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Dorothy Davenport
Acting
1895-03-13 - Present
Dorothy Davenport (March 13, 1895 – October 12, 1977) was an American actress, screenwriter, film director, and producer who appeared in silent film for Biograph Studios under the direction of D.W. Griffith. While filming on location in Oregon for The Valley of the Giants (1919), Wallace Reid was injured in a train wreck. As a remedy for the pain from this injury, studio doctors administered large doses of morphine to Reid to which he became addicted. Reid's health slowly grew worse over the next few years, and he died of the addiction in 1923. After Reid's death, Davenport and Thomas Ince co-produced the film Human Wreckage (1923) with James Kirkwood, Sr., Bessie Love and Lucille Ricksen, a film that dealt with the dangers of narcotics addiction. Davenport took Human Wreckage on a roadshow engagement, followed up with another "social conscience" picture about excessive mother-love called Broken Laws in 1924, again billed as "Mrs. Wallace Reid" to capitalize on her husband's notorious death. She then produced The Red Kimona (1925) about white slavery. On screen she opens the film in silent narration or prologue. The details of the latter film were so realistic that Davenport was successfully sued. She would later direct Linda (1929), Sucker Money (1933), Road to Ruin (1934), and The Woman Condemned (1934) and worked as a producer, writer, and dialogue director. Among her last credits are co-author of the screenplay for Footsteps in the Fog (1955), and as dialogue director for The First Traveling Saleslady (1956) with Ginger Rogers. She and husband Wallace Reid had two children. She was married to him until his death on January 18, 1923. She never remarried. Dorothy Davenport died at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in 1977 in Woodland Hills, California. She is interred with her husband in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale. Description above from the Wikipedia article Dorothy Davenport, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Credits
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The Oath and the ManasAristocrat
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The Fighting ChanceasLeila Mortimer
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The Red KimonaasWoman Telling the Story (uncredited)
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The Den of ThievesasDorothy
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Man HuntasMrs. Scott
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A Gold NecklaceasA Friend
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Human WreckageasEthel MacFarland
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The Golden SupperasFlower Girl
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The Road to RuinasMrs. Merrill (uncredited)
The Fruit of Evilas
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Broken LawsasJoan Allen
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The Satin WomanasMrs. Jean Taylor (as Mrs. Wallace Reid)
The Wheel of LifeasThe Prospector's Wife
The IntruderasThe Woodsman's Sweetheart
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The Spider and Her Webas
The Man Withinas
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The UnattainableasBessie Gale
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The Heart of the HillsasThe Government Detective
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The UnknownasNancy Preston
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Black FridayasElionor Rossitor
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The Scarlet CrystalasMarie Delys
The Way of a WomanasDorothy
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Her Indian HeroasVeda Mead
The Voice of the ViolaasDorothy
A Hopi Legendas
Fires of ConscienceasEthel
The TestasThe Poor Man's Wife
Mr. Grex of Monte CarloasGrand Duchess Feodora
RetributionasDorothy
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TreasonasLuella Brysk
The Fires of FateasDot - Wally's Sweetheart
The SirenasRenee
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Barriers of SocietyasMartha Gorham
Cupid IncognitoasAngela Graham
The SkeletonasJack's Wife
The Cracksman's ReformationasDorothy
A Flash in the DarkasMrs. Randall
Passing of the BeastasThe Mountie's Wife
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Mothers of MenasClara Madison
His Extra BitasThe Wife
A Wife on a Wageras
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A Yoke of GoldasCarner
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'Cross the Mexican LineasDorothy West
A Gypsy RomanceasQueen of the Gypsies
Breed o' the MountainsasSue Jarvis
Women and RosesasWallace's Mistress
Love's Western FlightasDorothy
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His Only SonasJessie Carter
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The Girl and the CrisisasEllen Wilmot
The QuackasMary Rohan
The Spark of Manhoodas
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A Brave Little WomanasClara Lyttell
The Countess Betty's MineasCountess Betty Ardmore
The MountaineerasDorothy - Jim's Sweetheart
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Hellship BronsonasMrs. Bronson
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Pierre of the NorthasMary McKenzie - the Factor's Daughter
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The Squaw Man's SonasEdith, Lady Effington
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The Test of ManhoodasEthel Crandall
The Lightning BoltasDot
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In Humble GuiseasGrace Hunt
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The RevelationasMrs. Burns
A Cracksman Santa ClausasDot
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The Devil's BondwomanasBeverly Hope
The Greater Devotionas
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The Way of the WorldasBeatrice Farley
The Wrong Heartas
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Doctor NeighborasHazel Rogers