Olive Thomas
Encyclopedia
Olive Thomas was an American silent film
actress and model
. She is best remembered for her marriage to Jack Pickford
and her death.
family in the Pittsburgh-area steel town of Charleroi, Pennsylvania
. Her father, James Duffy, a steelworker, died in 1906. She was forced to leave school at age 15 to help support her mother and two younger brothers, James and Williams. She sold gingham
at Joseph Horne's department store for $2.75 per week. In April 1911, aged
16, she married Bernard Krugh Thomas in McKees Rocks
, a small mill town. During the two-year marriage, she reportedly worked as a clerk in Kaufmann's
department store in Pittsburgh. After her divorce, she went to stay with a family member in New York City
, where she found work in a Harlem
department store
.
In 1914, after answering a newspaper ad, she won "The Most Beautiful Girl in New York City", a contest run by the celebrated commercial artist Howard Chandler Christy
. She then modeled for artist Harrison Fisher
and eventually landed on the cover of Saturday Evening Post.
Fisher wrote a letter of recommendation to Flo Ziegfeld resulting in Thomas being hired by the Ziegfeld Follies
. However, Thomas later disputed this, claiming she walked right up and asked for the job. She subsequently performed in the much more risqué Midnight Frolic, a show staged after hours in the roof garden of the New Amsterdam Theatre
. Unlike in the Follies, the women in the Midnight Frolic maintained a strict decorum on stage no matter how skimpy the costumes. The performers were clad only in balloons, allowing the virtually all male audience the opportunity to burst the balloons with their cigars. Thomas's reputation may be the reason the Pickford
family later rejected her. However, the rest of society did not frown on these performers. Former stage performers who took on similar arrangements included Céleste Mogador, who became the Duchess of Chibrillon, Liane de Pougy, who became Princess Ghika, and Sarah Bernhardt
, who became a legendary actress.
The Midnight Frolic was primarily a show for famous male patrons with plenty of money to bestow on the young and beautiful female performers. Before long, the attractive Thomas was the center of attention of the in-crowd associated with Condé Nast
. She soon found herself being pursued by a number of very wealthy and powerful men. She received expensive gifts from her admirers, with rumors that the German
Ambassador
had given her a $10,000 string of pearls.
As part of her sudden fame, she posed nude for Peru
vian artist Alberto Vargas
, and signed with International Film Company as the leading lady in the Harry Fox
movies. Thomas went on to appear in more than twenty Hollywood films over the next four years. She made her debut under her married name, "Olive Thomas", in the film A Girl Like That. Thomas then appeared in her final short of Beatrice Fairfax. In October 1916, Thomas moved to Triangle Pictures where she worked with Thomas Ince
. Shortly after, news broke of her engagement to Jack Pickford
, whom she had actually married a year prior. Of her marriage, Thomas said, "I didn't want people to say that I'm succeeding because of the Pickford name." During her time with Triangle, Thomas was referred to as "The Triangle Star".
In December 1918, Thomas was persuaded by Myron Selznick
to sign with Selznick Pictures Company. She hoped for more serious roles, believing that with her husband signed to the same company, she would have more influence. She soon became the first Selznick star and created the image of the "baby vamp
". In 1920, Thomas once again played a teenager in the Frances Marion
movie The Flapper
. In a time when actors were defined by the type of role they played, Thomas felt she had no film type, saying, "But I want to create a certain role, you see Mary
is the kid in pictures; Norma
does drama; Constance
is the flippant, flighty wife; Dorothy
the hoyden; Nazimova
is exotic and steeped in mystery, my Jack does boys, while I--I--why don't you see, I am just nothing at all!"
Thomas was one of the first actresses to be described by the term flapper
, along with Clara Bow
, Louise Brooks
, and Joan Crawford
. She would go on to play the flapper
roles in her final films including A Youthful Folly, and her final film Everybody's Sweetheart. The formula proved successful and by the time of her death, Thomas was making $3,000 a week.
. Later, William worked as a cameraman. By the time of her death, both brothers were employed with Selznick Productions.
Thomas was known for her partying and wild ways which was also increased after marrying Pickford. Alcohol began playing a large role in Thomas' life (alcoholism
ran in the Pickford family), fueling most of the drama with her husband and possibly car crashes as well. She had three automobile accidents in two years, one seriously injuring a 9 year old. She eventually hired a chauffeur.
