Mae Busch
| Mae Busch | |
|---|---|
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| Born | Annie May Busch 18 June 1891 Melbourne, Australia |
| Died | 20 April 1946 (aged 54) San Fernando Valley, California |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1912–1946 |
| Spouse | Francis McDonald (m. 1915–1922) divorced John Earl Cassell (m. 1926–1929) divorced Thomas C. Tate (m. 1936–1946) her death |
Mae Busch (18 June 1891 – 20 April 1946) was an Australian film actress who worked in both silent and sound films in early Hollywood. In the latter part of her career, she appeared in many Laurel and Hardy comedies, where she frequently played Hardy's shrewish wife.
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[edit] Early life and career
Born in Melbourne, Australia, Busch was a member of a musical family. Her father was a conductor of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and her mother was a singer.[1] In 1900 her family moved to America, where she was placed in a convent.[1] Upon her graduation Busch decided to pursue a career in theatre, and appeared on stage and then in vaudeville. She first appeared in films in The Agitator and The Water Nymph, both released in 1912. In 1915 she began working at Keystone Studios, where she appeared in comedy two-reelers. Her dalliance with studio chief Mack Sennett famously ended his engagement to actress Mabel Normand when Normand allegedly walked in on the pair. Normand had been Busch's friend and mentor prior to the incident. According to some accounts, Busch inflicted a serious head injury on Normand by striking her with a vase (she was known for pinpoint throwing accuracy); Normand died a few years later at age 37 from health problems, principally tuberculosis.
At the pinnacle of her film career, Busch was known as the versatile vamp. She starred in such feature films as The Devil's Pass Key (1920) and Foolish Wives (1923), both directed by Erich von Stroheim, and in The Unholy Three (1925), with Lon Chaney. Her career declined abruptly in 1926, when she walked out on her contract at Metro–Goldwyn–Mayer and suffered a nervous breakdown.[2] Afterwards, she found herself working for less prestigious studios such as Gotham and Tiffany, and she was relegated mostly to supporting roles.[2]
In 1927, she was offered a leading role in a Hal Roach two-reeler, Love 'em and Weep, which began her long association with Laurel and Hardy. She appeared in thirteen of their comedies, the last being The Bohemian Girl, released in 1936. Her film roles after 1936 were often uncredited. Overall, she had roles in approximately one hundred and thirty motion pictures between 1912 and 1946. Jackie Gleason later mentioned her name on his television show as "the ever-popular Mae Busch".
[edit] Personal life and death
Busch married three times: to actor Francis McDonald from 1915–1922; to John Earl Cassell from 1926–29; and to civil engineer Thomas C. Tate from 1936 until her death.
Busch died in 1946, age 54, at a San Fernando Valley sanitarium where she had been ill for five months with colon cancer. Her grave is located at Chapel of the Pines Crematory. For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Mae Busch has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame located at 7021 Hollywood Blvd.
[edit] Selected filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1912 | The Water Nymph | Alternative title: The Beach Flirt | |
| 1919 | The Grim Game | Ethel Delmead | |
| 1920 | Her Husband's Friends | Clarice | |
| 1922 | Foolish Wives | Princess Vera Petchnikoff | |
| Brothers Under the Skin | Flo Bulger | ||
| 1923 | Souls for Sale | Robina Teele | |
| 1924 | Name the man | Bessie Collister | |
| Bread | Jeanette Sturgis | ||
| Broken Barriers | Irene Kirby | ||
| Married Flirts | Jill Wetherell | ||
| 1925 | The Unholy Three | Rosie O'Grady | |
| 1927 | Love 'em and Weep | Old flame | |
| 1928 | While the City Sleeps | Bessie | |
| 1929 | Alibi | Daisy Thomas | |
| Unaccustomed As We Are | Mrs. Hardy | ||
| 1931 | Chickens Come Home | Ollie's Old Time Flame | Uncredited |
| Fly My Kite | Dan's new wife | ||
| Come Clean | Kate | ||
| 1932 | Their First Mistake | Mrs. Arabella Hardy | |
| Doctor X | Cathouse Madame | ||
| 1933 | Blondie Johnson | Mae | |
| Lilly Turner | Hazel | ||
| Sons of the Desert | Mrs. Lottie Hardy | Alternative title: Fraternally Yours | |
| 1934 | Oliver the Eighth | Widow | Alternative title: The Private Life of Oliver the Eighth |
| The Road to Ruin | Mrs. Monroe | Uncredited | |
| Going Bye-Bye! | Butch's girlfriend | ||
| Them Thar Hills | Mrs. Hall | ||
| The Live Ghost | Maisie the Vamp, Blonde Floozy | ||
| 1935 | Tit for Tat | Grocer's wife | |
| The Fixer Uppers | Madame Pierre Gustave | ||
| 1936 | The Bohemian Girl | Mrs. Hardy | |
| 1938 | Daughter of Shanghai | Lil | Uncredited Alternative title: Daughter of the Orient |
| The Buccaneer | Bit Role | Uncredited | |
| Marie Antoinette | Madame La Motte | Uncredited | |
| 1941 | Ziegfeld Girl | Jenny | |
| 1942 | The Mad Monster | Susan | |
| 1946 | The Blue Dahlia | Jenny – Maid | Uncredited |
| The Bride Wore Boots | Woman | Uncredited |
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
- The Los Angeles Times, Death Claims Mae Busch, 54, Page A1.
- Mae Busch at the Laurel and Hardy Society Website
- Maltin, Leonard (1973). The Laurel and Hardy Book. New York: Curtis.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Mae Busch |
- Mae Busch at the Internet Movie Database
- Mae Busch at Find a Grave
- Mae Busch at Virtual History
