Pearl White

Pearl Fay White (March 4, 1889 – August 4, 1938) was an American stage and film actress. She began her career on the stage at age 6, and later moved on to silent films appearing in a number of popular serials.

Dubbed the "Queen of the Serials", White was noted for doing the majority of her own stunts, most notably in The Perils of Pauline. Often cast as a plucky onscreen heroine, White's roles directly contrasted those of the popularized archetypal ingénue.

Early life White was born in Green Ridge, Missouri to Edgar White, a farmer, and Lizzie G. House. She had four brothers and sisters. The family later moved to Springfield, Missouri. At age 6, she made her stage debut as "Little Eva" in Uncle Tom's Cabin. When she was 13, White worked as a bareback rider for the circus.

Career

She began performing with the Diemer Theater Company while in her second year of high school. Against the wishes of her father, White dropped out of school, and in 1907,

Pathé director Louis J. Gasnier offered her the starring role in film serial The Perils of Pauline, based on a story by playwright Charles W. Goddard. The film features the central character Pauline in a story involving considerable action, for which the athletic Pearl White proved ideally suited. The Perils of Pauline consisted of 20 two-reel episodes that were released weekly. The serial proved to be a hit with audiences and made White a major celebrity; she soon was earning $1,750 per week. She followed this serial with an even bigger box-office hit: The Exploits of Elaine (1914–1915).

Over the next five years, White appeared in the popular serials The New Exploits of Elaine (1915), The Romance of Elaine (1915), The Iron Claw (1916), Pearl of the Army (1916–1917), The Fatal Ring (1917), The House of Hate (1918), The Lightning Raider (1919) and The Black Secret (1919–1920).

A male stunt double wearing a wig performed the majority of the more dangerous stunts in White's later films. After the filming of Plunder was complete, White traveled to Europe for a vacation.

By 1919, White had grown tired of film serials and signed with Fox Film Corporation with the ambition to appear in dramatic roles, including J. Searle Dawley's A Virgin Paradise, filmed near Harrington Sound in the British Imperial fortress colony of Bermuda, 640 miles off North Carolina where Searle had previously filmed The Relief of Lucknow and For Valour in 1912. Animals, including monkeys and lions, were imported for the production. On December 21, 1920, Dawley received a cable at 8:25 AM at the Princess Hotel urging that White, who had previously visited Bermuda in 1913, leave Bermuda that day for New York aboard the RMS Fort Victoria. As the ship had already departed from the City of Hamilton, she was flown by a seaplane of the Bermuda and West Atlantic Aviation Company from the Princess Hotel to board the ship at Murray's Anchorage before it passed through Hurd's channel onto the open Atlantic Ocean. White was photographed boarding the seaplane by the proprietors of the Bermuda and West Atlantic Aviation Company, Major Henry Hamilton "Hal" Kitchener (the son of Lieutenant-General Sir Frederick Walter Kitchener) and Major Harold Hemming. Over the next two years, White appeared in 10 drama films for Fox but her popularity had begun to wane. Influenced by her French friends from Pathé, White was drawn to the Montparnasse Quarter of Paris. While living there, she made her last film for her friend, Belgian-born director Edward José, who had directed her in several serials. Silent films could be made in any country, and as White was a recognizable star worldwide, she was offered many roles in France. She made Terreur (released as The Perils of Paris in the United States), her final film, in France in 1924. White returned to the stage in a Montmartre production Tu Perds la Boule. In 1925, she accepted an offer to star with comedian Max Wall in the "London Review" at the Lyceum Theatre in London, where she earned $3,000 per week. She then retired from performing.

By the time she retired from films in 1924, White had amassed a fortune of $2 million ($ million in ). A shrewd businesswoman, she invested in a successful Parisian nightclub, a Biarritz resort hotel/casino, and a stable of 10 race horses. White divided her time between her townhouse in Passy and a 54-acre estate near Rambouillet. She became involved with Theodore Cossika, a Greek businessman, who shared her love of travel. Together, they purchased a home near Cairo.

According to published reports after her death, White's friends claimed that she intended to make a comeback in sound films. White later told friends that after she made a test for sound films in 1929, she was told that her voice was unsuitable. White made occasional visits to the United States in 1924, 1927, and 1937. On her last visit, White told reporters she was not interested in making a comeback and mused that acting in silent films was more difficult than acting in sound films. By this time, White had gained a substantial amount of weight. She told reporters she did not like to be photographed as she felt that photos made her face look fat, adding "Why should I have my picture taken when I can get paid for it?"

Personal life White was married twice and had no children. She married actor Victor Sutherland on October 10, 1907. They divorced in 1914. In 1913 she lived with Jane Fearnley, an early film actress. In 1919, she married actor Wallace McCutcheon Jr., son of pioneering cinematographer and director Wallace McCutcheon Sr. Their marriage ended in divorce in 1921. 1911 An Unforeseen Complication The Professor's Daughter 1911 The Stepsisters The Stepmother's Spoiled Daughter 1912 The Mad Lover Ethel Marion 1912 The Spendthrift's Reform The Wife 1912 The Mind Cure Pearl 1912 Oh That Lemonade The Widow 1913 Pearl as a Detective Pearl 1913 The Paper Doll Alice Wilson 1914 The Perils of Pauline Pauline Serial A reformatted version exists 1914 The Exploits of Elaine Elaine Dodge Serial Lost film 1915 The New Exploits of Elaine Elaine Dodge Serial Lost film 1915 The Romance of Elaine Elaine Dodge Serial 1916 Hazel Kirke Hazel Kirke 1916 The Iron Claw Margery Golden Serial 1916 Pearl of the Army Pearl Date Serial 1917 Mayblossom Anabel Lee 1917 The Fatal Ring Violet Standish Serial 1918 The House of Hate Pearl Grant Serial 1919 The Lightning Raider The Lightning Raider Serial Incomplete film 1919 The Black Secret Evelyn Ereth Lost film 1920 The White Moll Rhoda, the White Moll Lost film 1920 The Thief Mary Vantyne 1921 Know Your Men Ellen Schuyler Lost film 1921 A Virgin Paradise Gratia Latham Lost film 1922 Any Wife Myrtle Hill Lost film 1922 The Broadway Peacock Myrtle May 1922 Without Fear Ruth Hamilton 1923 Plunder Pearl Travers serial 1924 Perils of Paris Hélène Aldrich serialalternative title: Terreur