Thomas met actor Jack Pickford
, brother of one of the most powerful silent stars Mary Pickford
, at a beach cafe on the Santa Monica Pier
. Pickford was known for his wild partying and together the pair were a lot of trouble. Screenwriter Frances Marion
remarked, "...I had seen her often at the Pickford home
, for she was engaged to Mary's brother, Jack. Two innocent-looking children, they were the gayest, wildest brats who ever stirred the stardust on Broadway. Both were talented, but they were much more interested in playing the roulette of life than in concentrating on their careers."
Thomas eloped with Pickford on October 25, 1916 in New Jersey
. None of their family was present, with only actor Thomas Meighan
as their witness. The couple would never have children of their own, and in 1920, they adopted her then six year old nephew when his mother died.
By most accounts, she was the love of Pickford's life, the marriage was stormy and filled with highly-charged conflict, followed by lavish making up through the exchange of expensive gifts. In a March 1920 issue of Motion Picture magazine, Thomas said of the drama-fueled relationship, "He's always sending me something and then I send him something back. You see, we have to bridge the distance in some way. At first I just couldn't get used to the idea of living this way, but I suppose one gets used to anything, given time. When we were together we used to use up the time fighting over things. I'd say, 'You were out with this person or that person,' and he'd come back at me in the same way, and we'd have a lively time of it, but we're over that now. We know that we can't sit home by the fireside ALL the time just because we cannot be together."
Pickford's family did not always approve of Thomas though most of the family did attend her funeral. In Mary Pickford
's 1955 autobiography Sunshine and Shadow, she wrote, "I regret to say that none of us approved of the marriage at that time. Mother
thought Jack was too young, and Lottie
and I felt that Olive, being in musical comedy, belonged to an alien world. Ollie had all the rich, eligible men of the social world at her feet. She had been deluged with proposals from her own world of the theater as well. Which was not at all surprising. The beauty of Olive Thomas is legendary. The girl had the loveliest violet-blue eyes I have ever seen. They were fringed with long dark lashes that seemed darker because of the delicate translucent pallor of her skin. I could understand why Florenz Ziegfeld
never forgave Jack for taking her away from the Follies
. She and Jack were madly in love with one another but I always thought of them as a couple of children playing together..."
. In August 1920, the pair headed for Paris
, France
, hoping to combine a vacation with some film preparations.
On the night of September 5, 1920, the Pickfords went out for a night of entertainment and partying at the famous bistros in the Montparnasse
Quarter of Paris. Returning to their room in the Hotel Ritz
around 3:00 a.m., Pickford either fell asleep or was outside the room for a final round of drugs. It was rumored that Thomas may have taken cocaine
that night though it was never proven. An intoxicated and tired Thomas accidentally ingested a large dose of a mercury bichloride
liquid solution, which had been prescribed for her husband's chronic syphilis
. Being liquid it was supposed to be applied topically, not ingested.
She had either thought the flask contained drinking water or sleeping pills; accounts vary. The label was in French
which may have added to the confusion. She screamed, "Oh, my God!", and Pickford ran to pick her up in his arms. However, it was too late, she had already ingested a lethal dose. She was taken to the American Hospital
in the Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine
, where Pickford, together with her former in-law Owen Moore
, remained at her side until she succumbed to the poison a few days later. Soon after her death, rumors began that she tried to commit suicide or had been murdered. A police investigation followed as well as an autopsy
, and Thomas' death was ruled accidental.
Pickford gave his account of that night to The Los Angeles Examiner on September 13, 1920:
Pickford brought her body back to the United States. Several accounts state Pickford tried to commit suicide en route but was talked out of it. According to Mary Pickford's autobiography, "Jack crossed the ocean with Ollie's body. It wasn't until several years later that he confessed to Mother how one night during the voyage back he put on his trousers and jacket over his pajamas, went up on deck, and was climbing over the rail when something inside him said: 'You can't do this to your mother and sisters. It would be a cowardly act. You must live and face the future.'"
On September 29, 1920, an Episcopalian funeral service was held at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in New York for Thomas. According to the New York Times a police escort was needed and the entire church was jammed. Several women fainted at the ceremony and several men had their hats crushed in the rush to view the coffin. Thomas was interred in Woodlawn Cemetery
, The Bronx, New York. Her effects were later sold off for her estate on November 20, 1920. The sale netted $26,931 with Mabel Normand
and Lewis Selznick buying several items.
in New York City
.
