Helene Chadwick
Born
24 November 1897 (128)
Place of Birth
Chadwicks, New York, USA
Also known as
Mary Helene Chadwick, Helen Chadwick
Biography
Helene Chadwick (November 25, 1897 – September 4, 1940) was an American actress in Silent and early sound films. Chadwick was born in the small town of Chadwicks, New York, which was named for her grandfather. Her mother was a singer who performed on the stage and her father was a businessman. She began making films for Pathe Pictures in Manhattan, New York. A director was impressed by Chadwick's talent as an equestrian, thus she began acting as a western star, but this did not continue with t...
Helene Chadwick (November 25, 1897 – September 4, 1940) was an American actress in Silent and early sound films. Chadwick was born in the small town of Chadwicks, New York, which was named for her grandfather. Her mother was a singer who performed on the stage and her father was a businessman. She began making films for Pathe Pictures in Manhattan, New York. A director was impressed by Chadwick's talent as an equestrian, thus she began acting as a western star, but this did not continue with the exodus of film production from the east to the west coast. Signed by Samuel Goldwyn, Chadwick went to California in 1913 and entered silent movies in 1916. She was a star from 1920 through 1925. At the pinnacle of her acting career, she earned a salary estimated to have been $2,000 per week. From 1929 until 1935, she found success as a character actress when sound was being introduced to films. In the final five years of her life she was reduced to taking roles as an extra, playing "atmospheric parts". She was always optimistic that her fortunes would turn for the better. Helene made movies with Warner Brothers, Columbia Pictures, 20th Century Fox, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Paramount Pictures, and other studios. Her most noteworthy performances came in The Long Arm of Mannister (1919), The Cup of Fury (1920), Heartsease (1919), The Sin Flood (1922), Dangerous Curve Ahead (1921), From The Ground Up (1921), The Glorious Fool (1922), Yellow Men and Gold (1922), Dust Flower (1922), Godless Men (1920), and Quicksands (1923). In January 1919, Chadwick became engaged to Lieutenant William A. Wellman, an American pilot with the Lafayette Flying Corps. He had just returned from France and was cited for bravery for his valour in World War I. The couple had met at a party at the house of a friend. Wellman was signed to play a prominent role in an upcoming movie with Douglas Fairbanks Sr. The couple wed in July 1921, but in the summer of 1923 Chadwick sued Wellman for divorce on grounds of desertion and non-support. At the time of their separation William was directing movies for Fox Film. Wellman directed Wings, the first film to win an Academy Award for Best Picture, as well as many other notable films. Helene Chadwick died at St. Vincent's Hospital, Los Angeles, California, aged 42, in 1940. Her death was indirectly the result of an accident she suffered in June 1939.
Filmography (40)
The Perfect Set-Up
1936
Frisco Kid
1935
Mary Burns, Fugitive
1935
Mississippi
1935
A Wicked Woman
1934
School for Girls
1934
Good Dame
1934
Managed Money
1934
Merrily Yours
1933
Morning Glory
1933
Employees' Entrance
1933
Night World
1932
So Big!
1932
Hell Bound
1931
The Bad Sister
1931
Men Are Like That
1930
Father and Son
1929
Say It with Sables
1928
Modern Mothers
1928
Women Who Dare
1928
The Bachelor's Baby
1927
Stolen Pleasures
1927
Wise Guys Prefer Brunettes
1926
Dancing Days
1926
Hard Boiled
1926
The Still Alarm
1926
Pleasures of the Rich
1926
The Golden Cocoon
1925
The Woman Hater
1925
The Re-Creation of Brian Kent
1925
The Dark Swan
1924
The Border Legion
1924
Trouping with Ellen
1924
Her Own Free Will
1924
Love of Women
1924
Why Men Leave Home
1924
The Masked Dancer
1924
Reno
1923
Quicksands
1923
Gimme
1923