Ruth Blair (actress) explained

Ruth Blair
Birth Name:Ruth Naomi Powell
Birth Date:13 July 1891
Birth Place:Williamsport, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Death Place:Fresno, California, U.S.
Occupation:Actress

Ruth Blair (July 13, 1891 – February 24, 1957), born Ruth Naomi Powell, was an American actress in silent films made in 1915 and 1916.

Early life and education

Ruth Naomi Powell was born in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.[1] Her mother died when Ruth was 12 years old.[2] Her New York drama coach Ada Dow Currier considered her "another Julia Marlowe".[3] [4]

Career

In 1915 Blair won a nationwide talent search[5] and signed a three-year contract with Smallwood Film Corporation to star in comedies.[6] She appeared in the silent films The Law of Nature (1915), Canned Curiosity (1915),[7] His Wife's Past (1915), Pyramid Pictures (1915),[8] The Fourth Estate (1916),[9] His Promise (1916), and The Folly of Fear (1916).[10]

Blair was considered pretty and stylish,[11] a "'perfect Parisian thirty-six' of the hipless, small-busted style so much admired these days both on the screen and before the footlights." She designed her own clothes[12] and enjoyed outdoor recreation, especially riding and photography. She modeled Easter hats for Photoplay magazine in 1916,[13] and she was featured on the cover of Motography magazine in January 1916.[14]

Personal life

Although she was always referred to as "Miss Blair" in publicity, Powell was married to a dental technician, Charles Harrison Blair, in 1909. They had four children, two sons born before her brief film career, and two daughters, born after. Blair died in 1957, at age 65, in Fresno, California.[15]

Notes and References

  1. News: 1916-02-09 . Ruth Blair is Star in 'Fourth Estate' . 7 . The Tulsa Tribune . 2023-08-07 . Newspapers.com.
  2. News: 1916-02-15 . Ruth Blair Today; Former Williamsport Girl Star in Big Film Production . 2 . Williamsport Sun-Gazette . 2023-08-07 . Newspapers.com.
  3. May 1916 . Will She Be Another Marlowe? . The Green Book Magazine . 15 . 897.
  4. News: 1915-06-26 . Julia Marlowe; Reminiscences of the Actress by Ada Dow Currier . 39 . Boston Evening Transcript . 2023-08-07 . Newspapers.com.
  5. News: 1915-03-16 . Miss Ruth Blair Wins the Prize; Williamsport Girl Selected to Play Leads . 8 . Williamsport Sun-Gazette . 2023-08-07 . Newspapers.com.
  6. March 20, 1915 . New Smallwood Lead . Motography . 13 . 12 . 448.
  7. November 4, 1916 . Mutual Program . The Moving Picture World . 30 . 713.
  8. October 2, 1915 . Ruth Blair in Comedy . Moving Picture World . 26 . 85.
  9. November 20, 1915 . Ruth Blair . Moving Picture World . 26 . 1469.
  10. October 28, 1916 . Mutual Offerings . The Moving Picture World . 30 . 565.
  11. News: 1915-12-01 . Pretty and Popular Actress Scared by Unusual Bomb . 5 . The Idaho Statesman . 2023-08-07 . Newspapers.com.
  12. January 1, 1916 . Ruth Blair of Fox . Motography . 15 . 1 . 6 . Internet Archive.
  13. Howard . Lillian . April 1916 . The Eternal Easter Hat . Photoplay . 85 . Internet Archive.
  14. January 8, 1916 . Cover image of Ruth Blair . Motography . 15 . 2 . cover . Internet Archive.
  15. News: 1957-02-25 . Obituary for Ruth Blair . 8 . The Fresno Bee . 2023-08-07 . Newspapers.com.