Carol Dempster (December 9, 1901 – February 1, 1991) was an American film actress of the

silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...

era. She appeared in films from 1916 to 1926, working with

D. W. Griffith David Wark Griffith (January 22, 1875 – July 23, 1948) was an American film director. Considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the motion picture, he pioneered many aspects of film editing and expanded the art of the n ...

extensively.

Early years

Born in

Duluth, Minnesota Duluth ( ) is a Port, port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County. Located on Lake Superior in Minnesota's Arrowhead Region, the city is a hub for cargo shipping. The population ...

, Dempster was the daughter of a captain on the Great Lakes and the youngest of four children. The family moved to California when her father decided to change careers. While dancing in a school program, Dempster was noticed by

Ruth St. Denis Ruth St. Denis (born Ruth Dennis; January 20, 1879 – July 21, 1968) was an American pioneer of modern dance, introducing eastern ideas into the art and paving the way for other women in dance. She was inspired by the Delsarte advocate Gene ...

and went on to become the youngest graduate in the first class of St. Denis's school of dance.

Career

Dempster's first feature role came in 1919 in the Griffith directed ''The Girl Who Stayed at Home'' opposite Robert "Bobby" Harron. Dempster followed this with Griffith's '' The Love Flower'' (1920), '' Dream Street'' (1921), '' One Exciting Night'' (1922) and ''

Isn't Life Wonderful ''Isn't Life Wonderful'' is a 1924 American silent romantic drama film directed by D. W. Griffith for his company D. W. Griffith Productions, and distributed by United Artists. It was based on the short story "Isn’t Life Wonderful?" in th ...

'' (1924), ''

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

'' (1924), ''

Sally of the Sawdust ''Sally of the Sawdust'' is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by D. W. Griffith and starring Carol Dempster and W. C. Fields. It was based on the 1923 stage musical ''Poppy''. Fields would later star in a second film version, ''Pop ...

'' (1925), and ''

That Royle Girl ''That Royle Girl'' is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by D. W. Griffith and released by Paramount Pictures. The film was based on the novel of the same name by Edwin Balmer, and starred Carol Dempster, W. C. Fields and Harri ...

'' (1925). Dempster appeared opposite such notable actors as

John Barrymore John Barrymore (born John Sidney Blyth; February 14 or 15, 1882 – May 29, 1942) was an American actor on stage, screen, and radio. A member of the Drew and Barrymore theatrical families, he initially tried to avoid the stage, and briefly a ...

Richard Barthelmess Richard Semler Barthelmess (May 9, 1895 – August 17, 1963) was an American film actor, principally of the Hollywood silent era. He starred opposite Lillian Gish in D. W. Griffith's '' Broken Blossoms'' (1919) and ''Way Down East'' (1920) and ...

William Powell William Horatio Powell (July 29, 1892 – March 5, 1984) was an American actor, known primarily for his film career. Under contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, he was paired with Myrna Loy in 14 films, including the ''The Thin Man (film), Thin M ...

Ivor Novello Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh actor, dramatist, singer and composer who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. He was born into a musical ...

, and

W. C. Fields William Claude Dukenfield (January 29, 1880 – December 25, 1946), better known as W. C. Fields, was an American actor, comedian, juggler and writer. His career in show business began in vaudeville, where he attained international success as a ...

. In 1926 Dempster acted in her final film, a Griffith vehicle entitled ''

The Sorrows of Satan ''The Sorrows of Satan'' is an 1895 Faustian novel by Marie Corelli. It is widely regarded as one of the world's first best-sellers – partly due to an upheaval in the system British libraries used to purchase their books, and partly due to it ...

'' (1926), co-starring

Adolphe Menjou Adolphe Jean Menjou (February 18, 1890 – October 29, 1963) was an American actor whose career spanned both silent films and talkies. He became a leading man during the 1920s, known for his debonair and sophisticated screen presence. He was no ...

Ricardo Cortez Ricardo Cortez (born Jacob Kranze or Jacob Krantz; September 19, 1900 – April 28, 1977) was an American actor and film director. He was also credited as Jack Crane early in his acting career. Early years Ricardo Cortez was born Jacob K ...

, and the Hungarian vamp

Lya De Putti Lya de Putti (born Amália Helena Mária Róza Putti; , 10 January 1896 – 27 November 1931) was a Hungarian film actress during the silent film, silent era. She was noted for her portrayals of vamp (woman), vamp characters. Early life and care ...

. Dempster then retired from the screen to marry wealthy banker Edwin S. Larson in 1926. Dempster's critical stock was never very high, in part because she was unable to live up to the performances of Lillian Gish, whom she replaced as Griffith's leading lady. Her somewhat "ordinary" appearance and animated acting style were frequently criticized. Also, with a few exceptions, the films she appeared in were not among Griffith's more popular works. In recent years, however, viewers and critics alike have slowly begun to appreciate her performances, particularly in two later films, ''Isn't Life Wonderful'' and ''The Sorrows of Satan.''

Death

Dempster died in

La Jolla, California La Jolla ( , ) is a hilly, seaside neighborhood in San Diego, California, occupying of curving coastline along the Pacific Ocean. The population reported in the 2010 census was 46,781. The climate is mild, with an average daily temperature o ...

, in 1991 at the age of 89 from

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to Cardiac cycle, fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF ...

and was buried at the

Forest Lawn Memorial Park Forest Lawn may refer to: Cemeteries California * Forest Lawn Memorial-Parks & Mortuaries, a chain of cemeteries in southern California * Forest Lawn Cemetery (Cathedral City), California * Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale), California * Fore ...

cemetery in

Glendale, California Glendale is a city located primarily in the Verdugo Mountains region, with a small portion in the San Fernando Valley, of Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is located about north of downtown Los Angeles. As of 2024, Glendale ha ...

. Upon her death, Dempster left $1.6 million to the San Diego Museum of Art, which was used to expand the museum's collections of prints and drawings.

Filmography

All features were directed by

except ''

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a Detective fiction, fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "Private investigator, consulting detective" in his stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with obser ...

'', which was directed by Albert Parker. ''The Hope Chest'', a product of the New Art Film Company from 1918, was produced by Griffith but directed by

Elmer Clifton Elmer Clifton Forsyth (March 14, 1890 – October 15, 1949) was an American director, screenwriter, and actor from the early silent days. Early life Elmer Clifton Forsyth was born in Toronto, Canada, to Cecil Carl Forsyth and Margaret Nicoll ...

Footnotes

Sources

* * * *Koszarski, Richard. 2008. ''Hollywood on the Hudson: Film and Television in New York from Griffith to Sarnoff.'' Rutgers University Press.

External links

*
Carol Dempster at Golden SilentsCarol Dempster
at Virtual History {{DEFAULTSORT:Dempster, Carol 1901 births 1991 deaths American film actresses American silent film actresses Actresses from Duluth, Minnesota 20th-century American actresses Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)