In 2004, with funding from Timeline Films, and with the help of Hugh Hefner
and his film preservation organization, Sarah J. Baker premiered her documentary on Olive Thomas' life titled Olive Thomas: Everybody's Sweetheart.
In 2007, McFarland Publishing Company released a biography entitled Olive Thomas: The Life and Death of a Silent Film Beauty, written by Michelle Vogel
.
A musical entitled Ghostlight about the life of Olive Thomas was written by Matthew Martin and Tim Realbuto. Ghostlight opened in New York City at the Signature Theatre on September 26th, 2011 and was presented by the New York Musical Theatre Festival. It starred Drama Desk Award winner Rachel York as Billie Burke, Tony nominee Michael Hayden as Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr., Tony Award winner Daisy Eagan as Molly Cook, Kimberly Faye Greenberg as Fanny Brice, Matt Leisy as Jack Pickford and newcomer Rachael Fogle in the leading role of Olive Thomas.
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
actress and model
Model (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
. She is best remembered for her marriage to Jack Pickford
Jack Pickford
Jack Pickford was a Canadian-born American actor. He was best known for his tabloid lifestyle, marriage to the top starlets of his day, and being of the famous Pickford acting family.-Early life:...
and her death.
Early life
Thomas was born Oliva R. Duffy, though sometimes she claimed her birth name was Oliveretta Elaine Duffy. She was born into a working class Irish AmericanIrish American
Irish Americans are citizens of the United States who can trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau...
family in the Pittsburgh-area steel town of Charleroi, Pennsylvania
Charleroi, Pennsylvania
Charleroi is a borough in Washington County, Pennsylvania, along the Monongahela River, 25 miles south of Pittsburgh. Charleroi was settled in 1890 and incorporated in 1891. The population in 1900 stood at 5,930; in 1910, 9,615; in 1920, 11,516, and in 1940, 10,784...
. Her father, James Duffy, a steelworker, died in 1906. She was forced to leave school at age 15 to help support her mother and two younger brothers, James and Williams. She sold gingham
Gingham
Gingham is a medium-weight balanced plain-woven fabric made from dyed cotton or cotton-blend yarn.The name originates from an adjective in the Malay language, genggang , meaning striped. Some sources say that the name came into English via Dutch...
at Joseph Horne's department store for $2.75 per week. In April 1911, aged
16, she married Bernard Krugh Thomas in McKees Rocks
McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania
McKees Rocks, also known as "The Rocks", is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, along the south bank of the Ohio River. The borough population was 6,104 at the 2010 census.In the past, it was known for its extensive iron and steel interests...
, a small mill town. During the two-year marriage, she reportedly worked as a clerk in Kaufmann's
Kaufmann's
Kaufmann's was a department store that originated in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was owned in the early 20th century by Edgar J. Kaufmann, patron of 'Fallingwater' and the Kaufmann's Desert House. In the post-war years the store became a regional chain in the eastern United States, and was last...
department store in Pittsburgh. After her divorce, she went to stay with a family member in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where she found work in a Harlem
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
department store
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...
.
In 1914, after answering a newspaper ad, she won "The Most Beautiful Girl in New York City", a contest run by the celebrated commercial artist Howard Chandler Christy
Howard Chandler Christy
Howard Chandler Christy was an American artist and illustrator famous for the "Christy Girl", similar to a "Gibson Girl".He was born in Morgan County and attended early school in Duncan Falls, Ohio...
. She then modeled for artist Harrison Fisher
Harrison Fisher
Harrison Fisher was an American illustrator.Fisher was born in Brooklyn, New York City and began to draw at an early age. Both his father and his grandfather were artists. Fisher spent much of his youth in San Francisco, and studied at the San Francisco Art Association...
and eventually landed on the cover of Saturday Evening Post.
Rise to stardom
Ziegfeld Follies
The Ziegfeld Follies were a series of elaborate theatrical productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 through 1931. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air....
. However, Thomas later disputed this, claiming she walked right up and asked for the job. She subsequently performed in the much more risqué Midnight Frolic, a show staged after hours in the roof garden of the New Amsterdam Theatre
New Amsterdam Theatre
The New Amsterdam Theatre is a Broadway theater located at 214 West 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Theatre District of Manhattan, New York City, off of Times Square...
