Adrienne Dore (born Elizabeth Himmelsbach; May 22, 1907 – November 26, 1992) was an American actress,

model A model is an informative representation of an object, person, or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin , . Models can be divided in ...

, and beauty pageant winner. She was first runner-up in the Miss America 1925 pageant, competing as Miss Los Angeles. Dore went on to have a modest career in motion pictures before retiring in 1934.

Early life

Adrienne Dore was born Elizabeth Himmelsbach in

Coeur d'Alene, Idaho Coeur d'Alene ( ; ) is a city and the county seat of Kootenai County, Idaho, United States. It is the most populous city in North Idaho and the principal city of the Coeur d'Alene Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 54,628 at th ...

, to Louis Joseph Himmelsbach and Edith Estelle Kell. The family moved to

Yakima Yakima ( or ) is a city in and the county seat of Yakima County, Washington, United States, and the state's 11th most populous city. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 96,968 and a metropolitan population of 256,728. The ...

and then

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

, where she attended school at a

convent A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

. She performed in her first musical there at age three. Her education at Forrest Ridge Convent was in general studies but she focused on dancing and the theater.

Career

Dore moved to New York City, and pursued a career in acting under the name Adrienne Doré. She was a singer in the musical revue ''"Elliott, Comstock, and Gest"'', performing at the Cocoanut Grove, a nightclub located on the roof of the Century Theatre. She competed in the Miss Los Angeles Beauty contest in 1925, winning, and went on to the Miss America pageant, placing second in the competition. The contestants signed promissory contracts for film appearances with the

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upon winning; Dore's was with

Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...

for 5 years. Adrienne Dore and Edmund Goulding

Dore returned to Los Angeles where she began acting in uncredited roles in silent pictures and two reelers such as ''Johnny's Week End'' and ''Adam's Eve'', before moving on to full feature

talkies A sound film is a Film, motion picture with synchronization, synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, bu ...

. First receiving top billing in minor pictures like ''

Beyond London Lights ''Beyond London Lights'' is a lost 1928 American silent drama film directed by Tom Terriss and starring Adrienne Dore, Lee Shumway, and Bill Elliott. It is based on John Joy Bell's 1917 novel '' Kitty Carstairs'', and is sometimes referred to b ...

'' (1928), then continuing with minor roles alongside such stars as

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 ...

in '' The Wild Party'' (1929). In 1931, she obtained a contract with

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

, and had supporting roles in '' Union Depot'' (1932) and '' The Rich Are Always with Us'' (1932) with

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress of film, television, and theater. Regarded as one of the greatest actresses in Hollywood history, she was noted for her willingness to play unsympatheti ...

. She met and married independent or

B film A B movie, or B film, is a type of cheap, low-budget commercial motion picture. Originally, during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood, this term specifically referred to films meant to be shown as the lesser-known second ...

producer Burt Kelly, who, along with Sam Bischoff and William Saal, headed KBS productions. Dore's last role was in '' Undercover Men'', a 1934 Kelly film.

Later life

Dore and Kelly remained married until his death in 1983. Dore died at the age of 85 in

Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin Chippewa Falls () is a city located on the Chippewa River (Wisconsin), Chippewa River in Chippewa County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 14,731 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Incorporated as a city in 1869, it is the ...

. She is buried without marker in Forest Hill Cemetery in

Filmography

References

Bibliography

* Mayne, Judith. ''Directed by Dorothy Arzner''. Indiana University Press, 1994.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dore, Adrienne 1907 births 1992 deaths American film actresses 20th-century American actresses