Alice White (born Alva White; August 25, 1904Katz, Ephraim (1979). ''The Film Encyclopedia: The Most Comprehensive Encyclopedia of World Cinema in a Single Volume''. Perigee Books. , pg. 1228. – February 19, 1983) was an American film actress. Her career spanned late silent films and early sound films.

Early years

Alice White was raised by her maternal grandparents in

Paterson, New Jersey Paterson ( ) is the largest city in and the county seat of Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.East Orange, New Jersey East Orange is a city in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 69,612. The city was the state's 20th most-populous municipality in 2010, after having been the state's 14th most-po ...

. Her grandfather owned a fruit business.

Film

After leaving school, White became a secretary and " script girl" for director

Josef von Sternberg Josef von Sternberg (; born Jonas Sternberg; May 29, 1894 – December 22, 1969) was an Austrian-American filmmaker whose career successfully spanned the transition from the silent to the sound era, during which he worked with most of the major ...

. She also worked as a switchboard operator at the Hollywood Writers' Club. After clashing with von Sternberg, White left to work for

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is conside ...

, who decided before long to place her in front of the camera. Her bubbly and vivacious persona led to comparisons with

Clara Bow Clara Gordon Bow (; July 29, 1905 – September 27, 1965) was an American actress who rose to stardom during the silent film era of the 1920s and successfully made the transition to " talkies" in 1929. Her appearance as a plucky shopgirl in the ...

, but White's career was slow to progress. In his book ''Silent Films, 1877-1996: A Critical Guide to 646 Movies'', Robert K. Klepper wrote: "Some critics have said that Ms. White was a second-string Clara Bow. In actuality, Ms. White had her own type of charm, and was a delightful actress in her own, unique way. Whereas Clara Bow played the quintessential, flaming redheaded flapper, Alice White was more of a bubbly, vivacious blonde." After playing a succession of

flapper Flappers were a subculture of young Western women in the 1920s who wore short skirts (knee height was considered short during that period), bobbed their hair, listened to jazz, and flaunted their disdain for what was then considered acceptab ...

s and gold diggers, she attracted the attention of director and producer

Mervyn LeRoy Mervyn LeRoy (; October 15, 1900 – September 13, 1987) was an American film director and producer. In his youth he played juvenile roles in vaudeville and silent film comedies. During the 1930s, LeRoy was one of the two great practitioners of ...

, who saw potential in her. Her screen debut was in ''

The Sea Tiger ''The Sea Tiger'' is a 1927 American silent drama film produced and distributed by First National Pictures and directed by John Francis Dillon. The film stars Milton Sills and Mary Astor. It is now a lost film.Show Girl A showgirl is a female dancer or performer in a stage entertainment show intended to showcase the performer's physical attributes, typically by way of revealing clothing, toplessness, or nudity. History Showgirls date back to the late 180 ...

'' (1928), which had

Vitaphone Vitaphone was a sound film system used for feature films and nearly 1,000 short subjects made by Warner Bros. and its sister studio First National from 1926 to 1931. Vitaphone was the last major analog sound-on-disc system and the only one ...

musical accompaniment but no dialog, and its musical sequel ''

Show Girl in Hollywood ''Showgirl in Hollywood'' is a 1930 American pre-Code all-talking musical film with Technicolor sequences, produced and distributed by First National Pictures, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. The film stars Alice White, Jack Mulhall and Blanche Sw ...

'' (1930), both released by

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

and both based on novels by J.P. McEvoy. In these two films, White appeared as Dixie Dugan. In October 1929, McAvoy started the

comic strip A comic strip is a Comics, sequence of drawings, often cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often Serial (literature), serialized, with text in Speech balloon, balloons and Glossary of comics ter ...

Dixie Dugan ''Dixie Dugan'' is best known as a long-running syndicated newspaper comic strip published from October 21, 1929 to October 8, 1966. The title character was originally modeled after 1920s film actress Louise Brooks and early stories followed Dixi ...

'' with the character Dixie having a "helmet" hairstyle and appearance similar to actress Louise Brooks. White also used the services of Hollywood 'beauty sculptor' Sylvia of Hollywood to stay in shape. White was featured in ''

The Girl from Woolworth's ''The Girl from Woolworth's'' is a 1929 American pre-Code romance film directed by William Beaudine and starring Alice White, Gladden James and Bert Moorhouse. It was released both as a sound film and in a slightly shorter silent version.Mars ...

'' (1929), having the role of a singing clerk in the music department of a

Woolworth's Woolworth, Woolworth's, or Woolworths may refer to: Businesses * F. W. Woolworth Company, the original US-based chain of "five and dime" (5¢ and 10¢) stores * Woolworths Group (United Kingdom), former operator of the Woolworths chain of shop ...

store. Karen Plunkett-Powell wrote in her book ''Remembering Woolworth's: A Nostalgic History of the World's Most Famous Five-and-Dime'': "First National Pictures produced this 60-minute musical as a showcase for up-and-coming actress Alice White."

Later career

She left films in 1931 to improve her acting abilities, returning in 1933 only to have her career hurt by a scandal that erupted over her involvement with boyfriend actor Jack Warburton and future husband Sy Bartlett. Although she later married Bartlett, her reputation was tarnished and she appeared only in supporting roles after this, including '' Jimmy the Gent'' (1934) with

James Cagney James Francis Cagney Jr. (; July 17, 1899March 30, 1986) was an American actor, dancer and film director. On stage and in film, Cagney was known for his consistently energetic performances, distinctive vocal style, and deadpan comic timing. He ...

and

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her p ...

. By 1937 and 1938, her name was at the bottom of the cast lists. She made her final film appearance in '' Flamingo Road'' (1949) and eventually resumed working as a secretary.

Personal life

In 1933, Alice and her fiancé, American screenwriter Sidney "Sy" Bartlett were accused of arranging the beating of British actor John Warburton. Alice and Warburton had reportedly had a love affair that ended when he beat her so badly she required cosmetic surgery. A grand jury in Los Angeles decided not to charge Bartlett or White; however, the bad publicity hurt Alice's career. White married Bartlett on December 3, 1933, in Magdalena, Mexico. She filed for divorce in 1937 claiming he "stayed away from home" and was awarded $65 per week in alimony. White remarried, to film writer John Roberts, on August 24, 1940. They divorced on April 18, 1949, in Los Angeles. The following year, she sued him over unpaid alimony.

Death

White died of complications from a stroke on February 19, 1983, at age 78. She was buried at Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery in North Hollywood.

Award

White has a star at 1511 Vine Street in the Motion Pictures section of the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Calif ...

. It was dedicated on February 8, 1960.

Filmography

References

External links

Alice White singing and dancing in a clip from ''Show Girl in Hollywood'' (from YouTube).

James Cagney slaps Alice White in a clip from ''Picture Snatcher'' (from YouTube)
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Alice White Photos & Biography

Photographs and literature
{{DEFAULTSORT:White, Alice 1904 births 1983 deaths American film actresses American silent film actresses Actors from Paterson, New Jersey Roanoke College alumni Actresses from New Jersey 20th-century American actresses