. Unlike in the Follies, the women in the Midnight Frolic maintained a strict decorum on stage no matter how skimpy the costumes. The performers were clad only in balloons, allowing the virtually all male audience the opportunity to burst the balloons with their cigars. Thomas's reputation may be the reason the Pickford
Pickford
Pickford is a surname, and may refer to* Jack Pickford, Canadian-American actor, brother of Mary Pickford* Joseph Pickford, British architect* Lottie Pickford, Canadian-American actress, sister of Mary Pickford...
family later rejected her. However, the rest of society did not frown on these performers. Former stage performers who took on similar arrangements included Céleste Mogador, who became the Duchess of Chibrillon, Liane de Pougy, who became Princess Ghika, and Sarah Bernhardt
Sarah Bernhardt
Sarah Bernhardt was a French stage and early film actress, and has been referred to as "the most famous actress the world has ever known". Bernhardt made her fame on the stages of France in the 1870s, and was soon in demand in Europe and the Americas...
, who became a legendary actress.
The Midnight Frolic was primarily a show for famous male patrons with plenty of money to bestow on the young and beautiful female performers. Before long, the attractive Thomas was the center of attention of the in-crowd associated with Condé Nast
Condé Montrose Nast
Condé Montrose Nast was the founder of Condé Nast Publications, a leading American magazine publisher known for publications such as Vanity Fair, Vogue and The New Yorker.-Background:...
. She soon found herself being pursued by a number of very wealthy and powerful men. She received expensive gifts from her admirers, with rumors that the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Ambassador
Ambassador
An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....
had given her a $10,000 string of pearls.
Film career
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
vian artist Alberto Vargas
Alberto Vargas
Alberto Vargas was a noted Peruvian painter of pin-up girls. He is often considered one of the most famous of the pin-up artists...
, and signed with International Film Company as the leading lady in the Harry Fox
Harry Fox
Harry Fox , born Arthur Carringford, was a vaudeville dancer and comedian, most famous for giving his name to the Fox Trot dance in New York. His steps were recorded by dance instructor F. L. Clendenen in his 1914 book Dance Mad as "The Fox Trot, as danced by Mr. Fox"...
movies. Thomas went on to appear in more than twenty Hollywood films over the next four years. She made her debut under her married name, "Olive Thomas", in the film A Girl Like That. Thomas then appeared in her final short of Beatrice Fairfax. In October 1916, Thomas moved to Triangle Pictures where she worked with Thomas Ince
Thomas H. Ince
Thomas Harper Ince was an American silent film actor, director, screenwriter and producer of more than 100 films and pioneering studio mogul. Known as the "Father of the Western", he invented many mechanisms of professional movie production, introducing early Hollywood to the "assembly line"...
. Shortly after, news broke of her engagement to Jack Pickford
Jack Pickford
Jack Pickford was a Canadian-born American actor. He was best known for his tabloid lifestyle, marriage to the top starlets of his day, and being of the famous Pickford acting family.-Early life:...
, whom she had actually married a year prior. Of her marriage, Thomas said, "I didn't want people to say that I'm succeeding because of the Pickford name." During her time with Triangle, Thomas was referred to as "The Triangle Star".
In December 1918, Thomas was persuaded by Myron Selznick
Myron Selznick
Myron Selznick was an American film producer and talent agent.-Life and career:Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Selznick was the son of film executive Lewis J. Selznick and brother of renowned producer David O. Selznick...
to sign with Selznick Pictures Company. She hoped for more serious roles, believing that with her husband signed to the same company, she would have more influence. She soon became the first Selznick star and created the image of the "baby vamp
Femme fatale
A femme fatale is a mysterious and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers in bonds of irresistible desire, often leading them into compromising, dangerous, and deadly situations. She is an archetype of literature and art...
". In 1920, Thomas once again played a teenager in the Frances Marion
Frances Marion
Frances Marion was an American journalist, author, and screenwriter often cited as the most renowned female screenwriter of the twentieth century alongside June Mathis and Anita Loos.-Career:...
movie The Flapper
The Flapper
The Flapper is a 1920 American silent comedy film starring Olive Thomas. It was the first movie in the United States to portray the "flapper" lifestyle which would soon become a 1920's fad.-Plot:...
