Mary Nolan[1905-1948]
Mary Nolan (born Mary Imogene Robertson December 18, 1905 in Hickory Grove, Kentucky died on October 31, 1948 Hollywood, California) was an American actress.
Ziegfeld Follies Dancer
After a bad childhood (her mother died in 1908 and her father was absent) including working as a farm laborer, Mary Robertson moved to New York City in 1919 where she worked as a model. Before long she was discovered by Florenz Ziegfeld, who hired her under the name of Imogene Wilson (the first of three major name changes she was to have) as a dancer in his follies. As a showgirl in New York she was called Bubbles. Her impact as a dancer was so profound that columnist Mark Hellinger once said of her in 1922: Only two people in America would bring every reporter in New York to the docks to see them off. One is the President. The other is Imogene Bubbles Wilson.
German Interlude
It was at this point that she began a long and abusive relationship with comedian Frank Tinney, which would culminate in being hospitalised for injuries he inflicted on her during an argument. Because Tinney was married to another woman, the affair caused a scandal. Mary Robertson was fired from the Ziegfeld Follies and subsequently moved to Germany for two years. While in Germany, she made a large number of films, including "Das Panzergewölbe" and "Verborgene Gluten."
Hollywood Actress
Moving back to the United States in 1927, Mary Robertson adopted the stage name Mary Nolan and had a brief film career starring in films such as "The Foreign Legion", "Shanghai Lady," and "Docks Of San Francisco." She made Sorrel and Son for United Artists in 1927, but her film career declined afterwards. In 1935 she made her final screen appearance in X Marks The Spot. The same year she sued Hollywood producer Edward Mannix for $500,000 in damages. She accused him of beating her. In 1937 Nolan was jailed for an unpaid dress bill.
She turned up sick and broke at the Actor's Fund Home in Amityville, New York. She regained her health and returned to Hollywood in 1939. She lived there in obscurity with a sister, Mrs. Mabel Rondeau.
Drug addiction and death
Unable to gain work she became addicted to heroin and died of cardiac arrest on October 31, 1948. She suffered from a chronic gall bladder ailment and had recently been discharged from Cedars of Lebanon Hospital. She was 42 and weighed only 90 pounds when she died in a small stucco bungalow at 1504 South Mansfield Avenue, Los Angeles, California.
Her tiny apartment was simply furnished except for a single possession. There was a huge antique piano formerly owned by Rudolph Valentino, which almost filled Mary's living room. She bought it from the possessions which were once a part of Falcon's Lair, Valentino's home. Nolan revered the deceased film actor and kept his photo on the music rack.
Mary Nolan had only recently completed negotiations for the sale of her life story, in screenplay and novel form. She previously sold a similar account to a popular magazine, the second instalment of which had only recently been printed.
When she died, the former dancer was still married to Wallace McCreary, who likewise had a tumultuous Hollywood career. Her husband was living in Berkeley, California.
Filmography - actress
1933 File 113/Actor: Mlle. Adoree
1932 The Midnight Patrol/Actor: Miss Willing
1932 Docks of San Francisco/Actor: Belle
1931 The Big Shot/Actor: Fay Turner
1931 X Marks the Spot/Actor: Vivyan Parker
1931 Enemies of the Law/Actor: Florence Vinton
1930 Outside the Law/Actor: Connie Madden
1930 Young Desire/Actor: Helen Herbert
1930 Undertow/Actor: Sally Blake
1929 Shanghai Lady/Actor: Cassie Cook
1929 Charming Sinners/Actor: Anne-Marie Whitley
1929 Eleven Who Where Loyal
1929 Desert Nights/Actor: Lady Diana Stonehill
1929 Silks and Saddles/Actor: Sybil Morrissey
1928 West of Zanzibar/Actor: Maizie
1928 The Foreign Legion/Actor: Sylvia Omney
1928 Good Morning, Judge/Actor: Julia Harrington
1927 Sorrell and Son/Actor: Molly Roland
1927 Topsy and Eva/Actor: Bit Role
(as Imogene Robertson)
1927 Halloh - Caesar!
1927 Erinnerungen einer Nonne
1927 Mädchen von Paris, Die
1926 Panzergewölbe, Das/Actor: Ellen, Frau Elgin
1926 Königin des Weltbades, Die/Actor: Ellen, Frau Elgin
1926 Abenteuer eines Zehnmarkscheines, Die/Actor: Anna, Tochter
1926 Welt will belogen sein, Die/Actor: Ly
1926 Süße Mädel, Das
1926 Wien, wie es weint und lacht
1926 Elf schillschen Offiziere, Die
1926 Unser täglich Brot
1926 Fünf-Uhr-Tee in der Ackerstraße
1925 Unberührte Frau, Die
1925 Feuertänzerin, Die/Actor: Die Feuertänzerin
1925 Parfüm der Mrs. Worrington, Das
1925 Wenn die Liebe nicht wär'!
1925 Verborgene Gluten/Actor: Ias, Jacks Wife
