Helen Carruthers (1892–1925) was an American actress of the silent film era. Carruthers is best known for her work in Keystone comedies.

Career

Carruther's career in film began in 1914. That year she appeared in no less than 35 Keystone comedies, 17 of which were with

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 ...

. Her screen debut was in the Chaplin comedy ''

His Favourite Pastime ''His Favourite Pastime'' is a 1914 American comedy film starring Charlie Chaplin. Synopsis Charlie gets drunk in the bar. He steps outside, meets a pretty woman, tries to flirt with her, only to retreat after the woman's father returns. Return ...

'', and her last credited work for Keystone was as Chaplin's love interest and the king's wife in ''

His Prehistoric Past ''His Prehistoric Past'' is a 1914 American short silent comedy film, written and directed by Charlie Chaplin, featuring a Chaplin in a stone-age kingdom trying to usurp the crown of King Low-Brow to win the affections of the king's favorite ...

''. The absence of any credits in Carruther's available filmographies after 1914 suggests that her short motion-picture career ended by 1915.

Personal life

In May 1915, at age 23, Carruthers attempted suicide by swallowing 30

mercury bichloride Mercury(II) chloride (or mercury bichloride, mercury dichloride), historically also known as sulema or corrosive sublimate, is the inorganic chemical compound of mercury and chlorine with the formula HgCl2. It is white crystalline solid and is a ...

tablets. She survived, but the poisonous compound severely damaged her kidneys.Article about Carruthers with news clips from 1915
/ref> Carruthers married Baron Fransiscus Gerard Zur Muehlen, a Javanese sugar merchant who was attached to the Dutch diplomatic service, in 1918. On July 7, 1925, while hosting a gathering in her hotel room at the Ritz Carlton, Carruthers opened a window to let a breeze in and she fell from the seventh story. The coroner ruled her death an accident.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Carruthers, Helen 1892 births 1925 deaths Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Bronx, New York) American silent film actresses Place of birth missing 20th-century American actresses