. In a time when actors were defined by the type of role they played, Thomas felt she had no film type, saying, "But I want to create a certain role, you see Mary
Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born motion picture actress, co-founder of the film studio United Artists and one of the original 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
is the kid in pictures; Norma
Norma Talmadge
Norma Talmadge was an American actress and film producer of the silent era. A major box office draw for more than a decade, her career reached a peak in the early 1920s, when she ranked among the most popular idols of the American screen.Her most famous film was Smilin’ Through , but she also...
does drama; Constance
Constance Talmadge
Constance Talmadge was a silent movie star born in Brooklyn, New York, USA, and was the sister of fellow actresses Norma Talmadge and Natalie Talmadge.-Early life:...
is the flippant, flighty wife; Dorothy
Dorothy Gish
Dorothy Elizabeth Gish was an American actress, and the younger sister of actress Lillian Gish.-Early life:...
the hoyden; Nazimova
Alla Nazimova
Alla Nazimova , was a Russian American film and theatre actress, a screenwriter and film producer. She is perhaps best known as simply Nazimova, but also went under the name Alia Nasimoff.-Early life:...
is exotic and steeped in mystery, my Jack does boys, while I--I--why don't you see, I am just nothing at all!"
Thomas was one of the first actresses to be described by the term flapper
Flapper
Flapper in the 1920s was a term applied to a "new breed" of young Western women who wore short skirts, bobbed their hair, listened to jazz, and flaunted their disdain for what was then considered acceptable behavior...
, along with Clara Bow
Clara Bow
Clara Gordon Bow was an American actress who rose to stardom in the silent film era of the 1920s. It was her appearance as a spunky shopgirl in the film It that brought her global fame and the nickname "The It Girl." Bow came to personify the roaring twenties and is described as its leading sex...
, Louise Brooks
Louise Brooks
Mary Louise Brooks , generally known by her stage name Louise Brooks, was an American dancer, model, showgirl and silent film actress, noted for popularizing the bobbed haircut. Brooks is best known for her three feature roles including two G. W...
, and Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford , born Lucille Fay LeSueur, was an American actress in film, television and theatre....
. She would go on to play the flapper
Flapper
Flapper in the 1920s was a term applied to a "new breed" of young Western women who wore short skirts, bobbed their hair, listened to jazz, and flaunted their disdain for what was then considered acceptable behavior...
roles in her final films including A Youthful Folly, and her final film Everybody's Sweetheart. The formula proved successful and by the time of her death, Thomas was making $3,000 a week.
Personal life
Thomas was always close to her mother, speaking of her desire to see her on her death bed. Her mother remarried to Harry VanKirk giving Thomas a half sister, Harriet Duffy, born in 1914. She had two brothers: James Duffy (born 1896) and William Duffy (born 1899). She helped James set up an electrical shop while William was in the MarinesUnited States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
. Later, William worked as a cameraman. By the time of her death, both brothers were employed with Selznick Productions.
Thomas was known for her partying and wild ways which was also increased after marrying Pickford. Alcohol began playing a large role in Thomas' life (alcoholism
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
ran in the Pickford family), fueling most of the drama with her husband and possibly car crashes as well. She had three automobile accidents in two years, one seriously injuring a 9 year old. She eventually hired a chauffeur.
Thomas met actor Jack Pickford
Jack Pickford
Jack Pickford was a Canadian-born American actor. He was best known for his tabloid lifestyle, marriage to the top starlets of his day, and being of the famous Pickford acting family.-Early life:...
, brother of one of the most powerful silent stars Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born motion picture actress, co-founder of the film studio United Artists and one of the original 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
, at a beach cafe on the Santa Monica Pier
Santa Monica Pier
The Santa Monica Pier is a large double-jointed pier located at the foot of Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica, California and is a prominent, 100-year-old landmark.-Pacific Park:...
. Pickford was known for his wild partying and together the pair were a lot of trouble. Screenwriter Frances Marion
Frances Marion
Frances Marion was an American journalist, author, and screenwriter often cited as the most renowned female screenwriter of the twentieth century alongside June Mathis and Anita Loos.-Career:...
remarked, "...I had seen her often at the Pickford home
Pickfair
Pickfair was a 56 acre estate in the city of Beverly Hills, California designed by architect Wallace Neff for silent film actors Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford. Coined "Pickfair" by the press, it was once one of the most celebrated homes in the world...
, for she was engaged to Mary's brother, Jack. Two innocent-looking children, they were the gayest, wildest brats who ever stirred the stardust on Broadway. Both were talented, but they were much more interested in playing the roulette of life than in concentrating on their careers."
