Diana Serra Cary

Diana Serra Cary (born Peggy-Jean Montgomery; October 29, 1918 – February 24, 2020), known as Baby Peggy, was an American child film actress, vaudevillian, author and silent film historian. She was the last surviving person with a substantial career in silent films.

Having an interest in both writing and history since her youth, Montgomery found a second career as an author and silent film historian in her later years under the name Diana Serra Cary. She was the author of several books including her historical novel The Drowning of the Moon. She was also an advocate for child actors' rights. as Peggy-Jean Montgomery, the second daughter of Marian (née Baxter) and Jack Montgomery. While some sources incorrectly give her birth name as Margaret, Cary herself, in her autobiography, notes that she was indeed born as Peggy-Jean. She further explained the Roman Catholic nuns at her birth hospital recommended the name Margaret as Peggy was a pagan name. Her parents rejected the suggestion. Her elder sister, legally named Jack-Louise (1916–2005), was called Louise or occasionally Jackie.

Career Acting Baby Peggy was "discovered" at the age of 19 months, when she visited Century Studios on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood with her mother and a film-extra friend. Her father, Jack, a former cowboy and park ranger, had done work as a stuntman and stand-in for Tom Mix in a number of his cowboy films. Impressed by Peggy's well-behaved demeanor and willingness to follow directions from her father, director Fred Fishback hired her to appear in a series of short films with Century's canine star Brownie the Wonder Dog. The first film, Playmates in 1921, was a success, and Peggy was signed to a long-term contract with Century.

Between 1921 and 1924, Peggy made close to 150 short comedy films for Century. Her films often spoofed full-length motion pictures, social issues and stars of the era; in one, Peg O' The Movies, she satirized both Rudolph Valentino and Pola Negri. She also appeared in film adaptations of novels and fairy tales, such as Hansel and Gretel and Jack and the Beanstalk, contemporary comedies, and a few full-length motion pictures.

Baby Peggy with Frances & Gene Quirk. Peggy was meeting President Coolidge at the White House, Washington D.C., February 2, 1925 While under contract with Century and Universal, Peggy commanded an impressive salary. By 1923, she was signed to a $1.5 million a year contract at Universal ($ million in ); on her vaudeville tours she made $300 per day. Her parents handled all of the finances and money was spent on expensive cars, homes, and clothing.

Working conditions Peggy's working conditions, as described in later interviews and her autobiography, were harsh. As a toddler she worked eight hours a day, six days a week. She was generally required to perform her own stunts, which included being held underwater in the ocean until she fainted (Sea Shore Shapes), escaping alone from a burning room (The Darling of New York), and riding underneath a train car (Miles of Smiles). While at Century she also witnessed several instances of animal cruelty and saw a trainer crushed to death by an elephant.

Schooling for both Peggy and her sister, Louise, was sporadic at best. Neither attended school until the end of the vaudeville era; for their secondary education, they worked to pay for their tuition at Lawlor Professional School, which offered flexible schedules and allowed them to continue performing in films.

Baby Peggy's career was controlled by her father, who accompanied her to the studio every day and made every decision about her contracts. Her father often claimed that Peggy's success was based not on her own talent, but on her ability to follow orders unquestioningly.

Film career fade out and stage work Baby Peggy's film career abruptly ended in 1925 when her father had a falling out with producer Sol Lesser over her salary and canceled her contract.

In 2013, Cary made her only return to the film industry in a short titled, Broncho Billy and the Bandit's Secret in a cameo appearance.

Post-acting years

Peggy married Gordon Ayres in 1938 and a few years later adopted the name Diana Ayres in an effort to distance herself from the Baby Peggy image. Working at the time as a writer for radio shows, she found that people who figured out her identity were more interested in her Baby Peggy persona than in her writing abilities. She later changed her name to Diana Serra Cary explaining, "After my divorce [from Gordon Ayres] and when I became a Catholic I took Serra as my confirmation name. When I married Bob [her second husband] I became Mrs. Cary."

Following acting, she had worked as a switchboard operator, a bookstore clerk, and a gift shop manager before she got into freelance writing.

Cary appeared in numerous television documentaries and interviews about her work, and made guest appearances at silent film festivals. At the age of 99, Cary self-published her first novel, The Drowning of the Moon.

