Edwina Booth
Encyclopedia
Edwina Booth was an American
actress. She is best known for the 1931 film Trader Horn
, during the filming of which she contracted an illness which effectively ruined her movie career.
, Utah
, Booth's brief film career began in 1928 with the Dorothy Arzner
-directed Manhattan Cocktail, which also featured Nancy Carroll
and Richard Arlen
.
She was on vacation following a 1927 stage appearance when film director E. Mason Hopper
saw her and offered her a part in a Marie Prevost
picture. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
(MGM) was impressed with her, and cast Booth in supporting roles. Her chance for stardom came when the studio cast her in its new jungle epic Trader Horn opposite Harry Carey. MGM gave the production a fairly large budget, and sent cast and crew on location in East Africa. Up until 1929, the only films shot in Africa were travelogue
s, but MGM was hoping that the idea of "location shooting" might increase the film's commercial appeal. The crew was inexperienced and ill-equipped for filming in Africa, a problem exacerbated by MGM's last-minute decision to shoot the film with sound.
In addition to coping with the heat and insects, Booth contracted malaria
during shooting. Her role in the film as "The White Goddess" required that she be very scantily clad, likely increasing her susceptibility. Production went on for several months (much longer than average production time in those days), and the film wasn't released until 1931. Despite many problems with the film's production, Trader Horn was a success, securing an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture.
Booth, however, fared much worse; it took her six years to fully recover physically. She sued MGM for over a million dollars, claiming she had been provided with inadequate protection and inadequate clothing during the African shoot. She also claimed she had been forced to sunbathe nude for extended periods during filming. The case received a lot of attention in the tabloids and was eventually settled out of court. According to some sources, the terms were not disclosed; however, Brigham Young University
archives indicate she settled for $35,000.
Booth's acting career never recovered from the MGM debacle. Neither MGM nor the other major studios had any intentions of employing her, which created an opportunity for producer Nat Levine
of the low-budget Mascot Pictures. Levine saw a chance to capitalize on the success of Trader Horn by reuniting its stars Harry Carey and Edwina Booth for two adventure serials, The Vanishing Legion
and The Last of the Mohicans. The films were successful within their limited market, but failed to propel Edwina Booth's movie career forward. By the time MGM reissued Trader Horn in 1938, Edwina Booth had been forgotten by the moviegoing public.
.
Booth was married three times. Anthony Shuck, her first husband, had their marriage annulled soon after her return from Africa. She married her second husband, Urial Leo Higham on November 21, 1951. He died in 1957. Her third husband was Reinold Fehlberg. They were married from 1959 until his death in 1983.
There were many false rumors and reports of her demise until her death in 1991. She is buried in Santa Monica
's Woodlawn Cemetery
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actress. She is best known for the 1931 film Trader Horn
Trader Horn (1931 film)
Trader Horn is the first non-documentary film shot on location in Africa. The 1931 movie tells of the adventures of real-life trader and adventurer Alfred Aloysius "Trader" Horn on safari in Africa. It featured many authentic shots of African wildlife and a great deal of inauthentic plot. It was...
, during the filming of which she contracted an illness which effectively ruined her movie career.
Career
Born Josephine Constance Woodruff, the daughter of a doctor, in ProvoProvo, Utah
Provo is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Utah, located about south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the county seat of Utah County and lies between the cities of Orem to the north and Springville to the south...
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, Booth's brief film career began in 1928 with the Dorothy Arzner
Dorothy Arzner
Dorothy Arzner was an American film director. Her directorial career in feature films spanned from the late 1920s into the early 1940s, a time period in which there were very few—if any—other women working in the field.- Biography :Born in San Francisco, California, Arzner grew up in Los...
-directed Manhattan Cocktail, which also featured Nancy Carroll
Nancy Carroll
Nancy Carroll was an American actress.-Career:She was christened Ann Veronica Lahiff in New York City. Of Irish parentage, she and her sister once performed a dancing act in a local contest of amateur talent. This led her to a stage career and then to the screen. She began her acting career in...
and Richard Arlen
Richard Arlen
-Biography:Born Sylvanus Richard Van Mattimore in St. Paul, Minnesota, he attended the University of Pennsylvania. He served as a pilot in the Royal Flying Corps during World War I. His first job after the war was with St. Paul's Athletic Club...
.
She was on vacation following a 1927 stage appearance when film director E. Mason Hopper
E. Mason Hopper
E. Mason Hopper was an American film director of the silent era. He directed 76 films between 1911 and 1935.-Selected filmography:* Wife or Country * Brothers Under the Skin...
saw her and offered her a part in a Marie Prevost
Marie Prevost
Marie Prevost was a Canadian-born actress of the early days of cinema. During her twenty year career, she made 121 silent and talking pictures.-Early life:...
picture. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
(MGM) was impressed with her, and cast Booth in supporting roles. Her chance for stardom came when the studio cast her in its new jungle epic Trader Horn opposite Harry Carey. MGM gave the production a fairly large budget, and sent cast and crew on location in East Africa. Up until 1929, the only films shot in Africa were travelogue
Travel literature
Travel literature is travel writing of literary value. Travel literature typically records the experiences of an author touring a place for the pleasure of travel. An individual work is sometimes called a travelogue or itinerary. Travel literature may be cross-cultural or transnational in focus, or...
s, but MGM was hoping that the idea of "location shooting" might increase the film's commercial appeal. The crew was inexperienced and ill-equipped for filming in Africa, a problem exacerbated by MGM's last-minute decision to shoot the film with sound.
