Agnes Ayres

Agnes Ayres
Ayres circa 1920
Born Agnes Eyre Henkel
(1898-04-04)April 4, 1898
Carbondale, Illinois, U.S.
Died December 25, 1940(1940-12-25) (aged 42)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting place Hollywood Forever Cemetery
Other names Agnes Eyre
Occupation Actress
Years active 1914–1937
Spouse(s) Captain Frank P. Schuker (1921–1921)
S. Manuel Reachi (July 13, 1924 – June 10, 1927) 1 daughter

Agnes Ayres (born Agnes Eyre Henkel, April 4, 1898 – December 25, 1940) was an American actress who rose to fame during the silent film era. She was known for her role as Lady Diana Mayo in The Sheik opposite Rudolph Valentino.[1]

Early life and career

Ayres was born in Carbondale, Illinois, to Solon and Emma (née Slack) Henkel. She had an older brother, Solon William Henkel, who was a decade her senior. She began her career in 1914 when she was noticed by an Essanay Studios staff director and cast as an extra in a crowd scene.[1]

After moving to Manhattan, New York City, with her mother to pursue a career in acting, Ayres was spotted by actress Alice Joyce. Joyce noticed the physical resemblance the two shared which eventually led to Ayres being cast in Richard the Brazen (1917), as Joyce's character's sister. Ayres' career began to gain momentum when Paramount Pictures founder Jesse Lasky began to take an interest in her. Lasky gave her a starring role in the Civil War drama Held by the Enemy (1920), and also lobbied for parts for her in several Cecil B. DeMille productions.[2] It was during this time that Ayres married, and quickly divorced, Captain Frank P. Schuker, an army officer whom she had wed during World War I. She also began a romance with Lasky.[3]

In 1921, Ayres shot to stardom when she was cast as Lady Diana Mayo, an English heiress opposite "Latin lover" Rudolph Valentino in The Sheik. Ayres later reprised her role as Lady Diana in the 1926 sequel Son of the Sheik. Following the release of The Sheik, she went on to have major roles in many other films including The Affairs of Anatol (1921) starring Wallace Reid, Forbidden Fruit (1921), and Cecil B. DeMille's epic The Ten Commandments (1923).

By 1923, Ayres' career began to wane following the end of her relationship with Jesse Lasky. She married Mexican diplomat S. Manuel Reachi in 1924. The couple had a daughter before divorcing in 1927.[4][5][6]

In 1929, Ayres lost her fortune and real estate holdings in the Wall Street Crash of 1929.[1] That same year, she also appeared in her last major role in The Donovan Affair, starring Jack Holt. To earn money, she left acting and played the vaudeville circuit. She returned to acting in 1936, confident that she could make a comeback. Unable to secure starring roles and somewhat overweight, Ayres appeared in mostly uncredited bit parts and finally retired from acting for good in 1937.[4]

Later years and death

After her retirement, Ayres became despondent and was eventually committed to a sanatorium. She also lost custody of her daughter to Reachi, in 1939.[4]

She died from a cerebral hemorrhage on Christmas Day, December 25, 1940, at her home in Hollywood, California, at the age of 42; she had been ill for several weeks.[1][7] She is interred in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.

Legacy

In 1960, Ayres was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame with a motion pictures star at 6504 Hollywood Boulevard for her contributions to the film industry.[8]