Personal life At the age of seventeen, trying to escape the film industry and her parents' plans for her life, Cary ran away from home and rented an apartment with her sister Louise. She married actor Gordon Ayres, whom she met on the set of Ah, Wilderness!, in 1938. They divorced in 1948. In 1954, she married artist Robert "Bob" Cary (sometimes listed as Bob Carey). They had one son, Mark. They remained married until Bob Cary's death in 2001. She lived in Gustine, California, near Modesto, for many years.

Death Peggy died at her home in Gustine, California, on February 24, 2020, at the age of 101.

Honors On November 8, 2008, ten days after her 90th birthday, Cary was honored at the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum's Edison Theatre in Niles, California, with a screening of two of her feature films, Helen's Babies and Captain January.

Diana Serra Cary's handprints and signature are preserved in cement outside the Vista Theater in East Hollywood. Baby Peggy's film "Tips" was the first film shown at the cinema when it opened in 1923.

Since 2012, there have been attempts to get Cary a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame through a crowdfunding campaign, but as of 2021 it has not yet succeeded. On December 3, 2012, Turner Classic Movies first presented the 2011 documentary Baby Peggy: The Elephant in the Room, and has since reaired on various occasions, such as alongside the first broadcast of the Library of Congress-restored version of The Family Secret on October 25, 2015, to mark Cary's 97th birthday.

A handful of Baby Peggy shorts, including Playmates, Miles of Smiles and Sweetie, have been discovered and preserved in film archives around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. The full-length films The Family Secret, April Fool, Captain January and Helen's Babies have also survived, are currently in the public domain, and have been restored and made available for sale by several independent film dealers. A full copy of The Law Forbids is also rumored to exist, but it has not surfaced publicly. In addition, fragments of some works, including The Law Forbids, The Darling of New York and Little Red Riding Hood have surfaced and been restored.

Filmography

As documented by research of the Museum of Modern Art. + Short subject Year Title Role Notes 1921 Her Circus Man 1921 On with the Show 1921 The Kid's Pal 1921 Playmates Credited as Peggy Montgomery 1921 On Account 1921 Pals 1921 Third Class Male 1921 The Clean Up 1921 Golfing 1921 Brownie's Little Venus 1921 A Week Off 1921 Brownie's Baby Doll 1921Sea Shore Shapes 1921 A Muddy Bride 1921 Teddy's Goat 1921 Get-Rich-Quick Peggy 1921 Chums 1922 The Straphanger Unconfirmed 1922 Circus Clowns 1922 The Little Rascal 1922 Fools First Little girl 1922 Little Red Riding Hood Little Red Riding Hood 1923 Peg o' the Movies Peg 1923 Sweetie 1923 The Kid Reporter Peggy 1923 Taking Orders 1923 Nobody's Darling 1923 Tips 1923 Little Miss Hollywood Little Miss Hollywood 1923 Miles of Smiles The Twins (dual role) 1924 Our Pet 1924 The Flower Girl 1924 Stepping Some 1924 Poor Kid 1923 Hansel and Gretel 1924 Jack and the Beanstalk 1924 Such Is Life 1924 Peg o' the Mounties 1932 Off His Base Peggy Credited as Peggy Montgomery; Jerry of the Journal series 2013 Broncho Billy and the Bandit's Secret The Movie Star Only return to the film industry after 75 years.

+ Features Year Title Role Notes 1921 Fool's Paradise Child Uncredited 1922 Little Miss Mischief 1922 Penrod Baby Rennsdale Credited as Peggy Jane; lost film 1922 Peggy, Behave! Peggy 1923 Hollywood Herself (cameo) Lost film 1923 Carmen Jr. 1923 The Darling of New York Santussa Credited as Baby Peggy Montgomery 1924 The Law Forbids Peggy Incomplete film 1924 Captain January Captain January 1924 The Family Secret Peggy Holmes 1924 Helen's Babies Toodie 1926 April Fool Irma Goodman 1926 The Dangerous Dub Rose Cooper 1926Prisoners of the StormJoan Le Grande 1934 Eight Girls in a Boat Hortense Credited as Peggy Montgomery 1934 The Return of Chandu Judy Allen, party guest Uncredited 1935 Ah, Wilderness! Schoolgirl at graduation Uncredited 1936 Girls' Dormitory Schoolgirl Credited as Peggy Montgomery 1937 Souls at Sea Bit Role Uncredited 1937 True Confession Autograph Hunter Uncredited 1938 Having Wonderful Time Extra UncreditedAlternative title: Having a Wonderful Time