| Gertrude Howard | |
| Birth Date: | 13 October 1892 |
| Birth Place: | Hot Springs, Arkansas, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Occupation: | Actress |
| Yearsactive: | 1925–1934 |
Gertrude Howard (October 13, 1892 – September 30, 1934)[1] was an American actress of the silent and early sound film eras.
Born in 1892, Howard performed in the chorus of The Wife Hunters (1911) on Broadway.[2] She broke into films in 1925, appearing in The Circus Cyclone, directed by Albert Rogell.[3] In 1927, she played the wife of Uncle Tom in Uncle Tom's Cabin.[4] In 1927, The Pittsburgh Courier stated that she was the "highest salaried colored actress in Hollywood".[5] She appeared mostly in minor or supporting film roles, such as Queenie in the original version of Show Boat (1929),[6] and Martha in Christy Cabanne's Conspiracy.[7]
Her appearance as Beulah Thorndyke in I'm No Angel (1933), led to her being forever linked to Mae West with the famous line, "Beulah, peel me a grape".[8]
In Howard's short career she would appear in twenty-two films. That career was cut short by her untimely death in 1934 at the age of 41. Mae West helped raise funds for her funeral.