Thomas eloped with Pickford on October 25, 1916 in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. None of their family was present, with only actor Thomas Meighan
Thomas Meighan
Thomas Meighan was an American actor of silent films and early talkies. He played several leading man roles opposite popular actresses of the day including Mary Pickford and Gloria Swanson. At one point he commanded $10,000 a week....
as their witness. The couple would never have children of their own, and in 1920, they adopted her then six year old nephew when his mother died.
By most accounts, she was the love of Pickford's life, the marriage was stormy and filled with highly-charged conflict, followed by lavish making up through the exchange of expensive gifts. In a March 1920 issue of Motion Picture magazine, Thomas said of the drama-fueled relationship, "He's always sending me something and then I send him something back. You see, we have to bridge the distance in some way. At first I just couldn't get used to the idea of living this way, but I suppose one gets used to anything, given time. When we were together we used to use up the time fighting over things. I'd say, 'You were out with this person or that person,' and he'd come back at me in the same way, and we'd have a lively time of it, but we're over that now. We know that we can't sit home by the fireside ALL the time just because we cannot be together."
Pickford's family did not always approve of Thomas though most of the family did attend her funeral. In Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born motion picture actress, co-founder of the film studio United Artists and one of the original 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
's 1955 autobiography Sunshine and Shadow, she wrote, "I regret to say that none of us approved of the marriage at that time. Mother
Charlotte Hennessy
Charlotte Hennessy , born Elsie Charlotte Printer, and aka Charlotte Smith Pickford, was a Canadian-born, American actress, and the mother of Mary, Lottie, and Jack Pickford....
thought Jack was too young, and Lottie
Lottie Pickford
Lottie Pickford was a Canadian-born silent film actress, socialite, and sister to Mary Pickford and Jack Pickford. Her career is often overshadowed by that of her siblings and though she was a notable figure in the 1920s her films and role in the Pickford acting family is now largely forgotten...
and I felt that Olive, being in musical comedy, belonged to an alien world. Ollie had all the rich, eligible men of the social world at her feet. She had been deluged with proposals from her own world of the theater as well. Which was not at all surprising. The beauty of Olive Thomas is legendary. The girl had the loveliest violet-blue eyes I have ever seen. They were fringed with long dark lashes that seemed darker because of the delicate translucent pallor of her skin. I could understand why Florenz Ziegfeld
Florenz Ziegfeld
Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. , , was an American Broadway impresario, notable for his series of theatrical revues, the Ziegfeld Follies , inspired by the Folies Bergère of Paris. He also produced the musical Show Boat...
never forgave Jack for taking her away from the Follies
Ziegfeld Follies
The Ziegfeld Follies were a series of elaborate theatrical productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 through 1931. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air....
. She and Jack were madly in love with one another but I always thought of them as a couple of children playing together..."
Death
For many years, the Pickfords had intended to vacation together. Both Pickford and Thomas were constantly traveling and had little time to spend together. With their marriage on the rocks, the couple decided to take a second honeymoonHoneymoon
-History:One early reference to a honeymoon is in Deuteronomy 24:5 “When a man is newly wed, he need not go out on a military expedition, nor shall any public duty be imposed on him...
. In August 1920, the pair headed for Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, hoping to combine a vacation with some film preparations.
On the night of September 5, 1920, the Pickfords went out for a night of entertainment and partying at the famous bistros in the Montparnasse
Montparnasse
Montparnasse is an area of Paris, France, on the left bank of the river Seine, centred at the crossroads of the Boulevard du Montparnasse and the Rue de Rennes, between the Rue de Rennes and boulevard Raspail...
Quarter of Paris. Returning to their room in the Hotel Ritz
Hôtel Ritz Paris
The Hôtel Ritz is a grand palatial hotel in the heart of Paris, the 1st arrondissement. It overlooks the octagonal border of the Place Vendôme at number 15...
around 3:00 a.m., Pickford either fell asleep or was outside the room for a final round of drugs. It was rumored that Thomas may have taken cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
that night though it was never proven. An intoxicated and tired Thomas accidentally ingested a large dose of a mercury bichloride
Mercury(II) chloride
Mercury chloride or mercuric chloride , is the chemical compound with the formula HgCl2. This white crystalline solid is a laboratory reagent and a molecular compound. It is no longer used for medicinal purposes Mercury(II) chloride or mercuric chloride (formerly corrosive sublimate), is the...
liquid solution, which had been prescribed for her husband's chronic syphilis
Syphilis
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The primary route of transmission is through sexual contact; however, it may also be transmitted from mother to fetus during pregnancy or at birth, resulting in congenital syphilis...
