El Monte, California. On 7 April 1942, she married Emmett Wood (1900-1990) in San Francisco, California. They later settled in Washington, and remained together for 30 years until Mary's passing. Mary O. Wood died at 6:45am on 01 November 1972 at Island Hospital in Anacortes, Washington. She succumbed to an acute myocardial infarction (duration: 15 minutes), due to occlusion [right] coronary artery (duration unknown) and generalized arteriosclerosis (duration: years), with obesity a contributory cause. She is buried at Grand View Cemetery in Anacortes. "The Harold Lloyd Encyclopedia" mis-transcribes her surname as "Culner." |
|
Real name: Mary Oma Hornish |
Films listed on this page: complete Hal Roach filmography. |
 |
1 |
|
