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Dorothy Revier (born Doris Valerga; April 18, 1904 – November 19, 1993) was an American actress.

Dorothy Revier
Revier in 1929
Born
Doris Valerga[1]

(1904-04-18)April 18, 1904
San Francisco, California, U.S.
DiedNovember 19, 1993(1993-11-19) (aged 89)
Resting placeForest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood Hills
OccupationActress
Years active1921–1936
Spouse(s)Harry Revier (?–1926)
William Pelayo (1950–1964)

Early years

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Born as Doris Valerga in San Francisco[2] on April 18, 1904,[3] Revier was one of five siblings of the famous Valerga performing family of the Bay Area. Her mother was English and her father was Italian.[3] She was educated in the public schools of Oakland before going to New York City to study classical dancing.

Career

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Dorothy Revier c.1930

Revier danced with a Russian ballet company on tour, but homesickness brought her back to San Francisco, where she became the featured dancer at Tait's Cafe.[4] She was discovered by a talent agent while working in a cabaret[5] and signed to a film contract by Harry Cohn.[6]

She made her film debut in Life's Greatest Question (1921)[7] and was active throughout the 1920s, playing in The Virgin (1924),[8] The Supreme Test (1923), An Enemy of Men (1925),[9]: 215  The Far Cry (1926),[9]: 230  Cleopatra (1928),[10] Tanned Legs (1929)[11] and The Iron Mask (1929).[9]: 384 

After recovering from two broken arms suffered in a 1930 car accident, she played roles in low-budget films for Columbia Pictures. In 1935 she played the role of a saloon girl in Paramount Pictures' second Hopalong Cassidy film, The Eagle's Brood, working alongside William Boyd.[12]: 98  In many films she appeared as a vamp, and she later worked as a free-lance performer in Buck Jones Westerns such as Lovable Liar (1933).[13] The Cowboy and the Kid (1936) was her final film.[12]: 70 

Personal life

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Revier was married to director Harry J. Revier, and to commercial artist William Pelayo. Both marriages ended in divorce.[5]

A resident of West Hollywood, Revier died at the age of 89, at the Queen of Angels-Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center,[5] and was interred at Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles area, buried under the simple marker of name and dates, marked with the lone inscription, "Beloved Actress."[14]

Partial filmography

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References

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  1. ^ Valerga family, oac.cdlib.org. Accessed September 5, 2022.
  2. ^ "The WAMPAS Baby Stars of 1925". Wireless Age: The Radio Magazine. 12 (6): 30–31. 1925. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
  3. ^ a b Katchmer, George A. (May 20, 2015). A Biographical Dictionary of Silent Film Western Actors and Actresses. McFarland. p. 320. ISBN 978-1-4766-0905-8. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
  4. ^ Brownlow, Kevin (November 27, 1993). "Perfect Beauty from Poverty Row". The Guardian. England, London. p. 30. Retrieved April 14, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b c "Dorothy Revier Dead; Silent-Film Actress, 89". The New York Times. Associated Press. November 25, 1993. p. D 19. ProQuest 109149670. Retrieved April 14, 2021 – via ProQuest.(subscription required)
  6. ^ George, Harry (January 25, 1931). "Up From Poverty Row". The Times Dispatch. Virginia, Richmond. p. 33. Retrieved April 14, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Soister, John T.; Nicolella, Henry; Joyce, Steve (January 10, 2014). American Silent Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Feature Films, 1913-1929. McFarland. p. 732. ISBN 978-0-7864-8790-5.
  8. ^ Mayer, Geoff (February 7, 2017). Encyclopedia of American Film Serials. McFarland. p. 144. ISBN 978-1-4766-2719-9.
  9. ^ a b c Institute, American Film (1997). The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-20969-5.
  10. ^ Slide, Anthony (February 25, 2014). The New Historical Dictionary of the American Film Industry. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-92561-1.
  11. ^ Maltin, Leonard (July 2, 2018). Hooked on Hollywood: Discoveries from a Lifetime of Film Fandom. Paladin Communications. ISBN 978-1-7322735-0-4.
  12. ^ a b Pitts, Michael R. (January 4, 2013). Western Movies: A Guide to 5,105 Feature Films, 2d ed. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-6372-5.
  13. ^ Cocchi, John (1991). Second Feature: The Best of the B's. Carol Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-8065-1186-3.
  14. ^ Wilson, Scott (2016). Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons (3rd ed.). McFarland. p. 624.
  • Fresno, California Bee Republican, "Louella Parsons Column", February 1, 1933, Page 4.
  • Oakland, California Tribune, "Mother Wife In Oakland Maid's Bigamy Tangle", February 23, 1923, Page 15.
  • Oakland Tribune, "Oakland Girl Screen Star", Sunday, June 10, 1923, Page 12-A.
  • Oakland Tribune, "In New Hall of Fame", Thursday evening, November 10, 1935, Page B25.
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