. Being liquid it was supposed to be applied topically, not ingested.
She had either thought the flask contained drinking water or sleeping pills; accounts vary. The label was in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
which may have added to the confusion. She screamed, "Oh, my God!", and Pickford ran to pick her up in his arms. However, it was too late, she had already ingested a lethal dose. She was taken to the American Hospital
American Hospital of Paris
The American Hospital of Paris, founded in 1906, located in Neuilly-sur-Seine, is a private, not-for-profit institution that is considered agréé/non-conventionné under the French system of healthcare. It has 187 surgical, medical, and obstetric beds....
in the Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine
Neuilly-sur-Seine
Neuilly-sur-Seine is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.Although Neuilly is technically a suburb of Paris, it is immediately adjacent to the city and directly extends it. The area is composed of mostly wealthy, select residential...
, where Pickford, together with her former in-law Owen Moore
Owen Moore
Owen Moore was an Irish-born actor in American films, appearing in more than 279 movies spanning from 1908 to 1937.-Life and career:...
, remained at her side until she succumbed to the poison a few days later. Soon after her death, rumors began that she tried to commit suicide or had been murdered. A police investigation followed as well as an autopsy
Autopsy
An autopsy—also known as a post-mortem examination, necropsy , autopsia cadaverum, or obduction—is a highly specialized surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present...
, and Thomas' death was ruled accidental.
Pickford gave his account of that night to The Los Angeles Examiner on September 13, 1920:
"...We arrived back at the Ritz hotel at about 3 o'clock in the morning. I had already booked airplane seats for London. We were going Sunday morning. Both of us were tired out. We both had been drinking a little. I insisted that we had better not pack then, but rather get up early before our trip and do it then. I went to bed immediately. She fussed around and wrote a note to her mother. ... She was in the bathroom.
Suddenly she shrieked: 'My God.' I jumped out of bed, rushed toward her and caught her in my arms. She cried to me to find out what was in the bottle. I picked it up and read: 'Poison.' It was a toilet solution and the label was in French. I realized what she had done and sent for the doctor. Meanwhile, I forced her to drink water in order to make her vomit. She screamed, 'O, my God, I'm poisoned.' I forced the whites of eggs down her throat, hoping to offset the poison. The doctor came. He pumped her stomach three times while I held Olive.
Nine o'clock in the morning I got her to the Neuilly Hospital, where Doctors Choate and Wharton took charge of her. They told me she had swallowed bichloride of mercury in an alcoholic solution, which is ten times worse than tablets. She didn't want to die. She took the poison by mistake. We both loved each other since the day we married. The fact that we were separated months at a time made no difference in our affection for each other. She even was conscious enough the day before she died to ask the nurse to come to America with her until she had fully recovered, having no thought she would die.
She kept continually calling for me. I was beside her day and night until her death. The physicians held out hope for her until the last moment, until they found her kidneys paralyzed. Then they lost hope. But the doctors told me she had fought harder than any patient they ever had. She held onto her life as only one case in fifty. She seemed stronger the last two days. She was conscious, and said she would get better and go home to her mother. 'It's all a mistake, darling Jack,' she said. But I knew she was dying.
She was kept alive only by hypodermic injections during the last twelve hours. I was the last one she recognized. I watched her eyes glaze and realized she was dying. I asked her how she was feeling and she answered: 'Pretty weak, but I'll be all right in a little while, don't worry, darling.' Those were her last words. I held her in my arms and she died an hour later. Owen Moore was at her bedside. All stories and rumors of wild parties and cocaine and domestic fights since we left New York are untrue...
Funeral and legacy
On September 29, 1920, an Episcopalian funeral service was held at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in New York for Thomas. According to the New York Times a police escort was needed and the entire church was jammed. Several women fainted at the ceremony and several men had their hats crushed in the rush to view the coffin. Thomas was interred in Woodlawn Cemetery
Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx
Woodlawn Cemetery is one of the largest cemeteries in New York City and is a designated National Historic Landmark.A rural cemetery located in the Bronx, it opened in 1863, in what was then southern Westchester County, in an area that was annexed to New York City in 1874.The cemetery covers more...
