Actress. The star of around 200 silent motion picture features, she later became a respected producer. Raised in a theatrical family (her father was a manager, her mother a singer), she made her stage debut at three under the name "Baby Ruth". After her parents' divorce and mother's death, she moved to Los Angeles where she soon had her own Vaudeville act that combined singing and dancing, while entering Hollywood High School at age 12. Spotted by Sidney Olcott, she was signed by Kalem Studios and made her silver screen bow in the 1909 "Old Soldier's Boy", though some sources credit her with 1908's "The Scarlet Letter"; Ruth had a number of starring roles as a "Kalem Girl" thru 1914, then moved on to Balboa Films. There, she made the adventure serials for which she is probably best remembered, most notably the dozen-or-so works that make up "The Red Circle", and was even to take part in an early experimental color feature, Leon Forrest Douglass' 1918 "Cupid Angling". Ruth formed her own company in 1919 and made several movies, many of which like "The Adventures of Ruth" and "Ruth on the Range" drew on her name, while contracting with Pathé for more series. Her schedule slowed thru the 1920s as she gradually lost interest in films, while making a reputation for being "difficult"; by then, she had plenty of money, both from her movies, and from good investments. She was to make only two talkies, "Reno" (1930) and 1935's "Nine to Nine," though her voice was said to be well suited to the medium. In her final years she returned to the Vaudeville stage. Ruth was married twice, to Lionel Kent in an early failed union and to Ben Bard from 1929 until her death. Today, she remains honored with a star on the Walk of Fame and a few of her cinematic performances are preserved.
Actress. The star of around 200 silent motion picture features, she later became a respected producer. Raised in a theatrical family (her father was a manager, her mother a singer), she made her stage debut at three under the name "Baby Ruth". After her parents' divorce and mother's death, she moved to Los Angeles where she soon had her own Vaudeville act that combined singing and dancing, while entering Hollywood High School at age 12. Spotted by Sidney Olcott, she was signed by Kalem Studios and made her silver screen bow in the 1909 "Old Soldier's Boy", though some sources credit her with 1908's "The Scarlet Letter"; Ruth had a number of starring roles as a "Kalem Girl" thru 1914, then moved on to Balboa Films. There, she made the adventure serials for which she is probably best remembered, most notably the dozen-or-so works that make up "The Red Circle", and was even to take part in an early experimental color feature, Leon Forrest Douglass' 1918 "Cupid Angling". Ruth formed her own company in 1919 and made several movies, many of which like "The Adventures of Ruth" and "Ruth on the Range" drew on her name, while contracting with Pathé for more series. Her schedule slowed thru the 1920s as she gradually lost interest in films, while making a reputation for being "difficult"; by then, she had plenty of money, both from her movies, and from good investments. She was to make only two talkies, "Reno" (1930) and 1935's "Nine to Nine," though her voice was said to be well suited to the medium. In her final years she returned to the Vaudeville stage. Ruth was married twice, to Lionel Kent in an early failed union and to Ben Bard from 1929 until her death. Today, she remains honored with a star on the Walk of Fame and a few of her cinematic performances are preserved.
Bio by: Bob Hufford
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