Thelma Hill
Encyclopedia
Thelma Hill was an American
silent screen
comedian
.
Born Thelma Floy Hillerman in Emporia, Kansas
, she was one of the few Sennett Bathing Beauties to make it into featured roles. Hill was widely known as the "mah jongg bathing girl" because of the mah jongg bathing suit she was photographed in extensively.
As a youth, she lived not far from the motion picture studios and was noticed by both Sennett and Dick Jones
. During her school years, she did atmosphere and bits on Saturdays and Sundays and during vacation time. As she became older, Hill began to double for Mabel Normand
.
She was first featured with Ralph Graves in a series of two-reel comedies that were made for Sennett on Glendale Boulevard in Los Angeles, California
.
Hill starred opposite Ben Turpin
in The Prodigal Bridegroom and from 1927 to 1929 with Bud Duncan in Larry Darmour's series of silent comedy shorts Toots and Casper
and was Laurel & Hardy's leading lady in 1928's Two Tars
. She completed her F.B.O. contract in 1927 and was signed by MGM for a role in The Fair Coed (1927).
She ended her career at the Hal Roach
Studios (the "Lot of Fun") shortly after the changeover to sound, and by 1932 she had gotten on the dark side of depression
and alcohol abuse
. She died before her 32nd birthday from acute alcohol poisoning. Her husband at the time was actor John Sinclair
.
Thelma Hill died at the Edward Merrill Sanitarium in Culver City, California
, in 1938. She was buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
silent screen
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...
comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
.
Born Thelma Floy Hillerman in Emporia, Kansas
Emporia, Kansas
Emporia is a city in and the county seat of Lyon County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 24,916. Emporia lies between Topeka and Wichita at the intersection of U.S. Route 50 with Interstates 335 and 35 on the Kansas Turnpike...
, she was one of the few Sennett Bathing Beauties to make it into featured roles. Hill was widely known as the "mah jongg bathing girl" because of the mah jongg bathing suit she was photographed in extensively.
As a youth, she lived not far from the motion picture studios and was noticed by both Sennett and Dick Jones
Dick Jones
Dickie Jones is an American actor who achieved some success as a child and as a young adult, especially in B-Westerns and television. He is best known as the voice of Pinocchio in the 1940 Walt Disney film.-Early life:...
. During her school years, she did atmosphere and bits on Saturdays and Sundays and during vacation time. As she became older, Hill began to double for 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...
.
She was first featured with Ralph Graves in a series of two-reel comedies that were made for Sennett on Glendale Boulevard in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
.
Hill starred opposite Ben Turpin
Ben Turpin
Ben Turpin was a cross-eyed American comedian and actor, best remembered for his work in silent films.-Personal life:...
in The Prodigal Bridegroom and from 1927 to 1929 with Bud Duncan in Larry Darmour's series of silent comedy shorts Toots and Casper
Toots and Casper
Toots and Casper was a long-run family comic strip by Jimmy Murphy, distributed to newspapers for 37 years by King Features Syndicate, resulting in many merchandising tie-ins, including books, dolls, paper dolls, pins, bisque nodders and comic books....
and was Laurel & Hardy's leading lady in 1928's Two Tars
Two Tars
Two Tars, directed by James Parrott and released in 1928, is recognized as one of Laurel and Hardy's greatest films. A silent film, it largely consists of a 'reciprocal destruction' involving motorists in a traffic jam, which has much inventive mayhem with the destruction of various...
. She completed her F.B.O. contract in 1927 and was signed by MGM for a role in The Fair Coed (1927).
She ended her career at the Hal Roach
Hal Roach
Harold Eugene "Hal" Roach, Sr. was an American film and television producer and director, and from the 1910s to the 1990s.- Early life and career :Hal Roach was born in Elmira, New York...
Studios (the "Lot of Fun") shortly after the changeover to sound, and by 1932 she had gotten on the dark side of depression
Clinical depression
Major depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and by loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...
and alcohol abuse
Alcohol abuse
Alcohol abuse, as described in the DSM-IV, is a psychiatric diagnosis describing the recurring use of alcoholic beverages despite negative consequences. Alcohol abuse eventually progresses to alcoholism, a condition in which an individual becomes dependent on alcoholic beverages in order to avoid...
. She died before her 32nd birthday from acute alcohol poisoning. Her husband at the time was actor John Sinclair
John West Sinclair
RRRJohn West Sinclair was an American actor who worked primarily in silent films.Tennessee-born comedian Sinclair, was a favorite stunt double for such 1920s action heroes as Ken Maynard, Billy Sullivan and Reed Howes. Later he wrote gags for W.C...
.
Thelma Hill died at the Edward Merrill Sanitarium in Culver City, California
Culver City, California
Culver City is a city in western Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 38,883, up from 38,816 at the 2000 census. It is mostly surrounded by the city of Los Angeles, but also shares a border with unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. Culver...
, in 1938. She was buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park
Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale
Forest Lawn Memorial Park is a privately owned cemetery in Glendale, California. It is the original location of Forest Lawn, a chain of cemeteries in Southern California. The land was formerly part of Providencia Ranch.-History:...
.