In addition to coping with the heat and insects, Booth contracted malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
during shooting. Her role in the film as "The White Goddess" required that she be very scantily clad, likely increasing her susceptibility. Production went on for several months (much longer than average production time in those days), and the film wasn't released until 1931. Despite many problems with the film's production, Trader Horn was a success, securing an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture.
Booth, however, fared much worse; it took her six years to fully recover physically. She sued MGM for over a million dollars, claiming she had been provided with inadequate protection and inadequate clothing during the African shoot. She also claimed she had been forced to sunbathe nude for extended periods during filming. The case received a lot of attention in the tabloids and was eventually settled out of court. According to some sources, the terms were not disclosed; however, Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
archives indicate she settled for $35,000.
Booth's acting career never recovered from the MGM debacle. Neither MGM nor the other major studios had any intentions of employing her, which created an opportunity for producer Nat Levine
Nat Levine
Nat Levine , was an American film producer. He produced 105 films between 1921 and 1946. He was personal secretary to Marcus Loew, formed Mascot Pictures in 1927, and merged Mascot with Herbert Yates's Republic Pictures in 1935.He was born in New York, New York and died in Los Angeles,...
of the low-budget Mascot Pictures. Levine saw a chance to capitalize on the success of Trader Horn by reuniting its stars Harry Carey and Edwina Booth for two adventure serials, The Vanishing Legion
The Vanishing Legion
The Vanishing Legion is a 1931 Mascot film serial directed by Ford Beebe and B. Reeves Eason.The stars Harry Carey and Edwina Booth were originally intended to be in the studio's previous serial, King of the Wild, but had to be re-cast when the MGM film Trader Horn overran its schedule...
and The Last of the Mohicans. The films were successful within their limited market, but failed to propel Edwina Booth's movie career forward. By the time MGM reissued Trader Horn in 1938, Edwina Booth had been forgotten by the moviegoing public.
Later years
Edwina Booth withdrew completely from the public eye, although she continued to receive fan mail for the rest of her life. She declared that she would be dedicating all of her future leisure and a large proportion of her earnings to the alleviation of human suffering, "My years of illness have not been wasted," she informed the local press. "I have learned to love mankind." She became more active in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, frequently attending the Los Angeles California TempleLos Angeles California Temple
The Los Angeles California Temple , the tenth operating and the second-largest temple operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is on Santa Monica Boulevard in the Westwood district of Los Angeles, California...
.
Booth was married three times. Anthony Shuck, her first husband, had their marriage annulled soon after her return from Africa. She married her second husband, Urial Leo Higham on November 21, 1951. He died in 1957. Her third husband was Reinold Fehlberg. They were married from 1959 until his death in 1983.
There were many false rumors and reports of her demise until her death in 1991. She is buried in Santa Monica
Santa Mônica
Santa Mônica is a town and municipality in the state of Paraná in the Southern Region of Brazil.-References:...
's Woodlawn Cemetery
Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery, Santa Monica
Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery is located at 1847 14th Street in Santa Monica, California.-Notable burials:*Hugo Ballin , artist*Mabel Ballin , Actress*George Bancroft , actor...
.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1928 | Manhattan Cocktail | ||
| 1929 | Our Modern Maidens Our Modern Maidens Our Modern Maidens is a 1929 silent film directed by Jack Conway. Starring Joan Crawford in her last silent film role, the film also stars Rod La Rocque, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., and Anita Page. Our Modern Maidens is the second of three film where Crawford and Page appear together... |
Undetermined role | Uncredited |
| 1931 | Trader Horn Trader Horn (1931 film) Trader Horn is the first non-documentary film shot on location in Africa. The 1931 movie tells of the adventures of real-life trader and adventurer Alfred Aloysius "Trader" Horn on safari in Africa. It featured many authentic shots of African wildlife and a great deal of inauthentic plot. It was... |
Nina Trent, the White Goddess | |
| The Vanishing Legion The Vanishing Legion The Vanishing Legion is a 1931 Mascot film serial directed by Ford Beebe and B. Reeves Eason.The stars Harry Carey and Edwina Booth were originally intended to be in the studio's previous serial, King of the Wild, but had to be re-cast when the MGM film Trader Horn overran its schedule... |
Caroline Hall | (serial) | |
| 1932 | The Midnight Patrol The Midnight Patrol For the television cartoon, see Midnight Patrol: Adventures in the Dream Zone.The Midnight Patrol is a short comedy film starring Laurel and Hardy released August 3, 1933.-Plot:Laurel and Hardy play two policemen on night patrol, hence the title... |
Joyce Greeley | |
| The Last of the Mohicans The Last of the Mohicans (serial) The Last of the Mohicans is a 1932 Mascot movie serial based on the novel The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper.-Cast:*Harry Carey as Natty Bumppo/Hawkeye*Hobart Bosworth as Chingachgook, 'the Sagamore'*Frank Coghlan Jr... |
Cora Munro | (serial) | |
| Trapped in Tia Juana | Dorothy Brandon | Alternative title: Her Lover's Brother |