Barbara La Marr (born Reatha Dale Watson; July , â€" January , ) was
an American film actress and screenwriter who appeared in twenty-seven
films during her career between and . La Marr was also noted by the
media for her beauty, dubbed as the "Girl Who Is Too Beautiful," as
well as her tumultuous personal life.Born in Yakima, Washington, La
Marr spent her early life in the Pacific Northwest before relocating
with her family to California when she was a teenager. After
performing in vaudeville and working as a dancer in New York City, she
moved to Los Angeles with her second husband and became a screenwriter
for Fox Film Corporation, writing several successful films for the
company. La Marr was finally "discovered" by Douglas Fairbanks, who
gave her a prominent role in The Nut (), then cast her as Milady de
Winter in his production of The Three Musketeers (). After two further
career-boosting films with director Rex Ingram (The Prisoner of Zenda
and Trifling Women, both with Ramon Novarro), La Marr signed with
Arthur H. Sawyer to make several films for various studios, including
The Hero (), Souls for Sale (), and The Shooting of Dan McGrew (), the
first and last of which she co-wrote.During her career, La Marr became
known as the pre-eminent vamp of the s; she partied and drank heavily,
once remarking to the press that she only slept two hours a night. In
, La Marr's health began to falter after a series of crash diets for
comeback roles further affected her lifestyle, leading to her death
from pulmonary tuberculosis and nephritis at age . She was
posthumously honored on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her
contributions to the film industry.
an American film actress and screenwriter who appeared in twenty-seven
films during her career between and . La Marr was also noted by the
media for her beauty, dubbed as the "Girl Who Is Too Beautiful," as
well as her tumultuous personal life.Born in Yakima, Washington, La
Marr spent her early life in the Pacific Northwest before relocating
with her family to California when she was a teenager. After
performing in vaudeville and working as a dancer in New York City, she
moved to Los Angeles with her second husband and became a screenwriter
for Fox Film Corporation, writing several successful films for the
company. La Marr was finally "discovered" by Douglas Fairbanks, who
gave her a prominent role in The Nut (), then cast her as Milady de
Winter in his production of The Three Musketeers (). After two further
career-boosting films with director Rex Ingram (The Prisoner of Zenda
and Trifling Women, both with Ramon Novarro), La Marr signed with
Arthur H. Sawyer to make several films for various studios, including
The Hero (), Souls for Sale (), and The Shooting of Dan McGrew (), the
first and last of which she co-wrote.During her career, La Marr became
known as the pre-eminent vamp of the s; she partied and drank heavily,
once remarking to the press that she only slept two hours a night. In
, La Marr's health began to falter after a series of crash diets for
comeback roles further affected her lifestyle, leading to her death
from pulmonary tuberculosis and nephritis at age . She was
posthumously honored on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her
contributions to the film industry.
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