, The Bronx, New York. Her effects were later sold off for her estate on November 20, 1920. The sale netted $26,931 with Mabel Normand
Mabel Normand
Mabel Normand was an American silent film comedienne and actress. She was a popular star of Mack Sennett's Keystone Studios and is noted as one of the film industry's first female screenwriters, producers and directors...
and Lewis Selznick buying several items.
In popular culture
Thomas' ghost is said to haunt the New Amsterdam TheatreNew Amsterdam Theatre
The New Amsterdam Theatre is a Broadway theater located at 214 West 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Theatre District of Manhattan, New York City, off of Times Square...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
In 2004, with funding from Timeline Films, and with the help of Hugh Hefner
Hugh Hefner
Hugh Marston "Hef" Hefner is an American magazine publisher, founder and Chief Creative Officer of Playboy Enterprises.-Early life:...
and his film preservation organization, Sarah J. Baker premiered her documentary on Olive Thomas' life titled Olive Thomas: Everybody's Sweetheart.
In 2007, McFarland Publishing Company released a biography entitled Olive Thomas: The Life and Death of a Silent Film Beauty, written by Michelle Vogel
Michelle Vogel
Michelle Vogel is an Australian-born film historian and author. Vogel has written biographies on Gene Tierney, Marjorie Main and Olive Thomas. She has also written two books on Joan Crawford.-Books:*Gene Tierney: A Biography...
.
A musical entitled Ghostlight about the life of Olive Thomas was written by Matthew Martin and Tim Realbuto. Ghostlight opened in New York City at the Signature Theatre on September 26th, 2011 and was presented by the New York Musical Theatre Festival. It starred Drama Desk Award winner Rachel York as Billie Burke, Tony nominee Michael Hayden as Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr., Tony Award winner Daisy Eagan as Molly Cook, Kimberly Faye Greenberg as Fanny Brice, Matt Leisy as Jack Pickford and newcomer Rachael Fogle in the leading role of Olive Thomas.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1916 | Beatrice Fairfax | Rita Malone | Alternative title: Letters to Beatrice |
| 1916 | Beatrice Fairfax Episode 10: Playball | Rita Malone | |
| 1917 | A Girl Like That | Fannie Brooks | |
| 1917 | Madcap Madge | Betty | |
| 1917 | An Even Break | Claire Curtis | |
| 1917 | Broadway Arizona | Fritzi Carlyle | |
| 1917 | Indiscreet Corinne | Corinne Chilvers | |
| 1917 | Tom Sawyer Tom Sawyer (1917 film) Tom Sawyer is a 1917 Paramount Pictures silent film starring Jack Pickford, Robert Gordon, and Clara Horton; it is based on Mark Twain's novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.... |
Choir Member | Uncredited |
| 1918 | Betty Takes a Hand | Betty Marshall | |
| 1918 | Limousine Life | Minnie Wills | |
| 1918 | Heiress for a Day | Helen Thurston | |
| 1919 | Toton the Apache | Toton/Yvonne | |
| 1919 | The Follies Girl | Doll | |
| 1919 | Upstairs and Down | Alice Chesterton | Alternative title: Up-stairs and Down |
| 1919 | Love's Prisoner Love's Prisoner Love's Prisoner is a 1919 silent crime drama film starring Olive Thomas. Written by E. Magnus Ingleton, the film was directed by John Francis Dillion.-Plot:... |
Nancy, later Lady Cleveland | |
| 1919 | Prudence on Broadway | Prudence | |
| 1919 | The Spite Bride | Tessa Doyle | |
| 1919 | The Glorious Lady The Glorious Lady The Glorious Lady is a 1919 silent American drama film directed by George Irving. A copy of the film survives in the Nederlands Filmmuseum.- Cast :* Olive Thomas as Ivis Benson* Matt Moore as The Duke of Loame* Evelyn Brent as Lady Eileen... |
Ivis Benson | |
| 1919 | Out Yonder | Flotsam | |
| 1920 | Footlights and Shadows | Gloria Dawn | |
| 1920 | Youthful Folly | Nancy Sherwin | Writer |
| 1920 | The Flapper The Flapper The Flapper is a 1920 American silent comedy film starring Olive Thomas. It was the first movie in the United States to portray the "flapper" lifestyle which would soon become a 1920's fad.-Plot:... |
Ginger King | |
| 1920 | Darling Mine | Kitty McCarthy | |
| 1920 | Everybody's Sweetheart | Mary |