Selected filmography

Agnes Ayres as Helen Allen in the 1920 film Go and Get It - Munsey’s Magazine, 1920
Ayres on a lobby card for The Sheik
Ayres, c. 1921
Year Title Role Notes
1914 The Masked Wrestler Uncredited
1915 His New Job Extra, Secretary Alternative title: Charlie's New Job
1917 Motherhood The Mother Credited as Agnes Eyre
1917 The Debt Countess Ann Credited as Agnes Eyre
1917 Mrs. Balfame Alys Crumley Credited as Agnes Eyre
1917 Hedda Gabler Credited as Agnes Eyre
1917 The Mirror undetermined Credited as Agnes Eyre
1917 The Dazzling Miss Davison Lillian, Miss Davison's sister Credited as Agnes Eyre
1917 The Defeat of the City Alicia Van Der Pool Credited as Agnes Eyre
1918 The Purple Dress Maida
1918 The Enchanted Profile Ida Bates
1918 Sisters of the Golden Circle Mrs. James Williams
1918 One Thousand Dollars Margarett Hayden
1919 The Girl Problem Helen Reeves
1919 A Stitch in Time Lela Trevor
1919 In Honor's Web Carson
1919 Sacred Silence
1919 The Gamblers Isabel Merson
1920 A Modern Salome Helen Torrence Lost film
1920 The Inner Voice Barbara
1920 Go and Get It Helen Allen
1920 Held by the Enemy Rachel Hayne Lost film
1921 The Love Special Laura Gage
1921 Too Much Speed Virginia MacMurran
1921 Cappy Ricks Florrie Ricks Incomplete film
1921 The Affairs of Anatol Annie Elliott
1921 The Sheik Lady Diana Mayo
1922 The Lane That Had No Turning Madelinette Lost film
1922 Bought and Paid For Virginia Blaine Lost film
1922 The Ordeal Sybil Bruce Lost film
1922 A Daughter of Luxury Mary Fenton
1922 Clarence Violet Pinney Lost film
1923 The Heart Raider Muriel Gray (a speed girl)
1923 Racing Hearts Virginia Kent Lost film
1923 The Ten Commandments The Outcast
1923 The Marriage Maker Alexandra Vancy Lost film
1923 Don't Call It Love Alice Meldrum
1923 Hollywood Herself (cameo)
1924 When a Girl Loves Sasha Boroff
1924 Bluff Betty Hallowell
1924 The Guilty One Irene Short
1924 Detained Short film
1924 The Story Without a Name Mary Walsworth Lost film
1925 Tomorrow's Love Judith Stanley
1925 Her Market Value Nancy Dumont
1925 The Awful Truth Lucy Satterlee
1925 Morals for Men Bessie Hayes
1926 The Son of the Sheik Lady Diana
1927 Eve's Love Letters The Wife
1928 Into the Night Billie Mardon
1929 The Donovan Affair Lydia Rankin
1936 Small Town Girl Catherine Uncredited
1937 Maid of Salem Bit Part Uncredited
1937 Midnight Taxi Society woman Uncredited
1937 Souls at Sea Bit Role Uncredited
1937 Morning Judge Mrs. Kennedy

Further reading

  • Michael G. Ankerich (2010). Dangerous Curves atop Hollywood Heels: The Lives, Careers, and Misfortunes of 14 Hard-Luck Girls of the Silent Screen. BearManor. ISBN 1-59393-605-2.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Agnes Ayres, Star Of Silent Pictures. Actress Who Played Opposite Rudolph Valentino in 'Sheik' Dies in Hollywood, Calif. Lost Her Fortune In 1929. Tried to Make Comeback in the Talkies. Had Small Role in Cooper-Raft Film in '37". The New York Times. Associated Press. December 26, 1940.
  2. ↑ Brettell, Andrew; King, Noel; Kennedy, Damien; Imwold, Denise (2005). Cut!: Hollywood Murders, Accidents, and Other Tragedies. Leonard, Warren Hsu; von Rohr, Heather. Barrons Educational Series. p. 23. ISBN 0-7641-5858-9.
  3. ↑ Parish, James Robert (2002). The Hollywood Book of Death: The Bizarre, Often Sordid, Passings of More Than 125 American Movie and TV Idols (3 ed.). Contemporary Books. p. 93. ISBN 0-8092-2227-2.
  4. 1 2 3 Parish, James Robert (2002). The Hollywood Book of Death: The Bizarre, Often Sordid, Passings of More Than 125 American Movie and TV Idols (3 ed.). Contemporary Books. p. 94. ISBN 0-8092-2227-2.
  5. ↑ "Agnes Ayres Has a Daughter". The New York Times. Associated Press. March 27, 1926.
  6. ↑ "Agnes Ayres Gets Divorce". The New York Times. Associated Press. June 25, 1927.
  7. ↑ Katz, Ephraim (1994). The Film Encyclopedia: The Most Comprehensive Encyclopedia of World Cinema in a Single Volume. HarperCollins She is interred in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Hollywood, CA. Publishers. p. 68. ISBN 0-06-273089-4.
  8. ↑ "Hollywood Walk of Fame - Agnes Ayres". walkoffame.com. Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved November 8, 2017.
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